IN THIS GUIDE · Reading the published corporate terms accurately before any money moves
Start with the GOLD CARD eligibility and application overview
What the framework is, and what it is not
The Gold Card is not a conventional visa category with its own statute. As the official program material describes it, an applicant pays a nonrefundable DHS processing fee and, after successful vetting, makes a gift to the U.S. government; successful applicants then proceed through EB-1 or EB-2, subject to category eligibility, admissibility and visa availability. The gift is not an investment. It is not placed in an enterprise, it creates no jobs anyone must prove, it is not measured against a business plan, and it is not returned. Anyone presenting it to Viktor as an EB-5 alternative priced differently is describing something the official material does not say.
The published figures his accountant asked about
The official material states a nonrefundable US$15,000 DHS processing fee per person. After successful vetting, the principal gift is US$1 million for an individual or US$2 million per corporate-sponsored employee. Each eligible joining spouse or unmarried child under 21 adds US$15,000 and US$1 million, including in corporate cases. The corporate terms describe a one percent annual maintenance obligation and a five percent transfer fee, and a transfer includes a new DHS background check. Those are the numbers to put in front of an accountant, with the date they were read, and they must be re-verified on the official page before any money moves.
What the evidence in Viktor's file must actually prove
Three things, and a screenshot proves none of them. First, what the official terms said on the date a decision was taken, which means a dated record of the official page rather than an intermediary's summary. Second, what the American customer has actually committed to, which means a written sponsorship arrangement naming who pays the processing fee, who bears the gift, who carries the annual maintenance and what happens if Viktor leaves. Third, his own eligibility for the underlying category, since proceeding through EB-1 or EB-2 depends on meeting that category's requirements, admissibility and visa availability rather than on payment.
Why a transfer clause deserves its own reading
The transfer terms are where a corporate arrangement most affects the individual. A five percent transfer fee is a cost someone must bear, and a new DHS background check means a transfer is not an administrative formality with a predictable outcome. Reuse of a prior corporate principal gift is not, under the official process, an automatic approval of a replacement employee. Viktor's accountant should therefore ask who bears the transfer fee, what happens to his position if the customer restructures, and whether anything in the arrangement leaves him relying on an outcome the government has not granted. Additional State Department and medical costs may also apply.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.