kashif javed
The world is a strange place. Some people spend months struggling to get a visa, while others are handed citizenship on a silver platter for five million dollars. And if luck is on their side, they even get a free smile from the U.S. president.
When Donald Trump announced the “Gold Card” visa, his approach was exactly like that of a businessman launching a new scheme: “Just pay five million dollars, and the U.S. passport is yours!” As if citizenship were no different from a penthouse in New York—something any oligarch or kleptocrat could acquire with a few payments from their bank account.
This is nothing new. Many countries have previously sold “Golden Visas,” only to later realize that such schemes were opening doors for corruption and money laundering. As a result, one by one, countries across Europe and the UK shut down these pathways. But Trump is someone who knows how to break down closed doors. To think that a man who dreamed of building a wall on the Mexican border would hesitate to open America’s gates for the right price is pure naivety.
The real issue isn’t just that Trump has found a new way to sell American citizenship. The bigger concern is the complete lack of scrutiny over where the money is coming from, who is bringing it, and what their background is. When asked whether Russian oligarchs would be eligible for this scheme, Trump replied: “Yes, possibly. I know some Russian oligarchs; they are very good people.”
But who exactly are “good people”? Are they the ones who book rooms in Trump’s hotels? The ones who invest in his businesses? Or those with whom he has shared business interests in the past? The world knows all too well how definitions of “good” and “bad” can change—especially when millions of dollars are involved.
It’s no surprise that kleptocrats worldwide have always been eager for such visa programs. Cyprus, Malta, the UK, several Caribbean islands—wherever the opportunity arose, they bought citizenship and built financial empires. Investigations in the UK revealed that Russian billionaires were among the biggest beneficiaries of these schemes, and yet, no one ever asked where their money came from.
The U.S. already had the EB-5 visa program, which granted green cards in exchange for investment. At least that program had the pretense of economic contribution—investors were expected to create jobs and boost the American economy. But under this new scheme, citizenship will be handed out in exchange for cash, with no questions asked about the source of the money or the individuals involved.
For Trump, national security is not the issue. Neither is the economic impact of this program. The only thing that seems to matter is: “These people are rich, they are successful, they will spend a lot of money, pay a lot of taxes, and create many jobs.” But who will get these jobs? Where will this money be spent? And just how “good” will these individuals be? Better not to ask.
If anyone thinks the U.S. is about to become an officially sanctioned haven for kleptocrats and oligarchs, they might not be wrong. After all, in a world where even democracies are up for sale, setting a price for citizenship is hardly surprising.
Note: The “Qalam Club” does not necessarily agree with the personal views of the authors
