Lutnick Reveals How Trump’s Proposed $5,000 Dividend Could Be Funded Without Taxpayer Money

President Donald Trump’s administration is outlining a plan to deliver $5,000 payments to American adults without raising taxes or adding to the federal debt, according to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Rather than relying on traditional tax collections, Lutnick said the White House is exploring revenue generated through a new immigration program for affluent foreign nationals, along with returns from the federal government’s investment in semiconductor giant Intel.

“It’s not tax money,” Lutnick told NBC News, maintaining that the federal government could “earn” the money required to help finance the president’s proposed dividend.

One potential source is the Trump Platinum Card, a planned Commerce Department initiative offering wealthy foreign nationals extended access to the United States.

Under Lutnick’s description of the program, vetted applicants would contribute $5 million to the federal government in addition to paying the required processing fees.

More than 100,000 prospective applicants are already on the waiting list, Lutnick said. If every applicant qualified and paid the entire contribution, the program could theoretically produce approximately $500 billion.

That projection remains preliminary. The program has not fully launched, and there is no guarantee that everyone currently expressing interest will complete the vetting process or make the required payment.

Lutnick also identified the government’s equity position in Intel as another possible source of revenue.

The federal government acquired approximately 433 million Intel shares for around $8.9 billion. The investment has since appreciated significantly as the company’s stock price increased.

Lutnick valued the government’s gain at approximately $50 billion, although independent estimates have placed the unrealized increase closer to the mid-$30 billion range, depending on the market price used.

Because those gains remain unrealized, however, the government would generally need to sell shares before the profits could become available for cash payments.

The Commerce secretary’s remarks add another funding possibility to a proposal that administration officials have discussed from several angles since Trump introduced it.

Vice President J.D. Vance has cited tariff revenue as one possible funding stream. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, meanwhile, has suggested that Congress could establish the program through the budget reconciliation process.

Trump unveiled the proposal at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, pledging a $5,000 dividend for American adults if voters preserve Republican control of both chambers of Congress in November.

The president framed the payments as a return to Americans from the economic success generated under his administration. He also said recipients would be required to spend the money within the United States—a condition designed to keep the resulting economic activity at home.

The scale of the proposal would make securing adequate funding a significant challenge.

FactCheck.org estimated that providing $5,000 to every adult American citizen would cost approximately $1.2 trillion. Even under Lutnick’s optimistic Platinum Card projection, the anticipated $500 billion would cover less than half that amount.

Profits from the government’s Intel position would provide only another fraction of the estimated total. Current tariff receipts also remain well below what would be required to finance the entire program, according to FactCheck.org’s analysis.

Trump has indicated that congressional authorization might not be required, but outside legal assessments—and comments from officials within his administration—suggest that legislation would probably be necessary for payments of this magnitude. Hassett’s reference to reconciliation offers one potential path through Congress.

The White House has yet to publish final eligibility requirements, a distribution schedule or a complete financing plan accounting for the proposal’s full cost.

Still, Lutnick’s comments, first reported by Newsmax, offer the administration’s clearest explanation yet for how a substantial portion of Trump’s dividend could be funded through new government-generated revenue rather than higher taxes or additional borrowing.

The decisive issue will be whether the Platinum Card program, federal investments, tariffs and other revenue sources can collectively produce enough money to turn the president’s ambitious $5,000 pledge into reality.