A pending Gold Card application does not itself provide work authorization.
Review the actual proposed activity and permission
Assess any trip on its truthful purpose and applicable entry and status rules. Do not conceal an intended work activity or treat the immigrant payment as permission to begin employment under a different travel document.
Do not use the Gold Card calendar to expand visitor activity. Filing the online application, paying the US$15,000 nonrefundable DHS processing fee, receiving a Form I-140G prompt, or later making the requested US$1 million gift does not by itself authorize employment. Any visitor entry must retain its truthful permitted purpose; productive services, management, or onboarding should wait for independent authorization. Track the stages separately: initial application and fee, settlement of the processing-fee payment, USCIS invitation to file Form I-140G, government vetting, post-vetting gift request, EB-1 or EB-2 adjudication, visa availability, and actual admission or adjustment. Confirm current official instructions before transferring funds, and never treat this program as EB-5.
Hypothetical example: A food photographer in Rivière-Éternité plans to visit the United States while a Gold Card case is under review and is asked to shoot a paid catalogue during that trip. She declines the assignment because the visitor visa and pending immigrant process do not establish work permission. Her travel itinerary remains limited to permissible activities, while another authorized photographer handles production. She keeps the US$1 million reserved until a verified request follows vetting and does not schedule employment from an estimated approval date.