The framework involves a gift to the U.S. government plus a processing fee. A gift is not an investment and should not be expected to be returnable; the published terms are the authority on both amounts.
Treat the money as spent, because that is what a gift means
Hypothetical example: The financial structure is the clearest way to distinguish this framework from the investment categories. In EB-5 the investor's capital goes into an enterprise, remains the investor's capital, is at risk of loss and may generate a return. In E-2 the investor owns and directs a business and can sell it.
Under the Gold Card framework the applicant gifts funds to the U.S. government and pays a processing fee, acquiring no asset and no claim. Any household considering it should assume the money is gone and ask whether the outcome is worth that on its own terms.
Verify the current amounts and what the processing fee covers on the official page, on the day the decision is made, and note whether the material addresses refunds in any circumstance. Also confirm what the framework says about the underlying immigrant category, because that determines what the applicant actually receives.