The Trump administration is allegedly considering an executive order that would require banks to collect citizenship information, such as passports, from account holders, according to multiple outlets.
Kush Desai, a spokesperson for the White House, told Semafor that “any reporting about potential policymaking that has not been officially announced by the White House is baseless speculation.”
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the alleged order under consideration.
Exclusive: The Trump administration is considering an order that forces banks to collect citizenship information from customers https://t.co/Tu8oIHbqrk
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) February 24, 2026
Semafor shared further:
It is unclear where the Treasury Department, which did not comment for this story, stands on the proposal.
Already, the industry is pushing back out of concern that the potential move — via presidential order, not legislation — would be costly and complicated to implement. Illicit finance laws require financial institutions to collect some personal information on their customers, but not citizenship details specifically.
One financial services lobbyist called the idea a “complete nightmare” logistically. The lobbyist also warned of potential pushback from GOP voters: “The admin might think this is a good idea until Joe MAGA in Alabama is asked to present his papers.”
“Verifying every bank customer’s citizenship status would be unworkable,” said another person familiar with the recent talks. “Such a mandate could force every bank in America to solicit documentation that many everyday Americans do not have on hand. To put that into perspective, the US government has spent the last 20 years trying to encourage adoption of the REAL ID, and even that form of documentation does not constitute proof of citizenship.”
“Any requirement that a deposit holder has to be a U.S. citizen, [banks] wouldn’t be happy about, because that would mean they lose some business from foreign nationals, and it might be valuable business,” Chi Chi Wu, an attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, told Axios.
Wu said the Trump administration likely wouldn’t be able to unilaterally implement the requirements.
“The potential order would mandate passports or other documentation, though officials say the plan is still under consideration amid criticism,” One America News wrote.
The Trump administration is weighing a proposal to require banks to verify customer citizenship as part of its immigration crackdown, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.
— One America News (@OANN) February 25, 2026
The potential order would mandate passports or other documentation, though officials say the… pic.twitter.com/jkG68ULKsI
Axios has more:
The administration would probably instead go through the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), a law that governs how administrative agencies can change regulations, Wu says.
That process could take a year or two.
The Right to Financial Privacy Act has a baseline rule that “the government can’t just ask a bank to give over financial records,” Wu notes. “They have to have some sort of reason for it,” such as a subpoena.
Under the “know your customers” rule, financial institutions are required to collect certain information to prevent money laundering.
Those rules don’t require the verification of citizenship.
There is no rule preventing banks from opening accounts for noncitizens in the U.S.
Some banks require a Social Security Number to open an account, but several major ones don’t, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo.
Banks would likely push back against any such move, Wu says.
