Overview
- Multiple outlets report the administration is considering directing banks to verify customers’ citizenship, with options including an executive order or using Treasury’s FinCEN authorities.
- The requirement under discussion could be retroactive, prompting banks to solicit documents such as passports from existing as well as new account holders, according to people familiar with the talks.
- Banks currently follow anti–money-laundering and know-your-customer rules that do not require collecting or verifying citizenship status, and many Americans do not have passports.
- The White House says no policy has been approved and characterizes reporting on unannounced measures as baseless speculation, while financial institutions quietly lobby against the idea.
- Legal analysts and trade sources anticipate court challenges over statutory authority and privacy constraints, as supporters like Sen. Tom Cotton publicly back restricting access for undocumented migrants.