WHAT HAPPENED: The Trump administration is considering an Executive Order requiring banks to gather citizenship information from customers.

WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Trump administration, U.S. banks, and Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

WHEN & WHERE: Discussions are believed to be ongoing as of February 2026.

IMPACT: The order would allow the Trump administration to open a new front in the financial sector as part of its ongoing efforts to deport millions of illegal immigrants unlawfully residing in the U.S.

President Donald J. Trump is considering a new Executive Order mandating that banks operating in the United States require citizenship documentation from customers. The order would allow the Trump administration to open a new front in the financial sector as part of its ongoing efforts to deport millions of illegal immigrants unlawfully residing in the U.S.

If enacted, banks would need to request additional documentation, such as passports, from both new and existing account holders. Currently, federal financial regulators do not require banks to specifically require citizenship information from customers banking in the U.S.

Under existing “know your customer” regulations, banks are already required to collect certain information to prevent money laundering and other crimes. However, these regulations do not typically involve sharing citizenship data with the government. At least one Trump White House official, speaking with The Wall Street Journal, emphasized that while discussions are taking place within the Treasury Department, no final decision has been made.

“Any reporting about potential policymaking that has not been officially announced by the White House is baseless speculation,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said regarding the possible presidential directive.

Should President Trump issue an Executive Order on the matter, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) would likely play a key role in implementing and overseeing the policy. Already, FinCEN administers federal laws related to anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing. The National Pulse previously reported that the Trump administration directed FinCEN to begin a geographic targeting operation for the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, applying extra scrutiny to all businesses engaging in overseas money transfers, in the aftermath of allegations that the state’s Somali immigrant community engaged in billions of dollars of social services fraud.

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