US Prepares Rules Requiring Banks to Collect Customer Citizenship Data
The United States government plans to require banks to collect customer citizenship data as part of strengthening immigration policies and the financial system.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasised that banks must be prepared to implement the policy if it is established by the authorities.
“If the Department of the Treasury and banking regulators say it is their duty, then it is indeed their duty,” Bessent stated at the Invest in America forum in Washington, D.C., as quoted by CNBC on Thursday (16/4/2026).
He revealed that the plan to issue an executive order (EO) on this matter is still in process.
Currently, in the US, opening a bank account does not require citizenship documents. Banks are only required to verify identity through the Know Your Customer (KYC) rules.
However, according to Bessent, those rules are not sufficient to ensure a comprehensive customer profile.
“Why can unknown foreign nationals come and open a bank account?” he said.
“The duty of bank executives is to know their customers. How can you know your customers if you do not know whether they are legal or illegal, whether they are US citizens or green card holders?” he continued.
He also noted that other countries have implemented similar policies with stricter rules.
“Every other country does it. There should be stricter rules,” he stated.
This plan has received support from the Republican Party. Senator Tom Cotton has even proposed a bill requiring banks to verify customers’ citizenship status or residency permits before opening accounts.
Nevertheless, several parties have warned of the potential economic impacts of the policy.
Restrictions on access to banking services are seen as potentially increasing the number of unbanked individuals, while suppressing economic participation, particularly for immigrants who have previously used documents such as the Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).
Additionally, the administrative burden on banks is expected to increase significantly.
The think tank American Action Forum estimates that the citizenship verification requirement could add 30 million to 70 million administrative work hours, with costs reaching $2.6 billion to $5.6 billion.
“Verifying new accounts is just the tip of the iceberg,” the institution wrote in its analysis.
Bessent himself emphasised that this policy aims to tighten the US financial system. He stated that illegal immigrants should not have access to the banking system.
“Illegal immigrants do not have the right to be in the banking system,” he asserted.