Know Your American Customer Act
Sponsored By: Senator Tom Cotton
Introduced
Summary
Tighten verification of lawful presence for consumer bank accounts. This bill would require covered financial institutions to verify immigration or citizenship status to open and maintain consumer accounts and would create civil and criminal penalties for violations.
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- Individuals not lawfully present would be barred from opening or maintaining accounts, with a narrow exception for customers who already had an account at the same institution before enactment.
- People with a limited authorized stay would need DHS certification and would get a 30-day full access period followed by a 60-day restricted period when deposits may be accepted but withdrawals and transfers are blocked.
- Authorized users added to joint accounts after enactment would be subject to the same verification requirements.
- Covered institutions would have to collect one of an enumerated set of identity or immigration documents starting 90 days after enactment and would face civil penalties, with safe harbors for good faith reliance and qualifying state IDs.
- Accounts held by legal entities would be exempt from the customer verification requirements.
- The Secretary of the Treasury, through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, would enforce the rules and coordinate with the National Credit Union Administration for insured credit unions, and the bill would require interim guidance within 30 days and final regulations within 90 days.
- Criminal penalties would apply for opening or maintaining an account while not lawfully present, including fines up to $1,000,000 and imprisonment up to 1 year, with limited exemptions for recent expirations of authorized stay and pending asylum filings.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
New ID checks for bank accounts
If enacted, banks and insured credit unions would have to confirm customers are lawfully present before opening or keeping consumer accounts. Starting 90 days after enactment, new account applicants would need one original or certified government ID or DHS paper (for example, REAL ID state ID, U.S. passport, green card, or valid Form I-94). People with time‑limited stays would get 30 days of full access after their stay ends, then 60 days when deposits are allowed but withdrawals and outgoing transfers are blocked unless they provide updated documents. The Treasury (through FinCEN) would enforce the rule, with civil safe harbors for good‑faith bank actions; there would also be criminal penalties for non‑lawfully‑present people who open or maintain active accounts—fines up to $1,000,000 and/or up to 1 year in jail. The Treasury must issue interim guidance within 30 days and final rules within 90 days on freezes, notices, redirecting incoming payments, and moving remaining balances.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Tom Cotton
AR • R
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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