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Title 31 — Money and FinanceRelease 119-73not60

§5325 Identification Required to Purchase Certain Monetary Instruments

Title 31 › Subtitle SUBTITLE IV— MONEY › Chapter 53— MONETARY TRANSACTIONS › Subchapter II— RECORDS AND REPORTS ON MONETARY INSTRUMENTS TRANSACTIONS › § 5325

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Banks and other financial institutions must not sell bank or cashier’s checks, traveler’s checks, or money orders worth $3,000 or more when the deal involves U.S. coins or cash (or other money the Treasury names) unless one of two things happens. The buyer either has a transaction account with that institution and the bank verifies that from its records and notes how it checked, or the buyer gives ID the Treasury requires and the bank verifies and records it under Treasury rules. The bank must give the recorded information to the Treasury if the Treasury asks. A "transaction account" is defined in the Federal Reserve Act.

Full Legal Text

Title 31, §5325

Money and Finance — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)No financial institution may issue or sell a bank check, cashier’s check, traveler’s check, or money order to any individual in connection with a transaction or group of such contemporaneous transactions which involves United States coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may prescribe) in amounts or denominations of $3,000 or more unless—
(1)the individual has a transaction account with such financial institution and the financial institution—
(A)verifies that fact through a signature card or other information maintained by such institution in connection with the account of such individual; and
(B)records the method of verification in accordance with regulations which the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe; or
(2)the individual furnishes the financial institution with such forms of identification as the Secretary of the Treasury may require in regulations which the Secretary shall prescribe and the financial institution verifies and records such information in accordance with regulations which such Secretary shall prescribe.
(b)Any information required to be recorded by any financial institution under paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a) shall be reported by such institution to the Secretary of the Treasury at the request of such Secretary.
(c)For purposes of this section, the term “transaction account” has the meaning given to such term in section 19(b)(1)(C) of the Federal Reserve Act.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 19(b)(1)(C) of the Federal Reserve Act, referred to in subsec. (c), is classified to section 461(b)(1)(C) of Title 12, Banks and Banking.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

31 U.S.C. § 5325

Title 31 — Money and Finance

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60