April 2, 2026
Mrs. Fischbach (for herself and Mr. Stauber) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
To restrict the repatriation of funds by noncitizens receiving Federal benefits, to require verification and certification of compliance, and to establish a centralized database within the Department of the Treasury for monitoring, enforcement, and reporting.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Federal Benefits Repatriation Verification Act of 2026
.
Sec. 2. Definitions
In this Act:
(1) Covered individual
The term covered individual means a noncitizen who is a recipient of Federal benefits.
(2) Federal benefits
The term Federal benefits means any monetary or in-kind assistance provided by a Federal agency, including benefits under the Social Security Act, SNAP, TANF, Medicaid, Federal housing assistance, unemployment insurance, and any comparable program.
(3) Noncitizen
The term noncitizen means any individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States.
(4) Repatriation of funds
The term repatriation of funds means the transfer, remittance, or transmission of monetary assets from within the United States to any foreign individual, institution, or account outside of the territorial United States, whether conducted through electronic transfer, wire services, mobile applications, cryptocurrency exchanges, banks, or informal value transfer systems.
(5) Treasury Repatriation Verification Database
The term Treasury Repatriation Verification Database means the secure system established under section 5.
Sec. 3. Restriction on repatriation of funds by covered individuals
(a) Repatriation limit
A noncitizen may not transfer any monetary asset from within the United States to any other noncitizen, entity, or account outside of the United States in an amount that exceeds $1,000 during any 12-month period during which the noncitizen is a recipient of a Federal public benefit.
(b) Condition of benefit eligibility
Compliance with subsection (a) shall be a condition of continued eligibility for any Federal benefit program. A noncitizen who violates subsection (a) shall be ineligible to receive any Federal public benefit.
(c) Certification requirement
Covered individuals shall annually certify compliance with the repatriation limit as part of their continued benefits eligibility review. On an annual basis, a noncitizen who is a recipient of a Federal public benefit shall certify to the relevant agency, as part of verification of their eligibility, that the individual has not violated subsection (a). A noncitizen who fails to submit such a certification shall be ineligible to receive the Federal public benefit.
(d) Verification requirement
Federal agencies administering benefits shall coordinate with the Department of the Treasury to verify that covered individuals are in compliance with subsection (a). The Secretary of the Treasury shall coordinate with the head of each Federal agency that administers a Federal public benefit in carrying out this section.
Sec. 4. Duties of financial and remittance institutions
(a) Mandatory reporting
Any financial institution, money service business, remittance provider, or cryptocurrency exchange operating in the United States shall report all repatriation transactions made by covered individuals to the Department of the Treasury.
(b) Real-Time verification
Institutions described in subsection (a) shall query the Treasury Repatriation Verification Database to determine whether a proposed transfer would cause a covered individual to exceed the repatriation limit before processing the transaction.
(c) Transaction denial
If the Treasury Repatriation Verification Database indicates that the repatriation limit has been or would be exceeded, the institution must deny the transaction and report the attempted transfer.
(d) Compliance requirements
The Secretary of the Treasury shall issue regulations specifying the format, frequency, and method of reporting and verification.
Sec. 5. Establishment of the Treasury Repatriation Verification Database
(a) Creation
The Secretary of the Treasury shall establish and maintain a secure, centralized database to be known as the Treasury Repatriation Verification Database
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(b) Contents
The Treasury Repatriation Verification Database shall include—
(1)
identification data for all covered individuals;
(2)
records of all repatriation transactions and attempted transactions by covered individuals;
(3)
real-time calculation of repatriation totals; and
(4)
compliance flags and eligibility indicators accessible to authorized Federal and State agencies.
(c) Data sharing
The Secretary of the Treasury shall provide appropriate, privacy-compliant access to the Treasury Repatriation Verification Database to—
(1)
Federal benefit-administering agencies;
(2)
State agencies administering federally funded aid; and
(3)
financial and remittance institutions subject to section 4.
(d) Privacy and security
All data collection and sharing must comply with applicable Federal privacy laws and cybersecurity standards. The Secretary shall implement encryption, access controls, and audit trails.
Sec. 6. Enforcement and penalties
(a) Benefit suspension
An individual who violates section 3 shall have their Federal benefits suspended until compliance is reestablished.
(b) Recoupment
Federal agencies may recover improper payments made during any period of noncompliance.
(c) Institutional penalties
Any institution failing to comply with section 4 may be subject to—
(1)
civil penalties not to exceed $25,000 per violation; and
(2)
additional penalties for willful or repeated violations as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury.
Sec. 7. Rulemaking
Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with Federal benefit-administering agencies, shall issue regulations necessary to carry out this Act.
Sec. 8. Effective date
This Act shall take effect two years after the date of enactment of this Act, except that the Secretary of the Treasury may begin regulatory and database development activities immediately.