In late April 2026, a rumor spread that the new design of U.S. passports would include a portrait of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Some social media users claimed he would appear over the text of the Declaration of Independence. One Instagram post said his signature would appear in gold below his portrait (archived):
The posts multiplied on Facebook and X, and numerous Snopes readers emailed asking us verify whether the rumor was true.
As we outline below, it is true that the U.S. Department of State and the White House announced a new passport design in April 2026 that includes Trump's portrait and signature in gold. The White House said on X that it was a "limited edition" to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the country's independence.
Olivia Wales, a spokesperson for the White House, told Snopes in an emailed statement that the "patriotic passport" was a way for U.S. citizens to "join the spectacular celebrations for America's 250th birthday."
We also asked White House and the State Department whether the design was optional and how many copies of the passport with the new design would be produced, or how long the limited run would last. We will update this report should they respond.
Announcement of the new passport design
In a series of X posts on April 28, the State Department and the White House shared images of the new passport design. The White House called it the "Patriot passport" (archived, archived):
The announcement included two pages of the passport, one of which showed a portrait of Donald Trump over the text of the Declaration of Independence. Below this image, his signature appeared in gold letters, above the words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" in bold red letters. The second page showed an illustration of the Founding Fathers signing the 1776 document.
A video the White House posted later showed the same two pages and indicated they would face each other (archived):
Wales' statement said "this new passport celebrating our freedom" was part of Trump's focus on "a renewal of national pride and patriotism during our historic semiquincentennial celebration."
The White House confirmed reporting by Fox News, which included the detail that the back cover of the passport would include a debossed flag with the 13 stars representing the 13 original colonies surrounding the number "250" — all in gold.
We also asked the State Department whether it intended to return to the old design after the 250th anniversary commemorations. We await a response.
For further reading, Snopes debunked a rumor that the Treasury Department had approved a plan to replace paper currency with cryptocurrency and gold coins embossed with Trump's face.