The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Monday proposed rules defining which stablecoins can be issued or sold in the United States under the GENIUS Act.

The proposal implements Section 3 of the GENIUS Act, which was signed into law last summer. Under the draft rules, beginning January 18, 2027, stablecoin issuers generally would need to obtain a federal or state license to issue payment stablecoins in the U.S. Platforms would also be allowed to sell foreign-issued stablecoins, but only if the foreign issuer complies with U.S. legal orders and with agreements between the U.S. and the country in which it is regulated.

The rules are part of a broader federal effort to turn the new statute into an operating framework for a market that has grown well beyond its original crypto-native use case and is now used for trading, payments, and transfers across exchanges and other digital asset platforms. By spelling out who can sell stablecoins to U.S. customers and under what conditions, Treasury is addressing a key compliance question for venues that list or route these assets.

“President Trump and Congress delivered the GENIUS Act, establishing a landmark framework and clear rules of the road for payment stablecoins, and Treasury is moving quickly to implement that framework,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote on X.

Starting July 18, 2028, broader restrictions would generally prevent crypto exchanges and other digital asset platforms from selling stablecoins to U.S. customers, “unless the payment stablecoin is issued by a permitted payment stablecoin issuer.”

Bessent said the regulations would provide businesses with regulatory certainty while helping “cement the role of the U.S. dollar,” and he invited public comment.

“Treasury welcomes input from stakeholders as we work to provide the regulatory certainty businesses need to innovate and grow in America, cement the role of the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency, and keep America the crypto capital of the world,” Bessent wrote.

Violations of the proposed rules could include directly soliciting U.S. buyers, advertising a stablecoin as available to them, agreeing to sell after an unsolicited inquiry, or helping buyers bypass location restrictions such as IP checks.

Public comments on the proposal are due by October 19, 2026, 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.

The proposal comes as federal agencies continue developing rules to implement the GENIUS Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law in July 2025 to create a federal framework for stablecoins in the U.S.

In February, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposed rules covering stablecoin issuance and oversight. The FDIC followed in April with proposed requirements for reserves, redemptions, capital, and risk management. That same month, the Treasury proposed anti-money laundering and sanctions rules requiring issuers to report suspicious activity and maintain the ability to block or freeze transactions.

Taken together, the separate rulemakings show how the new law is being translated into multiple layers of oversight, from issuance and reserves to AML controls and market access. For crypto companies and exchanges, the timing matters because the draft effective dates leave a long runway before the U.S. sales restrictions kick in, but they also signal which business practices may face scrutiny well before then.

Those compliance proposals have drawn criticism from the crypto industry. In June, Paradigm and the Hyperliquid Policy Center said that making issuers responsible for stablecoins after they enter secondary markets could push them away from decentralized finance.