No executive order on UFOs has been found. On February 19, 2026 President Trump posted on Truth Social that he would direct the Secretary of War and other agencies to begin identifying and releasing government files on alien life, UAP and UFOs. That post is the whole instruction on the public record. We searched the Federal Register on September 28, 2026 and found no executive order, memorandum or other presidential document on the subject.
Every real executive order carries a number you can look up, and no such number exists for UFOs. The post still had effects. The Department of War set up a program to review and publish files, and it has released six batches since May. This file covers what was said, what followed, and how you can check the claim yourself the next time you see it.
What Trump actually said
The post said he would be directing the Secretary of War and other departments and agencies to "begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files" on alien and extraterrestrial life, UAP and UFOs (NBC News, February 19, 2026). The White House repeated the text on its own accounts.
It followed comments former President Barack Obama made about aliens on a podcast. Obama later said he meant the odds of life elsewhere are good, and that he saw no evidence of extraterrestrials while in office (NBC News).
DefenseScoop reported the next day that the announcement came as a social media post, and that the Pentagon said it would work with other agencies to fulfill the president's directive (DefenseScoop, February 20, 2026). The post did not say which files would be released, or when.
What happened next
- May 1, 2026. The Department of War set up the PURSUE Task Force to coordinate the review and release of UAP records. This date comes from a single law firm summary (DLA Piper), so treat it as partly verified.
- May 8, 2026. The first batch of 162 files went up at war.gov/UFO under PURSUE, the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters. AARO, the White House, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Department of Energy, NASA and the FBI took part (Stars and Stripes).
- May 22, June 12, July 10, August 7 and September 18, 2026. Batches two to six followed on war.gov/UFO (second release, third release, sixth release). War.gov blocks automated reading, so the dates of batches four and five are cross-checked from secondary sources.
- July 31, 2026. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued preliminary guidance letting staff disclose UAP information to designated officials despite earlier non-disclosure agreements. This is known from a law firm summary. The memo itself was not available to us (DLA Piper).
What the files contain matters more than how they were ordered. The release site describes them as unresolved cases, where the government could not make a definitive determination (Stars and Stripes). NBC News found no indication in the first batch that the government has interacted with beings from other planets (NBC News, May 8, 2026). Each batch has its own page in the PURSUE file releases.
How to check whether an executive order exists
You do not need to trust us on this. An executive order leaves a paper trail that anyone can search. The National Archives describes executive orders as official documents, numbered in order, that the Office of the Federal Register publishes after the President signs them (archives.gov).
- Step 1Open the executive orders list at federalregister.gov and search the topic: UFO, UAP, unidentified anomalous phenomena, extraterrestrial.
- Step 2Check whitehouse.gov presidential actions for anything signed in the last few days, since the Federal Register publishes a few days after signing.
- Step 3Look for a number. A real order has one, in the 14000s for 2026. A headline, a post or a quote is not an order.
We ran the first check on September 28, 2026. The newest order in the Federal Register was Executive Order 14431, signed September 18, 2026 and published September 23. Of the 51 orders signed since February 1, 2026, none has a title about UFOs, UAP or extraterrestrial life. A full-text search of all presidential documents for UFO, extraterrestrial and unidentified anomalous phenomena returned nothing. We will update this file if that changes.
Why the confusion spread
Three things blurred a post into an order.
- The headlines. Many outlets led with the word orders, as in Al Jazeera's "Trump orders Pentagon, federal agencies to release files on UFOs and aliens" (February 20, 2026). In plain speech that is fair. Readers heard a legal document.
- Later reporting. By June some coverage said outright that the releases followed an executive order signed earlier in the year. CBS News wrote exactly that on June 12, 2026 (CBS News). We found no such order in the Federal Register.
- The name. PURSUE starts with the word Presidential. A program named after the President sounds like it was created by a signed order.
The honest version is shorter than the rumor. A president said he would direct agencies to release files, and the agencies started releasing files.
Does it matter whether it was an order?
It matters for what comes next. A numbered order has text that sets out duties, and a later order has to change or revoke it. A post carries none of that. The releases so far depend on the agencies continuing to choose to release.
A separate law already requires some of this. The defense bill signed on December 22, 2023 ordered agencies to send UAP records to a collection at the National Archives (archives.gov). A fuller UAP Disclosure Act passed the House on July 22, 2026 and has not become law (Rep. Burlison). The full sequence is in the disclosure timeline, and every item is labeled with how well it holds up in the Disclosure Ledger.
Sources
- NBC News, February 19, 2026
- DefenseScoop, February 20, 2026
- Al Jazeera, February 20, 2026
- Stars and Stripes, May 8, 2026
- NBC News, May 8, 2026
- CBS News, June 12, 2026
- DLA Piper, August 2026
- National Archives, about executive orders
- Federal Register, executive orders
Common questions
Did Trump sign an executive order on UFOs?
No. As of September 28, 2026 no executive order or other presidential document on UFOs or UAP appears in the Federal Register. On February 19, 2026 the President posted on Truth Social that he would direct the Secretary of War and other agencies to begin identifying and releasing government files on UAP, UFOs and alien life.
Were UFO files released after the post?
Yes. On May 8, 2026 the Department of War published a first batch of 162 files at war.gov/UFO under a program called PURSUE. Five more batches followed, the latest on September 18, 2026. The government describes the material as unresolved cases, and none of it confirms extraterrestrial contact.
How can I check whether an executive order exists?
Every executive order is numbered by the Office of the Federal Register and published in the Federal Register. Search federalregister.gov for the topic, then check the President's actions on whitehouse.gov. If neither has a numbered order, there is no order.
See also What the released files do and do not show is checked claim by claim in did the UFO files confirm aliens?
