The State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme is seeking information about Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and the people involved in it, particularly members of the country’s scientific community. It is also seeking details about the movement of nuclear equipment and personnel.
“Rewards for Justice is offering a reward of up to $20 million and possible relocation for information about Iran’s nuclear programme,” US Central Command said in a statement posted on X.
Established in 1984, the programme offers financial incentives for information that could protect American lives and national security interests.
In its announcement, the State Department cited Iran’s failure to meet its obligations under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. It said this had resulted in the agency losing “continuity of knowledge” about Iran’s production and stockpiles of key nuclear components, including centrifuges.
The notice also referred to IAEA reporting from 2025 that Iran was enriching uranium to 60% purity. This is significantly above the levels needed for most civilian nuclear energy uses and technically closer to the 90% enrichment level generally associated with weapons-grade uranium.
According to the US notice, Iran is the only country without nuclear weapons to have produced uranium at such a high enrichment level. It added that experts estimated the quantity could be sufficient for several nuclear weapons if enriched further.
The US government has not specified what information would qualify for the maximum $20 million reward.
The announcement comes despite President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that US strikes have effectively destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
Speaking in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday night, Trump said American military action had prevented Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
“If we didn't hit Iran, you wouldn't have Israel today,” he said, adding that Iran would have used nuclear weapons if it had them.
Trump also claimed that eight months of war had severely damaged Iran’s economy and military, saying Tehran was now keen to reach an agreement with Washington.
“We're dealing with them now. They want to make a deal very badly,” he said.
His remarks came as regional mediators continued diplomatic efforts to prevent fighting from resuming.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday that his government remained committed to resolving the crisis through dialogue.
Earlier this week, Trump said the US still needed to “take care” of one or two targets in Iran, including Pickaxe Mountain in the country’s central region. The site is suspected of housing a nuclear facility, although Tehran denies that it serves such a purpose.
