San Francisco, California - Legacy blue ticks have started being removed from prominent accounts on Twitter as the social media site continues its push to drive more people towards signing up for Twitter Blue.

Twitter Verified tweeted that legacy verified checkmarks would be removed from the site on April 20, with the main way of getting a blue tick being to sign up for Twitter Blue, which includes an $8 monthly fee.

The legacy checkmarks began disappearing towards the tail end of Thursday.

Some of the biggest accounts losing their ticks include footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, Beyoncé, and former President Donald Trump, as well as the official Twitter page for the Pope.

To add to the confusion, some legacy accounts seemed to retain their ticks if linked to a verified organization, including Barack Obama’s personal page.

Twitter Verified Organizations enables bodies of "all types," including businesses, non-profits and government institutions, to sign up and manage their verification and to affiliate and verify any related account.

But it costs a base price of $1,181 a month.