Your child already has a Trump Account. Do you need to claim it?

If your kid is under 18 and has a valid Social Security number, they almost certainly have a Trump Account now, whether you signed up or not.

On Oct. 1, 2026, the U.S. Treasury Department announced it had finished automatically enrolling every eligible child. That’s more than 60 million kids who got an account they didn’t sign up for, on top of the millions of kids whose parents opened one on their own.

So do you need to do anything? Yes. An auto-enrolled account just sits there until a parent or guardian claims it. Until then, you can’t manage it, family and employers can’t add money and eligible kids won’t get the government’s $1,000 seed deposit.

Below, Finder shares what a Trump Account is, how to claim one and how to keep scammers from beating you to it.

What is a Trump Account, anyway?

A Trump Account is a new type of individual retirement account (IRA) for kids created by the 2025 tax law. They’re also known as 530A accounts, after the section of the tax code behind them. They officially opened for contributions on July 4, 2026.

The basic rules:

• Who can put money in: Parents, relatives, friends and employers can contribute up to $5,000 a year combined. Employers can chip in up to $2,500 of that amount per employee, tax-free for the employee. The limits rise with inflation starting after 2027. 
• What it’s invested in: Only low-cost mutual funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the S&P 500 or another index made up mostly of US stocks. For now, every account goes into the same S&P 500 fund, the State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF (SPYM), and you can’t pick something else yet. 
• When the money comes out: Generally, not until the year your child turns 18. After that, the account works like a traditional IRA, with the same tax rules and early-withdrawal penalties.

Think of it as a starter retirement account that your kid can’t touch until adulthood.

Why it’s worth claiming, even if you never add a dime

The account is free money, but it won’t show up on its own. The Treasury says eligible kids need a claimed account to get its one-time $1,000 seed deposit.

Here’s who can get what:

• Kids born from Jan. 1, 2025, through Dec. 31, 2028: A one-time $1,000 deposit from the federal government, as long as the child is a US citizen. It doesn’t count toward the $5,000 annual limit. Some employers, including Goldman Sachs, are matching it with another $1,000 for their employees’ eligible kids.
• Kids born from 2016 through 2024: Possibly $250 from Michael and Susan Dell, who pledged $6.25 billion to the program. The money went to 25 million kids in ZIP codes with a median family income of $117,300 or less, starting with the lowest-income areas. Eligible kids living on military bases were also included.
• Everyone else: No seed money, but the account can still receive contributions from family and employers.

The Dell deposits were finished on Oct. 9, so there’s nothing to apply for. If your ZIP code qualified, the $250 is already in your child’s account, and you’ll see it once you claim it. You can check your ZIP code on Invest America’s site. If you claimed an account or filed the election form before Oct. 1, your child is still eligible under the original rules, which used a $150,000 income cutoff.

One catch: Claiming the account and getting the $1,000 are two separate steps. According to the Trump Accounts help center, automatic enrollment doesn’t include the seed money. A parent still has to elect to receive it for an eligible child.

You also don’t have to add your own money. That’s optional. Whatever’s in the account stays invested either way.

How to claim your child’s Trump Account

Claiming takes place in the official Trump Accounts app (iOS and Android) or on the web at trumpaccount.com. Here’s how it works, per the official help center:

1. Start the claim. Download the official app or go to trumpaccount.com. Starting the process will also tell you if the Treasury has already opened an account for your child.
2. Verify your identity. You’ll confirm who you are and answer questions about your relationship to the child as a parent or legal guardian.
3. Review and accept. Check your child’s information and accept the account terms.
4. Make sure the $1,000 election is included. If your child was born from 2025 through 2028 and is a U.S. citizen, confirm the pilot program election is part of your submission.
5. Add your other kids. Once you’ve claimed one account, tap “Add child” in the app to claim the rest under the same login.

If the Treasury didn’t open an account for your child, you can still start the same way. The app files IRS Form 4547, the official Trump Account election, for you as part of setup. Processing times vary, and you can check the status in the app. (You can also file the form yourself through your IRS online account.)

A few things to know before you start:

• There’s no deadline. If no one claims it, the account stays open, and any money in it stays invested. At 18, it becomes a traditional IRA in your child’s name, and they can take control of it after verifying their identity.
• Claiming is permanent. Once claimed, the account can’t be closed.
• First-come, first served. If parents are separated, whichever eligible adult finishes the claim first gets control of the account.
• The balance may not match the deposit. Money is invested as soon as it lands, so it moves with the market before you ever log in.

How to spot a Trump Account scam

Sixty million new accounts, free money and parents in a hurry are a perfect setup for scammers. Tax preparers and credit unions have been warning about Trump Account phishing texts and emails since before the program even launched.

The simplest rule: Don’t claim anything through a link someone sent you. According to the official help center, real Trump Account notices only come from trumpaccount.com, the official app or emails from trumpaccounts.treasury.gov. If you’re not sure, go to TrumpAccounts.gov or open the app yourself instead of replying.

Other red flags:

• Someone offers to “speed up” or “unlock” the $1,000. The only way to get it is to make the election yourself in the official app or portal.
• You’re asked to pay a fee. The Treasury doesn’t charge anything to claim the account or get the seed money.
• A text or caller asks for your child’s Social Security number or your bank login. You’ll verify your identity inside the official app, not over the phone or by text.
• The message uses Robinhood’s logo. Robinhood is the brokerage and initial trustee behind the program, but the official app is a white-label product with no Robinhood branding. Tax pros say scammers have been spoofing Robinhood emails to look legit.
• There’s a countdown. There’s no deadline to claim a Trump Account. Urgency is a scammer’s tool.

If you think you’ve been targeted, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to the Treasury. If you shared personal information, change your passwords and keep an eye on your credit.

Should you put your own money in?

Claiming the free money is close to a no-brainer. Adding your own cash takes more thought, because a Trump Account isn’t the only option for saving for a kid.

A few things to weigh:

• Taxes work like a traditional IRA, not a Roth. Money you add goes in after tax, and the earnings are taxed when your child takes them out. The $1,000 seed and any Dell money are fully taxable on withdrawal.
• It’s locked up until 18, then it’s your kid’s money. At that point it becomes a traditional IRA in their name, with the usual early-withdrawal penalties and exceptions.
• Investment choices are limited. Right now, it’s one S&P 500 index fund. That’s low cost, but it’s 100% stocks.
• Other accounts may fit better. A 529 plan offers tax-free growth for education. If your teen has a job, a custodial Roth IRA lets earnings grow tax-free for good.

For many families, the best approach may be to claim the account, collect whatever is free and keep putting extra savings wherever it works hardest for your goals.

Either way, the first step is to claim it. Your kid already has the account. The question is whether you’ll be the one controlling it.

This guide has been edited by Stacie Hurst and reviewed by Richard Laycock.

This story was produced by Finder and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.