The Treasury Department will automatically create Trump child enrollment regulations accounts for more than 60 million children starting on or about Oct. 1. The temporary rules, issued with the Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday, end the need for a parent or guardian to file first for children who do not already have an account.
Those accounts will cover children under 18 with a Social Security number. Treasury said it will keep enrolling eligible children periodically and add about 2 million accounts a year as newborns arrive.
Federal Register publication Wednesday
The rules are set for publication Wednesday in the Federal Register. By July 30, about 5.6 million electronic sign-up forms had been processed, out of an estimated 73.4 million eligible children.
The automatic step applies only when no one has already filed to open an account. That makes the new process broader, but it does not finish the job for families who want to add their own money.
Trump Accounts deposits
The automatic accounts do not trigger the $1,000 government deposit for children born from 2025 through 2028. The rules say the Treasury secretary cannot make that election, so parents must still request it.
Once claimed, accounts can take up to $5,000 a year, including up to $2,500 from employers. A parent or guardian must claim the account through a Treasury app or website and verify identity and legal authority over the child's finances.
Michael & Susan Dell Foundation pledge
The automatic enrollment also expands the reach of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation's $6.25 billion pledge for children born from 2016 through 2024 in ZIP codes with median household income below $150,000. The money in Trump Accounts is invested in low-cost index funds of mostly U.S. stocks, and it generally cannot be withdrawn before the year the child turns 18.
The reported that the rules do not fully spell out how parents will claim the accounts. That leaves the automatic opening in place now, while the added family and employer money still depends on a parent taking the next step.
