FOR PARENTS

Got a Grow Bears card? Start here.

These are the steps from your card, in the order each one becomes possible. Steps 1 to 3 are free and run by the government. Step 4 is optional. Step 5 lets family give.

  1. Get the Social Security number. Most parents ask for it at the hospital, and the card comes by mail. Every step below needs it.
  2. Claim the federal child account. The government opens these accounts for children automatically. A parent claims the baby's account in the official Trump Accounts app to control it. If the baby isn't there yet, a parent signs up with IRS Form 4547. Babies born 2025 to 2028 who are US citizens with a Social Security number may get a one-time $1,000 deposit.
  3. California babies: claim CalKIDS. Babies born in California get a CalKIDS account with a $100 seed. Claim it at calkids.org about 90 days after birth, and CalKIDS adds $25 more. Its site lists how to reach up to $175.
  4. Optional: open an investing account family can add to. If you want an account you control, with a gift link for relatives, some brokerages offer custodial accounts for children. Skip this step if the free accounts above are enough.
  5. Send family the gift link. Once the federal child account is open, the official app makes a gift link. Family can give straight to the account, up to $5,000 a year from everyone together.

Claiming is free, and nobody needs a Grow Bears card to do it.

Grow Bears is not a bank or an adviser. If anything here differs from the official sites, follow the official sites. Checked before launch and every January by Aaron and Claudio.