With 'Trump Accounts,' your baby could qualify for $1,000. Here's what to know

WASHINGTON (AP) — When the children of wealthy households leave the nest, they often benefit from their parents' largesse in the form of a trust fund. Less affluent peers may receive nothing at all — or even be expected to support their families when they become adults.

But what if all children, regardless of their family’s circumstances, could get a financial boost when they turn 18?

That's the idea behind “Trump Accounts,” a lesser-known provision of President Donald Trump's tax legislation. The bill, signed into law earlier this year, gives $1,000 to every newborn, so long as their parents open an account. That money is invested in the stock market by private firms, and the child can access the funds when they turn 18. The parents of older children can also open accounts, but they won't get the $1,000 bonus.

Backers say it's a way to bolster capitalism and help children from low-income households build wealth at a time when openly socialist candidates are growing more popular.

The new program gives the $1,000 bonus only to babies born during the calendar years of the Trump administration. Thanks to a historic donation announced Tuesday by billionaires Michael and Susan Dell, some children 10 and under could receive $250 in seed money if their parents open an account. That money is reserved for kids who live in ZIP codes with a median family income of $150,000 or less and who won’t get the $1,000 seed money from the Treasury.

Here's what you need to know about Trump Accounts and how to claim them.

It's new savings tool where money is invested in the stock market on behalf of a child. The child can't access the money until they turn 18 and can only use it for specific purposes, such as paying tuition, starting a business or making a down payment on a home.

After a parent opens an account, the U.S. Treasury will contribute $1,000 for newborns. Private banks and brokerages will manage the money, which must be invested in U.S. equity index funds that track the stock market and charge the accounts no more than 0.10% in annual fees.

Parents can contribute up to $2,500 annually in pretax income, much like they do for retirement accounts. Parents' employers, relatives, friends, local governments and philanthropic groups can also pitch in. Yearly contributions are capped at $5,000, but contributions from governments and charities don’t count toward that total.

To qualify for the $1,000 seed money, a baby must be a U.S. citizen, have a Social Security number and be born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028. Any parent can open an account for a qualifying child, regardless of the parent's immigration status.

It's important to note that the child won't be able to access the money until they turn 18, except in rare circumstances, so it can't help with immediate expenses. And disbursements from the accounts will be subject to taxes.

Children born before 2025 won't qualify for the $1,000 incentive, but parents can still open accounts for them as long as they're under 18. Parents can still invest up to $2,500 pretax for those kids, and they may benefit from the Dells' donation, giving $250 to children 10 and under in certain ZIP codes.

The accounts won't be open for contributions until July 2026. But parents of eligible kids can sign up now by filling out Form 4547 from the Internal Revenue Service. As of Tuesday afternoon, that form was not yet available on the Trump Accounts website.

In May, parents who sign up will get information about how to finish opening the accounts. Beginning in July, the White House says it will have a website where parents can register for the accounts.

Backers of the accounts say they want to introduce more people to the stock market and give even children born into poverty a chance to benefit from it. They believe that giving every newborn $1,000 will help combat the rising popularity of socialism and offer more people the opportunity to build wealth. About 58% of U.S. households held stocks or bonds in 2022, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, though the wealthiest 1% owned almost half the value of stocks in that same year.

Before Trump created the accounts, California, Connecticut and the District of Columbia were piloting “baby bonds” programs that are similar to Trump Accounts in some ways. Several other states, including Maryland, are weighing programs.

But those programs are targeted for youth growing up in poverty or foster care, plus children who lost a parent to COVID-19. Wealthier children don't benefit.

They're also managed by the state, not private investment firms.

Critics point out the accounts do little to help children in their early years, when they're most vulnerable and most likely to be in poverty. They also say the accounts do little to offset the cuts the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have made to other programs that benefit young people and their families, including food assistance and Medicaid. Republicans created the accounts in the same Trump tax bill that reduced spending for some of those programs.

And even with the contribution from the government, critics say the Trump Accounts will widen the wealth gap. Affluent families that can afford to make the maximum pretax contribution to the accounts will realize the greatest benefits. Poor families who can't afford to set aside money for the accounts will benefit the least. Assuming a 7% return, the $1,000 in seed money would grow to roughly $3,570 over 18 years.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Michael Dell, and his wife Susan, laugh as President Donald Trump speaks during an event on "Trump Accounts" for kids in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President Donald Trump speaks during an event on "Trump Accounts" for kids in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. From left, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, of La., Trump, Michael Dell, and his wife Susan. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Michael Dell, left, his wife Susan and President Donald Trump listen during an event on "Trump Accounts" for kids in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Strikes on cities across Iran have killed more than 25 people Sunday into Monday, while in Israel's Haifa two people were found dead and two others were missing in rubble a day after an Iranian attack.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday stepped up his threat to hit Iran's critical infrastructure hard if the country's government doesn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline.

Trump punctuated his threat with profanity in a social media post, saying Tuesday will be “Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran.”

The war began with joint U.S.-Israel strikes on Feb. 28 and has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices. Both sides have threatened and hit civilian targets, bringing warnings of possible war crimes from the United Nations and international law experts.

Here is the latest:

An Iranian drone attack damaged a telecommunications building in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on Monday, the state-run WAM news agency reported.

The attack targeted a building of the state-funded du telecom company.

No one was injured, WAM reported, quoting officials in Fujairah.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service says there are no signs North Korea is providing Iran with weapons or other war-related supplies.

The spy agency’s officials told lawmakers Monday that North Korea may be taking a cautious approach to preserve the possibility of dialogue with the Trump administration, according to two lawmakers who attended the closed-door briefing.

North Korea’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran as illegal, but the NIS said Pyongyang has not sent an official condolence message over the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s late supreme leader.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in recent years has embraced the idea of a “new Cold War” and attempted to expand cooperation with countries confronting the U.S., including an economic delegation sent to Iran in April 2024.

South Korea plans to send at least five ships to Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port in the coming weeks to establish new oil transport routes in the Red Sea.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources said Monday the ships will be deployed in phases beginning in mid-April and the number of vessels could increase depending on contracts with Saudi partners.

Officials did not disclose the companies involved but said some domestic refiners may use non-Korean shipping firms.

South Korea also plans to send special envoys to Saudi Arabia, Oman and Algeria to step up diplomatic efforts to secure alternative fuel supplies, ruling party lawmaker Ahn Do-geol said.

The foreign ministry did not immediately reveal when the envoys would be sent.

Iran has executed another man convicted over charges stemming from the nationwide protests that swept Iran in January.

The judiciary’s Mizan news agency identified the man hanged as Ali Fahim in a report Monday.

It was unclear when he was executed.

Fahim had been convicted of allegedly storming a military base to seize weapons.

Amnesty International said Fahim and others convicted in the case “were subjected to torture and other ill-treatment in detention, including beatings, floggings, prolonged solitary confinement, and death threats at gunpoint before being convicted in grossly unfair trials that relied on forced ‘confessions’ extracted under torture and lasted only a few hours.”

The Human Rights Activist News Agency had said Fahim and others had entered a Tehran base of the all-volunteer Basij militia, an arm of the Revolutionary Guard, after it had been burned, then had been forced into confessions.

Israel rescue services reported Monday morning several sites were hit by missiles launched from Iran toward multiple cities in the center of Israel.

In Petah Tikva, paramedics provided medical treatment to an injured woman in serious condition with a chest injury from shrapnel and evacuated her to the Beilinson Hospital.

Fire fighters in that city are handling cars on fire and continue searching to ensure there are no people trapped in the rubble.

In Tel Aviv, a man slightly injured by glass shrapnel was evacuated to the Ichilov Hospital.

Footage provided by rescue service Magen David Adom shows damage to residential buildings due to the attack.

Meanwhile, Israel’s military warned the public Monday morning of another missile barrage coming from Iran, the fourth-such alert of the day.

Israel’s Magen David Adom and Fire and Rescue services said early Monday that there are several reported sites of Iranian missile hits in the northern city of Haifa.

In one site, four people were slightly injured, including two children.

The missile attacks hit residential areas and a factory in the city.

The factory was hit by shrapnel from an interception.

It is unclear if all the reported hits were caused by shrapnel from interception or direct hits.

Video footage provided by Magen David Adom of the affected sites show active fire and bombed cars in what appears to be a residential area.

The missile strikes come a day after another attack from Iran also hit a Haifa residential area, killing two people and injuring others.

Two other people remain missing under the rubble caused by Sunday's strike and their fate is still unknown.

In the United Arab Emirates’ capital of Abu Dhabi, authorities said a Ghanaian man suffered wounds from shrapnel after the interception of an Iranian missile over the city’s Musaffah neighborhood.

That’s near Al Dhafra Air Base, which hosts U.S. forces and has been repeatedly targeted by Iran in the war.

Women hold Iranian flags during a pro-government gathering in a square in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A picture of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hangs on the side of the road in the outskirts of Tehran, Iran, early Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit a crowded neighbourhood south of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A commercial plane is preparing to land at Beirut Airport as smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Israeli security forces and rescue teams work amid the rubble of a residential building struck by an Iranian missile in Haifa, Israel, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)