A plain-English guide to eligibility, the $1,000 federal deposit, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation $250 grant, and a calculator to see how your contributions could grow.
Last verified against IRS.gov and official sources: July 2026.
This is educational information, not tax, legal, or investment advice.Rules can change and every family's situation is different. Confirm current details at irs.gov/trumpaccounts or talk to us before you act.
$1,000
One-time federal seed deposit
$250
Dell Foundation grant (if eligible)
$5,000
Max. total contributions per year
18
Age funds generally become accessible
1. Who Is Eligible for a Trump Account?
Trump Accounts are a new type of tax-advantaged savings/investment account for children, created under the "One, Big, Beautiful Bill" (enacted July 4, 2025).
Basic requirements to open an account
Child is a U.S. citizen with a valid, work-authorized Social Security number
Child has not turned 18 in the year the account is opened
No family income limits to open the account itself
Anyone with legal authority for the child (usually a parent) can make the election
How to open one
File IRS Form 4547 (Trump Account Election)
Easiest: attach it to the 2025 federal tax return (due April 15, 2026)
Or file separately anytime at TrumpAccounts.gov or by paper
Contributions could not start until July 4, 2026
Don't miss the deadline
The account election — and the request for the $1,000 pilot deposit — must be made by Dec. 31 of the year the child turns 17
After that, the child can no longer request the one-time $1,000 seed deposit
Investments must be in mutual funds/ETFs that track the S&P 500 or a similar broad U.S. stock index — there's no menu of investment choices like a typical brokerage account.
2. Who Actually Receives the $1,000 — and the Dell Foundation Money?
There are three separate sources of "free" money people mix up. Here's who qualifies for each.
FEDERAL — $1,000
One-time pilot deposit from the U.S. Treasury
Child must be a U.S. citizen born Jan. 1, 2025 – Dec. 31, 2028
Requested via Form 4547, one deposit per child, no income limit
Available regardless of ZIP code or family income
DELL FOUNDATION — $250
Charitable gift from Michael & Susan Dell
For children age 10 or younger, born before Jan. 1, 2025 (so they don't already get the federal $1,000)
Must live in a ZIP code with median household income of $150,000 or less (area-based, not your personal income)
Covers up to 25 million children nationwide, funded by a $6.25 billion pledge
Dell Technologies (the company) separately pledged to match the federal $1,000 for children born to its own U.S. employees, 2025–2028
This only applies to Dell employees — it is not available to the general public
Other employers can set up their own Trump Account contribution programs, up to $2,500/year per employee, tax-free to the employee
On top of any seed money, anyone — parents, grandparents, friends — can contribute up to a combined $5,000 per child per year (indexed for inflation starting 2027). Individual contributions are after-tax; growth is tax-deferred until withdrawal.
3. Skip the Toys — Turn Birthdays & Holidays Into Real Money
The $5,000/year cap is shared by everyone who contributes — parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends combined. That makes it a natural gift-giving target.
The cap is shared, so coordinate
$5,000/year is the total from everyone combined — not $5,000 per grandparent
If grandparents, parents, and an aunt each try to add $5,000, the excess gets rejected and has to be fixed
A quick family conversation on "who's giving what" avoids the cleanup
A simple family tradition
Birthday: grandparents contribute instead of another toy
Holidays: aunts, uncles, and friends chip in what they'd normally spend on gifts
Even $25–$100 at a time adds up fast toward the $5,000 shared cap
No gift-tax paperwork for normal amounts
Contributions to a Trump Account count as gifts, but qualify for the annual gift-tax exclusion ($19,000 per giver, per child, in 2026)
Since the account cap is only $5,000/year, ordinary family gifts stay well under the exclusion — no gift-tax return needed
Practical tip: once the account is open, ask the parent for the account/routing details so relatives can contribute directly instead of handing over cash.
4. See How It Could Grow — Interactive Calculator
Move the sliders to model different monthly contribution amounts and return assumptions. This is illustrative only — actual results will vary.
Projected balance$0
Seed money (Treasury + Dell)$0
Your total contributions$0
Investment growth$0
Model assumes contributions are invested in U.S.-equity-index funds as required by law, with no fees, no taxes on growth, and a steady return every year (real markets go up and down). At withdrawal, gains are generally taxed as income.
5. Real Life Happens — Track Planned vs. Actual, Year by Year (50 Years)
Some years you'll hit your goal, some years you won't — that's normal. Type in what was actually contributed each year (leave blank for $0) and watch the running totals update. The table follows the account past age 18, when it becomes a regular Traditional IRA.
Year
Age
Phase
Planned Contribution
Actual Contribution
Planned Balance
Actual Balance
Variance
Opens directly in Excel. For a polished, formula-driven version, ask us for the Trump Account Contribution Tracker workbook.
Assumes the account was opened at birth (Age = Year − 1) and uses simple annual compounding for readability — the calculator above compounds monthly, so the two numbers will differ slightly. After age 18, new contributions require the account holder's own earned income and follow standard IRA rules (10% early-withdrawal penalty plus income tax generally applies before age 59½, with some exceptions).