How to freeze your child’s credit: a parent checklist

Quick answer: A parent or authorized guardian can request a free security freeze for a child under 16 by following each credit bureau’s protected-consumer process. Contact Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion separately and provide the identification and authority documents each requires. If there is no existing file, the bureau can create a protected record to freeze. This is a preventive step, not a way to build a child’s credit score.

Why freeze a child’s credit?

Identity thieves can misuse a child’s identifying information. A freeze helps restrict access for new-credit decisions before the family discovers an unfamiliar account years later. You do not need to wait for a fraudulent bill to request protection.

The FTC recommends requesting a free freeze for children under 16. The CFPB explains that a bureau can create a protected record when no file exists; that record is not created for ordinary credit use.

Check the age and who can make the request

For a child under 16, follow the parent or authorized-representative process. The FTC notes that minors who are 16 or 17 may request and remove freezes themselves. Individual bureau procedures can differ, so read the instructions for the child’s age rather than assuming the adult online flow applies.

A caregiver should confirm which documents establish legal authority. Do not claim to be the parent or guardian if that is not your role.

Prepare the requested documents

The exact package depends on the bureau and request. Commonly requested items include proof of the adult’s identity and address, the child’s identifying documents, and proof of parental relationship or guardianship. Use the official checklist before sending anything.

Send only the documents requested through the official secure upload or mailing process. Keep originals unless the bureau specifically instructs otherwise. Do not email a child’s identity documents to an address supplied in an unsolicited message.

Complete and track three separate requests

1. Open the bureau-specific links in the FTC’s child identity theft guide.
2. Read the current instructions and prepare each package.
3. Request the protected-consumer security freeze.
4. Keep a copy of what you sent, its date, and any delivery or submission confirmation.
5. Record the outcome for Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion separately.

One bureau’s confirmation does not complete the other two requests. If a bureau needs additional proof, record that as an unfinished step rather than marking the entire task complete.

What if the child already has an unfamiliar account?

A freeze does not erase an existing fraudulent account. The FTC recommends contacting the affected company’s fraud department, contacting the bureaus about fraudulent reporting, and reporting the identity theft at IdentityTheft.gov.

Keep copies of bills, collection letters, and the relevant report entries. Ask the business to confirm the account’s resolution in writing. An unfamiliar record needs investigation; a reporting mix-up and identity theft can require different supporting evidence. Our mixed-credit-file guide explains that distinction.

Store the records for later use

Keep the confirmations and future removal instructions somewhere the family can find securely when the child is old enough to apply for credit. A password-protected record can contain bureau names, dates, and confirmation references without storing every identity document in one place.

If you also consider paid services, check whether the plan actually includes the child and what assistance it provides. Our identity theft protection comparison and monitoring coverage guide offer questions to ask. Monitoring and a protected-consumer freeze serve different purposes; neither should be assumed to replace the other.

A completed request is more than a sent envelope

For each bureau, record the submission method, the date sent, any delivery confirmation, requests for additional proof, and the final freeze confirmation. If a request is returned, check the stated reason against that bureau’s current protected-consumer instructions before resubmitting. Avoid sending extra identity documents that were not requested.

Do not enter a false birth date to make a child fit an adult online form. Follow the process for the child’s age and your authority to act. Keep future removal instructions with the confirmations, and note where those records are stored so the family can find them later. If you are also protecting your own files, use the separate adult three-bureau freeze process.

Bureau-by-bureau documents and mailing routes

Use a separate package for each bureau. The destinations below are for a minor’s request and were checked against the bureaus’ own resources on October 3, 2026. Open the linked instructions again before sending documents, since forms and delivery procedures can change.

Equifax: complete the minor freeze form

The Equifax Minor Freeze Request Form (PDF) requires copies of the child’s Social Security card and birth certificate. For the adult, select an accepted proof of identity and a document showing authority to act. Its examples include government-issued identification for identity, and a birth certificate, court order, valid power of attorney, or foster-care certification for authority.

Complete the adult and child sections and select the service to place a freeze. Mail the form and required copies to Equifax Information Services LLC, P.O. Box 105788, Atlanta, GA 30348. Do not accidentally select temporary lift or permanent removal on a form that offers all three services.

Experian: state that you are requesting a freeze

Start with Experian’s child identity theft service. Its supporting-document list includes your government ID, address proof, the child’s birth certificate and Social Security card, and guardianship proof if your name is not on the birth certificate. Follow the instructions for the child’s age and selected request.

Its standard-mail destination is Experian, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013. The service also provides document-submission instructions. Make the requested action explicit: checking whether a report exists is different from placing a security freeze. A response saying no credit report was found is not, by itself, a freeze confirmation.

TransUnion: send a protected-consumer request by mail

TransUnion’s protected-consumer instructions call for a written freeze request, proof that you may act for the child, and sufficient identification for both of you. Examples of authority include a birth certificate establishing parentage or appropriate court or guardianship documents.

Send copies, not originals, to TransUnion, P.O. Box 380, Woodlyn, PA 19094. Its protected-consumer freeze currently requires mail; the adult online freeze service is not a substitute. TransUnion’s separate online inquiry about whether a child’s file exists does not itself place the freeze.

A short cover-letter framework

Use the bureau’s required form where it supplies one. If a written request is needed, this original sample can help state your purpose. It does not replace the bureau’s identity-document checklist, and it should be completed privately.

Re: Request for a protected-consumer security freeze

I am the [parent/legal guardian/authorized representative] of [child’s full legal name]. I request a security freeze for this child. If no credit file exists, please create the protected record needed to place the freeze.

I have included the identifying information and copies required by your current instructions, along with proof of my authority to act. Please send confirmation and instructions for future removal to the contact address provided in my request.

[Your name, signature if required, and date]

Add any identifying details required by that bureau through its prescribed form or secure process. Do not post a completed letter in a website comment or send it to this site. Keep a private record of what went into the package so you can respond accurately if the bureau asks about a missing item.

Check each package before sending it

• Names: do the child’s name and your name agree with the supporting records? If a name changed, follow the bureau’s instructions for establishing that connection.
• Authority: does the document establish your relationship or legal authority, rather than only proving your identity?
• Legibility: can the required information be read on every copy, without cut-off edges?
• Requested action: does the form or letter ask for a freeze, rather than only a report search?
• Destination: is this the bureau’s current minor-request address, not a general customer-service or adult-freeze address?

For more than one child, label the records separately. A document checklist marked “complete” for one child should not be carried over to a sibling without checking that the correct child’s information and request are enclosed.

If the bureau returns the request or asks for more proof

Read the stated reason and identify the specific missing category. If the issue is proof of authority, resending the same driver’s license may not solve it: the license identifies you but may not establish your authority over the child. Ask which accepted document addresses the stated gap.

If the reason is unclear, use the contact route on the bureau’s official site and ask whether the original request is pending or must be resubmitted. Record the response and include a reference number only where the bureau asks for it. Keep the confirmations already obtained from other bureaus.

Prepare the eventual handoff to your teenager

A useful family record should explain which bureaus confirmed the freeze, where the confirmations are stored, and how to find the current removal instructions. As the child approaches the age when they will handle credit matters, review those records together and explain why an application may require a lift.

Do not assume a birthday automatically clears the restriction. Check each bureau’s process for the young person’s current age. The goal is to preserve the protection while making a future legitimate application manageable, without leaving identity documents or account credentials in an insecure shared folder.

Download the private worksheet

Download the three-page credit review and freeze worksheet pack (PDF). Start with page 3 to track a child’s three separate freeze requests. Print the relevant page and complete it offline. This organizer is not a bureau request form; keep identifying numbers and passwords out of it.

By Claire Bennett, the editorial name used by the site’s founder and editor. Factual guidance checked against the official sources below. Cover photograph: sofatutor / Unsplash.

Explore related guides on credit reports and disputes.

Sources

• FTC: protecting a child’s identity
• CFPB: security freezes and processing times
• FTC: credit freezes and fraud alerts

Sources checked October 3, 2026. This article provides general educational information for U.S. readers, not individualized financial or legal advice.