6.13 – Minor Clients

You must identify minor clients and, if there is a financial transaction, you must verify the minor’s identity. If the minor has a passport, you can use the passport to directly verify their identity. Otherwise, the steps for verification of a minor will depend on the minor’s age.

• If the minor is under 12 years of age, you must verify the identity of one of the child’s parents or guardians. See Rule 1545(6)(c).
• If the minor is at least 12 years of age but not more than 15 years of age, you may refer to information from a reliable source that contains the name and address of one of the individual’s parents or guardian and verifying that the address is that of the individual. See Rule 1545(6)(d).

Although the Rules do not address minors who are over 15 years, it is often the case that such individuals can be verified by using government-issued photo identification.

In every case, record the details and the applicable date.