Question: I am an 18 year old college freshman. I live away from home and pay for all my own expenses. My parents still want to keep control over my bank accounts and will only allow me to touch the money when they say I can. Is there any way I can get an "emancipation" for non-minors so that I will have legal financial independence?
Answer: This is more a matter of your bank's policies and your parent's rules than it is a matter of the law. When you turn the age of majority, 18 years old in most states, you are legally emancipated. That is, the law views you as an adult and your parent's legal obligation to support you ends.
You should be able to open your own banking account at a financial institution if you are 18 years old, an account which you will have total control over as the sole holder of the account.
If your account with your parents is in their name, then they have the right to regulate your access to the money in the account. If you are a joint account holder, then most banks will not restrict your access to the account.
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