Can I Add My Son to My Bank Account Using His Durable Power of Attorney?

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Question:
My son is incarcerated. He sent me a Durable Power of Attorney from the Texas prison system to take care of his affairs. He does not have a bank account. He has an IRS check and a stimulus check that I have not been able to cash because he does not have a bank account. Neither of the two banks I have accounts with will allow me to add him to my accounts because they require him to sign in person.
Response:
That doesn’t surprise me that the banks won’t let you add your son to your accounts. That’s almost the opposite of the usual situation where you would name your son under your durable power of attorney and then add him to your accounts as your agent. In other words, usually the agent under the power of attorney is being added to an existing account of the grantor of the power. In your case, you as agent for your son you would be adding the grantor (your son) to the agent’s (your) account.
However, I would think you should be able to create a new account in your son’s name with his durable power of attorney and using his Social Security number for that account. If you give that a try, please let me know how it goes.
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