How do I create a free account for a child?

Article Id: 897
March 13, 2024
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How Do I Create a FamilySearch Account?

Anyone 13 years old or older can register for a FamilySearch account without parental permission.

Children ages 8–12 years old can register for a FamilySearch account with parental permission. This account can be created on either churchofjesuschrist.org or FamilySearch.org.

Children who already have an account for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can sign in on FamilySearch.org using the username and password of that account by selecting the Sign-in With Church Account button on the website.

Grant permission on churchofjesuschrist.org

Parents and legal guardians who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can create accounts and grant permission on churchofjesuschrist.org. Parents can also change their children's passwords and delete their children's accounts.

For instructions, sign in to your account on churchofjesuschrist.org, open your account settings, and click Help.

Grant permission through FamilySearch.org

Parents and children can also create accounts on FamilySearch.org. Church membership is not required.

During this process, the parent or legal guardian can choose 1 of 3 methods to legally authorize a child to register for FamilySearch.

  • Church Record Number (preferred, for Latter-day Saints)
  • Email address
  • Text number

In the account creation process, a parental consent code is sent to a parent or guardian email address or text number (if not creating the account with a Church record number). You will also specify an account recovery method in case your child forgets his or her sign-in information. For accounts set up with the Church record number, that same number is used for recovery.

The remainder of this article describes how to create the account from FamilySearch.

Steps (FamilySearch.org)

To create an account for a child between the ages of 8 and 12, follow these steps.

  1. Go to a FamilySearch product, and use 1 of these options:
    • Go to the FamilySearch.org site in a browser, and click Create Account.
    • Open the Family Tree or Memories mobile app, and tap Create Free Account.
  2. Enter the child's information in the Account Creation form, and click Continue.
  3. The Parent or Guardian Permission Needed dialog box appear. You can choose to provide permission by:
    • Church Record Number (see step 4)
    • Text message (see step 5)
    • Email (see step 6)
  4. To provide parental consent by entering a Church record number, follow these steps.
    1. Select Use Parent’s Church Record Number (preferred).
    2. Enter your own (the parent or legal guardian’s) Church record number. Then click Continue.
    3. Next enter your child’s Church record number, and click Continue.
    4. Fill in the remaining form fields, and click Create Account.
    5. Sign in to the FamilySearch account to complete registration. If your child forgets his or her sign-in information, the Church record number is required for recovery.
  5. To provide parental consent by text message, follow these steps.
    1. Using a text message from the drop-down menu, select Ask parent, and enter the text number. Click Continue.
    2. Fill in the remaining form fields, and click Create Account. A parental consent code is sent to the parent’s text phone.
    3. The next screen asks for the parental consent code that was sent to the parent or guardian’s phone via text message. Enter the code, and click Submit.
    4. Next, enter a text number or email address for account recovery, in case your child forgets his or her sign-in information.
    5. If you selected recovery via text number, enter the code that was sent to the phone, and click Submit.
    6. If you selected email, open the email, and click Complete Registration.
    7. Sign in to the FamilySearch account to complete registration.
  6. To provide parental consent by email, follow these steps.
    1. Using an email from the drop-down menu, select Ask parent, and enter the email address. Click Continue.
    2. Account creation continues. Fill in the remaining form fields, and click Create Account. A message with a parental consent link is sent to the parent’s email.
    3. The next screen asks for the parental consent code that was sent to the parent or guardian’s email. Enter the code, and click Submit.
    4. Enter a text number or email address for account recovery, in case your child forgets his or her sign-in information.
    5. If you selected recovery via text number, enter the code that was sent to the phone, and click Submit.
    6. If you selected email, open the email, and click Complete Registration.
    7. Sign in to the FamilySearch account to complete registration.

The verification email or text does not arrive

If the permission or verification email or text message does not arrive immediately, the progress on your account is saved for 48 hours. During that time, you can do one of the following to grant permission:

  • Sign in to your account at churchofjesuschrist.org, and give consent from your account settings (for Latter-day Saints).
  • Check your text messages or email for a day. If nothing arrives, return to FamilySearch.org, and click Sign In. Enter your username and password, and FamilySearch will help you finish creating your account.

The child already has an account

If you receive one of the error messages below, the child probably already has an account:

  • "We believe this account already exists."
  • "The text phone number that you entered is already used in an account."
  • "This church record number is already used in an account."

In this case, click Sign in. Then, if the child has forgotten his or her username or password, do one or both of the following:

  • To recover the username, click Forgot Username.
  • To reset the password, click Forgot Password.
  • If you have problems, it sometimes helps to switch to a different internet browser, such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari.

Important Notes

As of December 2020 there are new tools available for parents to manage their child's accounts for members of the Church. After signing in on the ChurchofJesusChrist.org site, click your name, then choose Account Settings. Then on the left side of the screen. select Children Accounts. There are new options for creating accounts, authorizing accounts, deleting accounts and resetting passwords.

How do I request that FamilySearch resend a verification email for my Account?
How do I request resend a verification code to activate my FamilySearch account?
How do I create a Church account using churchofjesuschrist.org?

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