Texas: your 18-year-old’s paperwork

Turning 18 in Texas: the short answer

In Texas, your child becomes a legal adult at 18. From then on, you can't sign for them, and doctors and schools generally need your child's written permission before they share details with you.

The Texas kit covers four documents your child signs: the Texas Medical Power of Attorney, which names who can make medical choices if your child can't; the Texas Statutory Durable Power of Attorney, which names who can handle money, bills and accounts; a HIPAA release, which lets doctors talk to the people your child names; and a FERPA consent, which lets the college share records like grades or bills.

Health care form

Choose one: two qualified witnesses OR a notary. The notary is usually easier.

Financial form

Your child signs in front of a notary. No witnesses needed.

HIPAA & FERPA

Your child signs and dates each one. No witnesses or notary needed.

Educational information, not legal advice. Covered18 is not a law firm.

1. What you’ll sign

• Health care form (Texas Medical Power of Attorney): names who can make medical choices if your child can’t.
• Financial form (Texas Statutory Durable Power of Attorney): names who can handle money, bills and accounts.
• HIPAA release: lets doctors talk to the people your child names. It shares information. It doesn’t give anyone decisions.
• FERPA consent: lets the college share records, like grades or bills, with the people your child names.

2. Step-by-step checklist

Health care form

• Choose one: two qualified witnesses OR a notary. The notary is usually easier.

Financial form

• Your child signs in front of a notary.
• No witnesses needed.

HIPAA and FERPA forms

• Your child signs and dates each one.
• No witnesses or notary needed.
• Many colleges and doctors want their own form. Ask first.

Signing online

• Plan on signing in person. We're confirming whether online options work for these forms.

What to bring

• ☐ Your child's current photo ID.
• ☐ The forms, printed and not signed yet.
• ☐ Everyone who needs to be there: your child, the witnesses, and the notary if needed.
• ☐ Names, addresses and phone numbers for the people being named and their backups.
• ☐ A black pen. Ask the notary about the fee before you go.

3. Watch out

Watch out: Keep the disclosure page with the signed medical form.

Watch out: Don't cross out the words that keep the financial form working.

4. After you sign

Make copies

• ☐ Make paper copies of every signed form.
• ☐ Scan each form to a PDF, or take clear phone photos of every page.
• ☐ Keep the originals together in a safe, easy-to-find place, like a folder at home. Don't lock them where no one can reach them in an emergency.

Who gets a copy

• ☐ Your child.
• ☐ Each parent or person named as an agent, plus any backups.
• ☐ Your child's main doctor.
• ☐ The campus health center.
• ☐ Your child's bank, for the financial form.

Turn in the school and doctor forms

• ☐ FERPA: give it to the college registrar's office. Ask if they want their own form or a setting in the student portal instead.
• ☐ HIPAA: give it to your child's doctors and the campus health center. Ask them to put it in your child's file.
• ☐ Ask each office to confirm they got it.

Keep them handy

• ☐ Save the PDFs to your phone and a cloud folder the named people can open.
• ☐ Put a wallet card in your child's wallet. List who to call and where the papers are.
• ☐ Add the named people as emergency contacts in your child's phone.

When to review or redo

• ☐ Your child moves to a new state or starts a new school.
• ☐ Your child wants to change who is named.
• ☐ The HIPAA release hits its end date. Set a reminder.
• ☐ Every few years, even if nothing changes. A once-a-year look is a good habit.

How to cancel or replace them

• ☐ Your child can cancel a form at any time while they can still decide for themselves.
• ☐ Tell everyone who has a copy, in writing, that the old form is canceled.
• ☐ Get the old copies back or destroy them.
• ☐ Sign a new form the same way as the first one, with the same witnesses or notary rules.

Some Texas details are still being checked. Where you see “we’re confirming this,” ask the notary, the state, or a lawyer before you rely on it.

Questions Texas parents ask

Can I see my 18-year-old's medical records in Texas?

Not automatically. Once your child turns 18, doctors' offices generally need your adult child's written permission to share details with you. A HIPAA release signed by your child lets doctors talk to the people your child names. It shares information. It doesn't give anyone the right to make decisions.

Who can make medical decisions for my 18-year-old in Texas if they can't?

Your child can name that person in writing. In Texas, that's the Texas Medical Power of Attorney, which names who can make medical choices if your child can't. While your child is able to decide, they decide. Keep the disclosure page with the signed medical form.

What does my 18-year-old sign so I can help with money and bills in Texas?

Your child can sign the Texas Statutory Durable Power of Attorney. It names who can handle money, bills and accounts. Don't cross out the words that keep the financial form working.

Can I see my 18-year-old's college grades and bills?

FERPA is a federal law, so the rule is the same in Texas as everywhere else: at 18, or when a student starts college, the rights to see and release education records move from parents to the student. A FERPA consent signed by your child lets the college share records, like grades or bills, with the people your child names. Many colleges want their own form or a student portal setting, so ask the registrar.

Do we need witnesses or a notary in Texas, and can we sign online?

Health care form: Choose one: two qualified witnesses OR a notary. The notary is usually easier. Financial form: Your child signs in front of a notary. No witnesses needed. Signing online: Plan on signing in person. We're confirming whether online options work for these forms. The HIPAA and FERPA forms need no witnesses or notary.

Educational information, not legal advice. Covered18 is not a law firm. Questions? Email [email protected]. — The Covered18 team

Sources

• Tex. Estates Code §752.051 (statutory durable power of attorney form) — https://tcss.legis.texas.gov/resources/ES/htm/ES.752.htm
• Tex. Health & Safety Code §166.164 (form of medical power of attorney) — https://tcss.legis.texas.gov/resources/HS/htm/HS.166.htm
• Federal: 45 CFR 164.508 (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/section-164.508); 34 CFR 99.30 (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/section-99.30).

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