Family Violence Initiative
Financial abuse
What does it look like?
Financial abuse happens when someone uses money or property to control or exploit you. It can involve:
- taking your money or property without permission
- withholding your money so you cannot pay for things
- making you sign documents to sell things you don't want to sell
- forcing you to change your will, or
- not letting you have access to family money to meet your basic needs or those of your children.
Most forms of financial abuse are crimes, including theft and fraud. Financial abuse can also include situations where one person intends to financially exploit the other, as in cases of dowry fraud.*
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