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Cal. PROB § 3909

This is the official text of Cal. PROB § 3909, part of California’s Probate Code — governs wills, trusts, estates, and conservatorships.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Official statutory text

(a) Custodial property is created and a transfer is made whenever any of the following occurs:

(1) An uncertificated security or a certificated security in registered form is either:

(A) Registered in the name of the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(B) Delivered if in certificated form, or any document necessary for the transfer of an uncertificated security is delivered, together with any necessary endorsement to an adult other than the transferor or to a trust company as custodian, accompanied by an instrument in substantially the form set forth in subdivision (b).

(2) Money is paid or delivered, or a security held in the name of a broker, financial institution, or its nominee is transferred, to a broker or financial institution for credit to an account in the name of the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(3) The ownership of a life or endowment insurance policy or annuity contract is either:

(A) Registered with the issuer in the name of the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(B) Assigned in a writing delivered to an adult other than the transferor or to a trust company whose name in the assignment is followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(4) An irrevocable exercise of a power of appointment or an irrevocable present right to future payment under a contract is the subject of a written notification delivered to the payor, issuer, or other obligor that the right is transferred to the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, whose name in the notification is followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(5) An interest in real property is recorded in the name of the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(6) A certificate of title issued by a department or agency of a state or of the United States which evidences title to tangible personal property is either:

(A) Issued in the name of the transferor, an adult other than the transferor, or a trust company, followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(B) Delivered to an adult other than the transferor or to a trust company, endorsed to that person followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(7) An interest in any property not described in paragraphs (1) through (6) is transferred to an adult other than the transferor or to a trust company by a written instrument in substantially the form set forth in subdivision (b).
a trust company, endorsed to that person followed in substance by the words:

“as custodian for (Name of Minor)

under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.”

(7) An interest in any property not described in paragraphs (1) through (6) is transferred to an adult other than the transferor or to a trust company by a written instrument in substantially the form set forth in subdivision (b).

(b) An instrument in the following form satisfies the requirements of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) and paragraph (7) of subdivision (a):

“TRANSFER UNDER THE CALIFORNIA UNIFORM
TRANSFERS TO MINORS ACT

I,
(Name of Transferor or Name and Representative
Capacity if a Fiduciary)
hereby transfer to (Name of Custodian) ,
as custodian for (Name of Minor)
under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, the following:
(insert a description of the custodial property sufficient to identify it).

Dated: _________________
(Signature)

(Name of Custodian) acknowledges receipt of the property described above as custodian for the minor named above under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.

Dated: _________________
(Signature of Custodian) ”

(c) A transferor shall place the custodian in control of the custodial property as soon as practicable.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.