How are finances used as a form of intimate partner violence?
Financial abuse is one of the most powerful ways for keeping a survivor trapped in an abusive relationship and highly reduces the survivor’s ability to stay safe after leaving their partner.
Forms of financial abuse include:
- Preventing their partner from working or making them miss, leave or be late to work
- Controlling how all the money is spent
- Not allowing their partner to access their bank accounts
- Stealing their partner’s identity, property or inheritance
It is often difficult for survivors to gain long-term security due to ruined credit scores, sporadic employment histories and legal issues caused by abuse. Women who are living in poverty are twice as likely to experience IPV than those who do not.
Did you know? Financial abuse occurs in 99% of intimate partner violence cases.
Source: National Network to End Domestic Violence. (2025). Financial Abuse Fact Sheet
