What is Economic Abuse?
Economic abuse is a form of control where a partner or ex-partner restricts your access to money, resources, or the things money can buy—like food, housing, or transport. It can include taking your wages, running up debts in your name, stopping you from working, or tightly monitoring how you spend. Its impact can be long-lasting—trapping survivors in dangerous situations or preventing them from rebuilding their lives after leaving.
Often hidden and misunderstood, economic abuse is a powerful way for perpetrators to limit your choices and independence. It can continue long after a relationship ends and can happen on its own or alongside physical, emotional, or other types of abuse.
Recognising these behaviours is the first step to breaking free and taking back control.
Examples of economic abuse include:
- Controlling your income – taking your wages, benefits, or savings, or forcing you to hand over all financial decisions.
- Restricting access to essentials – limiting or denying access to food, clothing, transport, or sanitary products.
- Sabotaging your employment – stopping you from working, interfering with your job, or making it impossible to keep work.
- Building up debt in your name – taking out loans or credit cards without your consent or pressuring you to sign financial agreements.
- Monitoring or punishing spending – checking receipts, controlling what you can buy, or accusing you of being irresponsible.
- Preventing you from getting help – hiding important documents, blocking access to online banking, or isolating you from support services.
Economic abuse isn’t always obvious—and many survivors blame themselves. But no one deserves to be controlled or manipulated through money. Recognising these behaviours is the first step in breaking free and taking back control.
