If you're a parent, there's a relatively simple move you can make to set your kids up to have a healthy credit score before they're even old enough to tap a card at the register: make them an authorized user on your credit card.

Your child will get their own card that's connected to your account and have access to your card's credit limit. However, as the primary cardholder, you'll still see what purchases they make and you're responsible for paying off the balance each month.

"I think this is a great way to essentially let them start building credit," Gregg Murset, a CFP, father of six and co-founder and CEO of BusyKid money management app, tells CNBC Make It. "You can give a little bit of oversight while they're learning the world of credit."

Your positive credit habits, such as consistently making on-time payments and keeping your credit utilization low, can become a part of your child's credit report and give them a good foundation to begin building their own credit after they turn 18. Just make sure to ask your card issuer if it reports the payment history of authorized users to credit bureaus.

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It's also worth considering your own score. You don't need to have a perfect 850 for your child to benefit from being an authorized user, Murset says, unless your score is poor.

"It can help them more than likely unless you've got a trashy history," he says. "If you're pretty responsible and have a pretty good credit score, it'll help them."

However, adding your child as an authorized user without teaching them how to manage money responsibly can put your own credit score at risk if you're not careful, he says. Here are three steps to take ahead of making this move, according to Murset.

1. Avoid 'other people's money syndrome'

The "most dangerous" aspect of adding your kid as an authorized user is that they may develop "other people's money syndrome," Murset says.

"They get this idea of using 'other people's money' in their head and it becomes easy to just swipe Dad or Mom's card for something like a hamburger because it's not money they worked for," he says. "That mentality is dangerous if you want to raise a responsible, accountable kid."

One way to get ahead of this is by opening a debit card with your child first, he says.

If you give them an allowance or money for doing chores around the house, they can store it in that account and begin to understand what it means to save up money to purchase something they want.

There are banks that offer joint checking accounts specifically for teens and their parents, and parents can obtain a debit card for children as young as 6 with some banks too.

"After they've shown you they're pretty responsible with their own money, then add them as an authorized user," Murset says. "But until that mindset is set in stone, don't even think about it because they're going to be doing stuff that wastes your money because they don't think of it as their own."

2. Set clear spending guidelines

If you've added your child as an authorized user on your credit card, you should clearly explain to them what they can and can't use it for, Murset says. Maybe they can only use it for emergencies, such as if their car breaks down.

"If you're fuzzy about what the kid can and cannot buy with that card, you're going to be in trouble because they could try to slide things in," he says. "You've got to be super clear about the rules of the road."

Plus, the last thing you want is a credit card bill that's higher than what you expected thanks to their extra purchases, he says.

3. Go over credit card statements with your child

If you add your child as an authorized user on your credit card and allow them to make purchases with it, simply paying your credit card bill in full may lead them to think of it as a gift card instead of real money, Murset says.

That's why you should go over the credit card statement with them, tally up their charges and have them explain the purchases they made on the card each month, he says.

Plus, if they went over the spending limit you've given them or used the card to buy something they weren't supposed to, you can discuss a plan for how they can help pay that portion back, which can help hold them accountable for their own spending.

"It's really important to tell them, 'Hey, I'll add you as an authorized user to help build your credit or help with an emergency, but at the end of the day, you're still responsible for helping with the bill,'" Murset says.

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