The cash balance in your savings or checking accounts is the amount of money you have in your accounts. Remember to include both traditional bank accounts, as well as “digital” ones like Venmo, PayPal, or Square Cash.
Your “cash on hand” is the amount of literal cash (dollar bills and coins) you have in your wallet, in a home safe or piggy bank, under your mattress.
For this question about cash balances, do not include any credit cards, even if you could get a cash advance on them.
For your parents, remember to include money they hold in joint AND separate bank accounts (anything in either of their names)!