Is a Junior ISA right for your child?
What is a Junior ISA?
A Junior ISA is a long-term tax-free savings account for children. ISA stands for Individual Savings Account. You can open our
Junior ISA with just £1.
Who can open a Junior ISA?
The child for whom the account is open for must be under 18 and living in the UK. The parent or guardian of the child can open and manage the account but the money belongs to the child. The parent or guardian has no control over the account once the child turns 18 and has access to their money. The child can control the account from age 16 but cannot withdraw funds until age 18.
Junior ISA rules
How much can you save in a Junior ISA?
The Junior ISA limit is £9,000 for the current tax year. This can be split between a Junior cash ISA (which we offer here at The Nottingham) and a Junior Stocks & Shares ISA, which we don’t offer as a product.
Remember, ISA allowances do not roll over into the following year. For example, if you have only saved £8,000 into a Junior ISA in current tax year you won’t be able to add the leftover £1,000 of allowance to the next year.
Can you withdraw money from a Junior ISA?
Money in Junior ISA accounts cannot be withdrawn until the child is 18 and in control of the account.
Can you transfer Junior ISAs to another provider?
Yes, you can transfer the funds in the Junior ISA to another provider but you cannot withdraw.
How many Junior ISAs can you have?
Children can only pay into one Junior cash ISA but they can also pay into a Junior Stocks & Shares ISA during each tax year. The Junior ISA allowance must be split between the two accounts however.
Can you have both Junior and adult ISAs?
16 and 17 year olds can have both a Junior ISA or a cash ISA. Some ISA providers will also let 16 year olds open cash ISAs but the Lifetime ISA can only be opened at age 18.
Do you have to pay money in every year?
No, but you will lose the Junior ISA allowance from that year if you do not use it.
What happens when your child turns 18?
This children’s ISA is an extension of the adult cash ISA and if a child holding one turns 18, the account is rolled over into an adult ISA, protecting the tax-free benefit. When the child turns 18 the funds now belong to them and not the parent.
The Nottingham’s Junior ISA
You can open The Nottingham’s Junior ISA with just £1. Our Junior ISA is available in branch and currently has no withdrawal arrangements on the account which means the money is safe in the account until the child turns 18. We will pay annual tax-free interest into the Junior ISA on 5th April each year until the account matures on the child's 18th birthday.
Saving for your child’s future
From research we have analysed 13% of parents* are saving for their child’s university course and maintenance fees. A Junior ISA could be a way to help save for your child to fund themselves through university life.
At the moment, the full ‘living loan’ for a student in the UK living away from home and studying in London is £11,3541 a year but a student will only receive this if the household income is £25,000 or less. From our article called University fees: How much should you be saving? it is estimated that an average parent would have to contribute £5,000 per year. For a three year course this would be £15,000 to fund a single child through university.
*The Nottingham's analysis of responses of 25,215 parents of children aged 0 - 16 years old from YouGov Profiles, showing statements agreed with about Finance. GB Profiles survey completed on 31/03/2019.
1 LSE Financial Support Guide
View our examples
Maximum Junior ISA savings over 18 years
As a parent, you can currently pay in the maximum of £9,000 a year in the current tax year into a Junior ISA for your child until they are 18 which is broken down per month to a deposit of £750.
Last updated on:
† Interest will be paid free of UK income tax. Your tax treatment will depend on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. The tax treatment of ISAs may also change.