Frequently Asked Questions about Junior ISAs

A Junior Cash ISA (JISA) is similar to a Building Society savings account although the money is locked in and cannot be withdrawn until the child is 18. Junior Cash ISAs come with one big advantage, your child doesn’t have to pay tax on the interest they earn on their savings, and you don’t either.

A child’s parent or legal guardian must open the Junior Cash ISA account on their behalf. Parents, friends and family can all save on behalf of the child as long as the total stays under the annual limit.

Money in the account belongs to the child, but they can’t withdraw it until they turn 18, apart from in exceptional circumstances. They can, however, start managing their account themselves from their 16th birthday. When the child turns 18, the account is automatically rolled over into an adult ISA. They can also choose to take the money out and spend it as they wish.

The Junior Cash ISA limit is £9,000 for the tax year 2024/25. If more than this amount is credited into a Junior ISA, the excess is held in a savings account in trust for the child – it cannot be returned to the donor.

Parents, friends and family can all save on behalf of the child as long as the total stays under the annual limit.

A child can have a Junior Cash ISA, a Junior Stocks & Shares ISA, or both. Bath Building Society only offers a Junior Cash ISA. If a child has more than one type of Junior ISA, the amount they can save is still subject to a total of £9,000 for the 2024/25 tax year.

If you are eligible to apply for a Bath Building Society Junior Cash ISA you can apply via the product page or on our Mobile App. You can also open an account at one of our Branches.

We currently do not accept transfers of an existing Junior ISA to Bath Building Society. This status is reviewed regularly.

You may be able to withdraw money from your Junior ISA depending on the terms and conditions of the account you have with us. Any money withdrawn out of a Junior ISA will lose its ISA status unless it is transferred our to another Bath Building Society ISA, or another provider.

A Child Trust Fund (CTF) is a long term tax-free savings account for children, designed to encourage them to develop a savings habit for their future adult life. Child Trust Funds were available to all children born in the UK whose parents were awarded child benefit between 1st September 2002 and 2nd January 2011.

All money earned in a Child Trust Fund is tax free, including capital gains, interest payments and any other money earned on the account. This means all the money in the fund belongs to the account holder and none of it will be lost in tax deductions.

On maturity, Child Trust Funds can either be cashed in or transferred into an adult ISA. If you have a Child Trust Fund and do not inform your provider what you would like to do with the money in it on maturity, the money will be held in a ‘protected account’ until you contact them.

You can’t apply for a new Child Trust Fund because this government scheme is now closed, but you can keep an existing one.

If a child was born between 2002 and 2011 they might have a Child Trust Fund (CTF). Any money in a Child Trust Fund (CTF) can normally be transferred into a Junior Cash ISA. However, we are currently not accepting transfers of Child Trust Funds to Bath Building Society. This is reviewed regularly.