How to open a Junior ISA: a step-by-step guide

Opening a Junior ISA is simpler than it sounds. Most applications are online and take well under half an hour.

Here's what you'll need, the choices you'll make along the way, and what happens after you apply.

Quick summary: choose cash or stocks and shares, choose a provider, fill in a short online application with your child's details, and make your first payment. You can do it all from the sofa.

See what regular payments could grow to with our Junior ISA calculator before you start.

Before you begin: what you'll need

Information

Your details (as parent or guardian):

Full name and date of birth
National Insurance number
Address
Email address and phone number
Bank details, for payments

Your child's details:

Full name as on their birth certificate
Date of birth
National Insurance number, if they have one (children usually get one around 16, so young children won't)
Address

Documents, if asked:

Many providers check identity electronically, but some ask for a photo of your passport or driving licence, proof of address, or your child's birth certificate

It helps to have photos of these ready on your phone, just in case.

Who can have one

Your child must be under 18 and live in the UK
They can have one cash Junior ISA and one stocks and shares Junior ISA at the same time, but not two of the same type
If they have a Child Trust Fund, they can't also have a Junior ISA, but you can transfer the Child Trust Fund into one (more on this below)
You must have parental responsibility for a child under 16. Children aged 16 and 17 can open their own

The person who opens the Junior ISA manages it (they're called the "registered contact") until the child takes over, which they can do from 16. Anyone can pay in once it's open.

Step 1: cash or stocks and shares?

Cash Junior ISA

Suits:

Money that will be needed within about five years
Families who'd rather the balance never went down

How it grows: interest, at a rate that moves with interest rates generally

The trade-off: over long periods, cash has usually grown less than investments

Stocks and shares Junior ISA

Suits:

Money that can stay invested for 10 years or more
Families comfortable with ups and downs along the way

How it grows: the investments rise and fall in value; over long periods, shares have historically grown faster than cash, but nothing is guaranteed

The trade-off: the value can fall, sometimes sharply

For example: £200 a month from birth could be worth about £76,500 at 18 if invested and growing at 6% a year, or about £57,000 in cash at 3%. Both are illustrations, not promises. Our stocks and shares vs cash comparison explains more.

You can have both: a child can hold one of each, as long as the total paid in stays within £9,000 a year.

Step 2: choose a provider

Look at the total cost (platform fee plus fund charges), the funds on offer, and how easy the app is to use.

Stocks and shares platforms

Charges checked September 2026; check the provider's own site before you apply. Squids-In is independent, and we don't earn anything from any provider or fund we mention.

Fidelity

Account fee: none on Junior ISAs; you pay the fund's own charge
Minimum: £25 a month, or £100 lump sum

Hargreaves Lansdown

Account fee: none on Junior ISAs, and no online dealing charges
Minimum: £25 a month, or £100 lump sum
A very wide choice, including individual shares

Vanguard

Account fee: 0.15% a year, capped at £375
Vanguard's own funds only

interactive investor

Junior ISAs are included if you have ii's Plus or Premium plan for your own investing
Regular investing free from £25 a month

AJ Bell

Account fee: 0.25% a year on funds; 0.25% capped at £2.50 a month on shares and ETFs
Regular investing free; £1.50 to buy or sell a fund otherwise

Our Junior ISA providers guide compares them in more detail.

Cash Junior ISA providers

Banks, building societies and NS&I all offer cash Junior ISAs. Rates change often, so compare current ones on MoneySavingExpert or Moneyfacts. Many can be opened with as little as £1.

Step 3: the online application

Applications are much the same everywhere. Expect something like this:

1. Start the application

Go to the provider's website or app
Choose "Junior ISA"
Create a login, or sign in if you already have an account with them

2. Choose the type

Cash, or stocks and shares
Confirm you have parental responsibility

3. Your details

Name, date of birth, National Insurance number
Address (usually checked electronically)
Contact details
Some providers ask about your employment, for regulatory reasons

4. Your child's details

Full name as on their birth certificate
Date of birth
National Insurance number, if they have one
Confirm they don't already have a Junior ISA of the same type

5. Identity checks

Usually done electronically in seconds
Occasionally you'll be asked to upload a document

6. Payments

A lump sum, a monthly direct debit, or both
Choose the amount (the limit is £9,000 a year in 2026/27, from everyone combined)
Choose a payment date, perhaps just after payday

7. Investments (stocks and shares only)

Some providers offer ready-made options
Others ask you to pick a fund
A popular simple choice is a low-cost global index fund
You can change it later

8. Check and submit

Check everything carefully
Read the key documents
Submit

What happens next

Within a day or two:

You'll get a confirmation email
The account is opened, with a reference number

Within a week or so:

Your first payment arrives and, for stocks and shares, is invested
You can log in and see the account

Step 4: your first payment

Regular payments

Why many families pay monthly:

It builds a habit
It's easier on the budget than a big lump sum
Buying a little each month means sometimes buying when prices are lower

A simple approach:

Decide what you can comfortably afford
Set up a direct debit just after payday
Review it once a year, and increase it if you're able

One-off payments

Good for:

Birthday and Christmas money
Gifts from grandparents
A top-up before the tax year ends on 5 April

How:

Log in and choose "add money" or similar
Check you won't go over the £9,000 limit
Pay by debit card or bank transfer, using the account reference

The yearly limit

2026/27: £9,000 per child, from 6 April to 5 April.

The limit covers cash and stocks and shares Junior ISAs together.

Example:

£5,000 into a stocks and shares Junior ISA
£4,000 into a cash Junior ISA
Total: £9,000 ✅

Step 5: choose investments (stocks and shares only)

The simple option: one global index fund

Many families put everything into one low-cost global index fund, such as (charges as of September 2026):

Vanguard FTSE Global All Cap Index Fund (over 7,000 companies worldwide, 0.23% a year)
Fidelity Index World Fund (developed markets, 0.12% a year)
HSBC FTSE All-World Index Fund (developed and emerging markets, 0.13% a year)

One fund like this spreads the money across thousands of companies in dozens of countries.

Our index funds guide compares these and a few others.

More than one fund

Some families split it, for example:

70% global index fund
20% UK index fund
10% bond index fund

That's fine, but it means more to keep an eye on, and a single global fund already holds UK companies.

Mistakes to avoid

Cash for a long time frame. Over 18 years, cash has usually grown much less than investments. Consider stocks and shares for money that won't be needed for 10 years or more.

High charges. A 0.75% charge instead of 0.15% can cost thousands over 18 years. Check the platform fee and fund charge together.

Forgetting to invest. On some platforms, money you pay in sits as cash until you choose a fund. Log in after your first payment and check it's invested.

Over-complicating it. Fifteen funds isn't safer than one global fund. It's just more overlap.

There are more in our common Junior ISA mistakes guide.

Child Trust Funds

Children born between September 2002 and January 2011 were given a Child Trust Fund. A child with a Child Trust Fund can't also have a Junior ISA, but you can move the Child Trust Fund into a Junior ISA, often for lower charges and more fund choice. Not every provider accepts Child Trust Fund transfers (Fidelity and Vanguard don't, for example), so check before you apply. Our guide to finding a lost Child Trust Fund explains more.

How:

Choose a Junior ISA provider
Ask them for a Child Trust Fund transfer
Fill in their transfer form with the Child Trust Fund details
They arrange the rest, usually within a few weeks

If you're not sure whether your child has a Child Trust Fund, HMRC has an online service to find it.

Common questions

Q: Can I open a Junior ISA if my child already has one?

A: Your child can have one cash and one stocks and shares Junior ISA at a time. If they already have one type, you can open the other type, or transfer the existing one to a new provider.

Q: Can grandparents or family pay in?

A: Yes. Anyone can pay in once it's open, but the total from everyone can't go over £9,000 a tax year. The registered contact manages the account.

Q: What if we go over the £9,000 limit?

A: Providers normally turn away payments over the limit. If it's gone over across two accounts, contact the providers and they'll help put it right.

Q: Can I take money out before my child turns 18?

A: No. The money belongs to your child and stays in until they turn 18. The only exceptions are if a child is terminally ill, or dies.

Q: What happens at 16?

A: Your child can take control of the account, choosing how it's invested. They still can't take money out until 18.

Q: What happens at 18?

A: The Junior ISA becomes an adult ISA in your child's name. They can take the money out, leave it invested, or move it to another provider. Money left in an ISA stays tax-free.

Q: Should I tell my child about it?

A: Many parents start talking about it around 10 to 12. It's a great way to teach saving and investing, with their own money as the example.

Q: Can I change the investments later?

A: Yes. You can switch funds inside the Junior ISA, or transfer between cash and stocks and shares, at any time.

Next steps

Straight away

Set up regular payments, even small ones
Check the money is invested
Let family know how to pay in, if they'd like to

Over the years

Look once a year, not every week
Increase payments when you can
Involve your child as they grow

A chance to teach

Opening a Junior ISA is a great moment to start talking about money:

Show them what time could do, with the Time Machine in the Squids-In app or our Junior ISA calculator
Look at the account together now and then
Mark milestones, like the first £1,000

Squids-In has 130 short lessons for children aged 10 and up, and a friendly investing game where they can practise with pretend money.

Key points

Opening a Junior ISA usually takes under 30 minutes online
Stocks and shares suits long time frames; cash suits money needed within about five years
Charges matter: several platforms now charge no account fee on Junior ISAs
Keep it simple: one global index fund is enough for many families
Pay in monthly if you can
Check the money is invested after your first payment
Involve your child as they grow

A Junior ISA is one option. Our Junior ISA vs Junior SIPP comparison explains the other.

Related guides:

This article is for education only and isn't financial advice. Charges change, so check current figures before opening an account. The value of investments can go down as well as up.