Transfer of a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA if you're an ISA manager
When an Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA can be transferred and what information you need.
Transferring a JISA
Transferring a JISA - General
Subject to the JISA terms and conditions of the providers, a JISA may be transferred in a variety of ways, by transferring investments in cash or in a combination of investments and cash. Transfers may be made between account providers, or investments in a JISA may be transferred (in whole or in part) from one type of JISA (cash or stocks and shares) to another.
An account may be transferred even if - at the time that the transfer is made - the child would not be eligible for a new JISA, for example because they are no longer resident in the UK, a crown servant or the spouse or dependant of a crown servant.
The transfer should be carried out as soon as requested by the registered contact, subject to:
- the cash ISA to cash ISA transfer rules
- for other transfers, the reasonable business period required to carry out the transfer (not exceeding 30 days)
- expiry of any withdrawal period offered by the new manager (see cancellation of a transfer)
Previous years’ JISA subscriptions can be transferred in whole or in part (depending on the terms and conditions offered by the 2 providers involved, and subject to the child not having 2 accounts of the same type at the end of the transfer process).
Current years’ JISA subscriptions must be transferred in full. This means that part transfers of JISA investments can only be made to a JISA of a different type (cash or stocks and shares). A transfer from a cash JISA to another cash JISA or a stocks and shares JISA to another stocks and shares JISA must involve the transfer of the entire contents of the first JISA. In such cases, the provider may close the £nil value account.
Internal transfer
A registered contact can transfer a JISA internally by changing the type of JISA, for example from cash to stocks and shares. Such an internal transfer can only take place where the provider offers both types of JISA.
To carry out an internal transfer the registered contact must contact the provider with appropriate transfer instructions as required by the provider. There is no requirement under the JISA rules for the registered contact to provide transfer instructions in writing - this is a matter for the terms and conditions applying to the JISA.
External transfer
Providers are not required to accept the transfer in of accounts from another provider. In addition, providers are not required to permit partial transfers in or out.
A child cannot have more than one JISA of each type at any time. So if a cash JISA is transferred to a cash JISA with another provider (or a stocks and shares JISA is transferred to stocks and shares JISA with another provider), the whole account must be transferred. However, any type of JISA can be transferred entirely or in part to a new or existing different type of JISA, subject to guidance on previous years’ JISA subscriptions and current years’ JISA subscriptions provided that at the end of the transfer process the child does not have more than one JISA of each type.
Where the whole balance is transferred, the £nil balance JISA may be closed by the account provider. At a later date, another JISA of the same type could be opened for the child without breaching the ‘one account of each type per lifetime’ rule. Where, following the transfer, the old manager keeps the empty shell account open with a £nil balance, this will not prevent the child having another JISA of the same type with another manager.
To effect a transfer the registered contact must complete a transfer application with the new provider. The transfer application form is slightly different from that used to open the JISA. Examples of written transfer application and telephone transfer application are available. Providers are not obliged to accept transfers, subject to the guidance on refusal to accept an external transfer.
After completion of the form, and after expiry of any withdrawal period with the new provider, the new provider must contact the old provider and request transfer of the JISA. The new provider must not request the transfer until after expiration of any withdrawal period applying to the application for transfer. The new provider must give the name of the person who requested the transfer (the registered contact), as well as details of the account, to the old provider. If the registered contact named on the transfer application is not the registered contact for the account to be transferred, the transfer cannot continue until the registered contact for the old account has been changed - see guidance on change to a registered contact - existing registered contact.
If the request is by telephone a signature is not needed unless the old manager’s terms and conditions state they will not transfer the JISA unless they have received a written request with a signature.
Subject to the JISA terms and conditions of the providers, a JISA may be transferred in a variety of ways, investments may be re-registered in the new provider’s or his nominee’s name in cash, or in a combination of investments and cash. The old provider must transfer investments and/or cash direct to the new provider, and must keep a record of the transfer notice for 3 years after the date of transfer. The original application form should not be sent to the new provider, but must be retained by the old provider. There are no circumstances in which the original application form should be transferred to the new provider.
Where the old provider is the one with whom the current registered contact application was made, they must also keep the original or a certified copy of the registered contact application or in the case of applications not in writing, the declaration made by the registered contact, for 3 years after the date the transfer application was made.
The transfer should be carried out by the old provider as soon as requested by the new provider, subject to the cash JISA to cash JISA transfer rules, and for other transfers, the reasonable business period required to carry out the transfer (not exceeding 30 calendar days). The transfer should not be delayed awaiting re-registration of investments, receipt of dividends or other income from investments. Any sums received after transfer should be forwarded to the new provider together with details of the JISA in respect of which the sums have been received.
External transfer history form
Providers should produce their own external transfer history forms. The form should be sent to the new provider within 5 business days for cash JISA to cash JISA transfers and within 30 days of the date of the transfer for other transfers. A model for an external transfer form is provided. Note that all external transfer forms must contain the same details as the model. The form should be completed by the old provider as follows:
- full name of child - providers should enter the child’s full name (see personal information), as held on their records
- permanent residential address (including postcode) of the child
- date of birth - this should be reported in the format DDMMYYYY - for example, the date of birth of a child born on 3 June 2008 should be reported as 03062008
- National Insurance number of the child (if they have one)
- whether the JISA is cash or stocks and shares
- date of transfer - this should normally be the date of which the new manager agrees to accept the transfer (see ), it should be reported in the format DDMMYYYY
- total subscriptions in tax year to date of transfer (if any) - this box must be completed only if subscriptions have been made in the tax year in which the transfer takes place, if this is the case, providers should enter the total subscriptions made to the Junior ISA in the tax year in which the transfer takes place, otherwise, the box must be left blank
- date of first subscription (if any) - this box must be completed only if the Junior ISA was opened in the tax year in which the transfer takes place, if this is the case, it should be completed using the format DDMMYYYY to show the date the first subscription was received, otherwise, the box must be left blank
- follow on dividends - enter details of the amount (if known) of any dividends which are payable on account investments, which have not been received by the date of transfer, but will be forwarded to the new provider, the new provider should accept all payments forwarded to them
An account manager may accept any information or declaration offered in a transfer application at face value, but should not open an account if they believe that any of the information given by the applicant is untrue.
Cancellation of a transfer
Internal and external transfers can’t be carried out until after the expiry of any withdrawal period offered by the new manager see general ISA guidance on (cancellation of a transfer), so where a registered contact exercises the right to withdraw the transfer request within such a period the JISA remains as it was before the transfer request.
Seeking to exercise withdrawal rights after the expiry of any withdrawal period has no effect and cannot prevent the transfer of the JISA that is underway.
Refusal to accept an external transfer
Account providers are not required to accept any application for external transfer of a JISA or part transfer of JISA investments. In addition, credit unions cannot accept an external transfer to them of a JISA where the child does not fulfil the membership requirement.
Example of written external transfer application
External transfer phone applications
JISA transfer history form
Transfer of a CTF to a JISA
Subject to the CTF and JISA terms and conditions, a CTF may be transferred to a JISA in a variety of ways:
- investments held by the CTF provider, or his nominee, may be transferred in-specie
- in cash
- in a combination of investments and cash
Transfers may be made between CTF providers and JISA managers, or investments in a CTF may be transferred from a CTF to a JISA (cash or stocks and shares) with the same institution. A CTF may be transferred even if - at the time that the transfer is made - the child would not be eligible for a JISA, for example because they are no longer resident in the UK.
The transfer should be carried out as soon as requested by the CTF registered contact (which may be the child if they are aged over 16), subject to:
- any reasonable business period required to carry out the transfer (not exceeding 30 days)
- expiry of any cancellation or withdrawal period offered by the JISA manager (see cancellation of a transfer)
A CTF must be transferred in full and closed once the investments/cash have been passed to the JISA manager. Part transfers of CTF investments cannot be made. A child cannot have a CTF and a JISA so if a CTF is transferred the whole account must be transferred and the CTF provider must close the account. The CTF can be transferred to either a cash or a stocks and shares JISA.
Where the CTF has a £nil balance (for example where the investments held have fallen in value and charges have reduced the account balance), the transfer process must still be followed. This will allow the CTF provider to formally close their records.
Where a request is made to transfer a CTF to an existing JISA, the transfer should proceed. But where the:
- person requesting the transfer is not the registered contact for the CTF
- registered contact for the CTF, or the JISA applicant, is not changed so the transfer can proceed (see guidance on external transfer)
the JISA should be voided.
Internal transfer
A CTF registered contact can transfer a CTF by requesting a transfer to a JISA offered by the same manager.
To carry out an internal transfer the CTF registered contact must give the appropriate transfer instructions required by the provider. There is no requirement under the CTF or JISA rules for the transfer instructions to be in writing - this is a matter for the terms and conditions applying to the JISA.
External transfer
A JISA manager is not required to accept the transfer in of a CTF. In addition, credit unions cannot accept a transfer of a CTF where the child does not fulfil the membership requirement. To effect a transfer the CTF registered contact must complete a written transfer authority with the JISA manager or a telephone external transfer authority.
It is recommended that managers include in the transfer authority advice that if, for any reason, the transfer from the CTF is not successful, any JISA that has been opened on a provisional basis to accept the transfer will be void, and any subscriptions to the provisional JISA will be returned per void JISAs, the CTF will remain intact.See example of written transfer authority.
If the registered contact is unable to provide the child’s Unique Reference number (URN), alternative information may be provided to identify the account. The CTF provider should provide the URN to the JISA provider, who should include it on their annual return of information as required by (reporting following a CTF to JISA transfer).
After completion of the form, and after expiry of any withdrawal period (see cancellation of a transfer), the JISA manager must contact the CTF provider and request the transfer of the CTF. The JISA manager must not request the transfer until after expiration of any withdrawal period applying to the application for transfer. The JISA manager must give the name of the person who requested the transfer, as well as details of the account, to the CTF provider.
The CTF provider must check that the person requesting the transfer is the registered contact for the CTF. If not, the transfer cannot continue. The CTF provider should tell the JISA manager that the applicant is not the CTF registered contact, but should not disclose their details.
If the registered contact for the CTF, or the JISA applicant, changes, the transfer form can be re-sent to the CTF provider. Where there is no registered contact for the CTF, the person requesting the transfer must take up the role of registered contact with the CTF provider before the transfer can go ahead.
If the JISA provider has opened an account on a provisional basis pending the CTF transfer, they can allow a period of 60 days from provisional account opening for the registered contact to be changed and the transfer to go ahead, otherwise the provisional JISA must be closed and any subscriptions removed (see repairs – removal of excess subscriptions).
If the transfer request is made by telephone a signature is not needed unless the CTF provider’s terms and conditions state they will not transfer the CTF unless they have received a written request with a signature.
The transfer will be treated as a previous year’s subscription and, subject to the terms and conditions of the 2 accounts, the transfer may be made in a variety of ways:
- investments held by the CTF provider, or his nominee, may be transferred in-specie
- in cash
- in a combination of investments and cash
The CTF provider must transfer investments and/or cash direct to the JISA manager, and must keep a record of the transfer notice for 3 years after the date of transfer. The original CTF application form should not be sent to the new provider, but must be retained by the CTF provider. There are no circumstances in which an original CTF application form should be transferred to the new JISA manager.
The transfer should be carried out by the CTF provider as soon as requested by the JISA manager, subject to any reasonable business period required to carry out the transfer (not exceeding 30 calendar days). The transfer should not be delayed awaiting re-registration of investments, or receipt of dividends or other income from investments. Any sums received after transfer should be forwarded to the JISA manager together with details of the CTF in respect of which the sums have been received.
External transfer history forms
Providers should produce their own external transfer history forms. The form should be sent to the new provider within 5 business days for cash JISA to cash JISA transfers and within 30 days of the date of the transfer for other transfers. A model for an external transfer form is provided.
Note that all external transfer forms must contain the same details as the model. The form should be completed by the old provider as follows:
Full name of child - providers should enter the child’s full name (see personal information), as held on their records
Date of birth - this should be reported in the format DDMMYYYY
URN of the child
Date of transfer - this should normally be the date of which the JISA manager agrees to accept the transfer (see )) - in the format DDMMYYYY
Follow on dividends - enter details of the amount (if known) of any dividends which are payable on account investments but which have not been received by the date of transfer which will be forwarded to the JISA manager, the JISA manager should accept all payments forwarded to them
The JISA manager may accept any information or declaration offered in a transfer application at face value, but should not open an account if they believe that any of the information given by the applicant is untrue.
Cancellation of a transfer
Internal and external transfers cannot be carried out until after the expiry of any withdrawal period offered by the JISA manager (see cancellation of a transfer), so where a registered contact exercises the right to withdraw the transfer request within such a period the CTF remains as it was before the transfer request.
Seeking to exercise withdrawal rights after the expiry of any withdrawal period has no effect and cannot prevent the transfer of the CTF that is underway.
Subscriptions following a CTF to JISA transfer
Before the JISA manager can accept any subscriptions, the registered contact must complete a suitably modified JISA application (to reflect that in CTF transfer cases the child will hold a CTF). The declaration should include a statement: ‘If the child holds a CTF, it must be transferred as part of this application.’ (See model application form).
Managers can produce their own combined version of the (example of written transfer authority) and JISA application.
The annual subscription limit for a CTF is based on the child’s birth year while JISA subscriptions are based on tax years. Where a CTF is transferred to a JISA, the CTF provider does not need to pass any subscription details to the JISA manager. Once the transfer has been made, the child can access the full JISA subscription limit for the tax year of transfer regardless of any subscriptions made to the CTF in that year.
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Subsequent JISA transfers
In any subsequent transfers from the JISA, the child’s URN (or National Insurance number) must be passed to the new JISA manager who will take responsibility for reporting it each year.
Once the former CTF is transferred to a JISA, the JISA can then be transferred to another JISA in the normal way. Transfers may be made between account providers or investments in a JISA may be transferred (in whole or in part) from one type of JISA (cash or stocks and shares) to another.
Example written transfer authority
Transfer authority by telephone
CTF transfer history form
Bulk transfers
Every transfer from CTF to JISA must be made following an application by the registered contact for the CTF therefore there cannot be a bulk transfer of CTFs to JISAs.