Combining Junior ISA accounts question?

moneyworrier2021

Hi All

So we adopted our son back in 2020, its come to light that he had 2 Junior ISA accounts. 

One is with 'The Children's ISA' which looks like a stocks one. He also has a Cash ISA which is foster carers setup for him with Lloyds.

Can both of these be moved into a New Cash ISA with someone like Tesco bank who pay 4% interest and allows online access?

xylophone

https://www.gov.uk/junior-individual-savings-accounts

Presumably you are now the "registered contact" for both these accounts? Your son is still under age 16?

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-1583863/Best-savings-rates-Junior-Isas-children-s-accounts.html

List of JISA providers above.

You will need to contact the provider of your choice to  check on whether they will accept the transfers  in and then proceed according to

the provider's requirements.

eskbanker

JISAs can be transferred, so in principle the answer is yes.

Such accounts do tend to have a registered contact, so if you weren't involved in setting them up then this may need to be changed prior to any transfers being implemented.

There is also the question of whether it's wise to move from S&S to cash - the latter is more predictable returns but usually lower ones over the long term, so would make more sense for a teenager than a toddler.

What do you see as the value of online access, for a product whose contents can't be accessed as such until 18? 

moneyworrier2021

sorry I should have been clearer. Both ISA companies got in contact with us and I have now been updated on both as the registered contact, so all of that is done. 

His S&S account only has £230 in it. £600 in his Cash Lloyds ISA. 

He's currently 8 years old and plan to start a Direct Debit of £25-£50 a month. Stocks and shares ones scare me that he will loose money

Alexland

moneyworrier2021 said:

He's currently 8 years old and plan to start a Direct Debit of £25-£50 a month. Stocks and shares ones scare me that he will loose money

With a S&S JISA the potential for loss depends on how the money is invested. It doesn't have to be in volatile company shares. For example if you used a Fidelity JISA (no platform charge until age 18 at which point it could always be moved/withdrawn) and invested in a money market fund the potential for loss is negligible (as you are lending to high quality issuers including the bank of england) and it would generate a steady return similar to keep moving it around to hunt the latest cash JISA rates for example the RL money market fund has a past year return of 5.4% which is 35% more interest than 4% at Tesco.
https://www.fidelity.co.uk/junior-isa/
https://www.fidelity.co.uk/factsheet-data/factsheet/GB00B8XYYQ86-royal-london-short-term-money-mrkt-y-acc/key-statistics