Can a child have a Junior ISA and a Child Trust Fund?

No. A child cannot hold a Junior ISA and a Child Trust Fund at the same time. It is one or the other, and the rule applies to every type of Junior ISA, cash or stocks and shares¹. If a child already has a Child Trust Fund, the only way to open a Junior ISA is to move the Child Trust Fund across first, and the whole balance has to go³.

The reason is that both accounts are tax-free wrappers for the same child, and the rules were written so a child never holds two at once. Child Trust Funds were replaced by Junior ISAs, but existing Child Trust Funds can still be paid into, so the choice is live for families who hold one⁵. Over 6 million children have a Child Trust Fund⁶.

The transfer only works in one direction. Money can move from a Child Trust Fund into a Junior ISA, but a Junior ISA cannot be moved back into a Child Trust Fund⁷. Once the switch is made, the Child Trust Fund is closed and the child holds a Junior ISA instead.

Why a child cannot hold both

The rule is set in legislation, not by providers. An eligible child may hold only one account set up as a cash account and only one account set up as a stocks and shares account, and a child who holds a Child Trust Fund is not eligible for a Junior ISA⁹. NS&I states it plainly: "A child cannot have a Child Trust Fund and a Junior ISA (of any type) at the same time"¹.

Providers repeat the same condition because they have to check it. Tesco Bank says a child "can't have both a junior ISA and a Child Trust Fund - only one or the other"². interactive investor says "No, a child cannot have both a Child Trust Fund and a Junior ISA"¹⁴. Hargreaves Lansdown frames it as an order of events: "It would need to be done in this order as a child cannot have a Junior ISA and Child Trust fund at the same time"¹⁵. Bank of Scotland puts it as an eligibility test: "Children that have a Child Trust Fund can't also have a Junior Cash ISA"¹⁶.

The practical effect is that the Child Trust Fund is not a separate pot sitting alongside a Junior ISA. It is the account the child holds until it is moved, and the Junior ISA replaces it. That is why the transfer has to happen as part of opening the Junior ISA rather than afterwards¹⁷.

One cash and one stocks and shares Junior ISA: what is allowed

A child can hold two Junior ISAs at once, but only one of each type. Which? sets out the rule as "children can only hold one cash Junior Isa and one stocks and shares Junior Isa at the same time"⁸. The legislation says the same: "An eligible child may hold, (a) only one account set up as a cash account; and (b) only one account set up as a stocks and shares account"⁹.

The two accounts can be with different providers, and the annual allowance can be split between them¹⁸. A child cannot hold two cash Junior ISAs, or two stocks and shares Junior ISAs, even with different firms¹⁹.

The limit is on accounts, not on providers. Moving a Junior ISA from one firm to another is allowed, and the legislation notes that accounts "may be transferred to alternative account managers"²². What is not allowed is holding two of the same type at once.

Transferring a Child Trust Fund into a Junior ISA

The transfer is the route most families take, because it is the only way to open a Junior ISA when a Child Trust Fund already exists. Coventry Building Society states the position: "You cannot have a Junior ISA as well as a Child Trust Fund. If you want to open a Junior ISA you'll need to ask the provider" to move it¹⁸. Bestinvest confirms "You can also transfer Child Trust Funds into a Junior ISA"²³.

The transfer has to be in full. interactive investor says "we can only accept full transfers into a JISA"¹⁰, and AJ Bell explains why: "you can only transfer a CTF to a Junior ISA in full as you can't hold both types of account at the same time"⁴. Freetrade states the same condition, that "a child can only have one Junior stocks and shares ISA at a time, and they cannot hold a Junior ISA and a Child Trust Fund" together²⁴.

In practice the process runs like this:

1. Choose the Junior ISA provider and apply, telling it the child holds a Child Trust Fund¹⁷.
2. The new provider asks for the Child Trust Fund details, or you give them, so it can request the transfer¹⁰.
3. The Child Trust Fund provider sells or moves the holdings and sends the whole balance across⁴.
4. The Child Trust Fund closes and the Junior ISA opens with the money inside it¹⁸.

Some providers will only accept a Child Trust Fund transfer into certain account types. Healthy Investment notes that "if you transfer your child's CTF to a cash Junior ISA their" investments change, so the type of Junior ISA chosen affects what the money is held in²⁵. The transfer itself does not use up any allowance, because it is a move of existing money rather than a new subscription.

Transfers only go one way: Junior ISA to Child Trust Fund is not allowed

Money can move from a Child Trust Fund into a Junior ISA, but not back. True Potential states it directly: "You can transfer from one Junior ISA into another, as well as transfer a Child Trust Fund into a Junior ISA (but not the other way round)"⁷. The Child Trust Fund scheme is closed to new accounts, so there is nowhere for Junior ISA money to go back to.

This matters if a family is weighing up whether to switch. Once the Child Trust Fund is closed, it cannot be reopened. The options for a Child Trust Fund under 18 are to leave the money with the current provider, transfer the account to a different Child Trust Fund provider, or move it into a Junior ISA, with no moving back to a Child Trust Fund later²⁶.

Can I still pay into a Child Trust Fund instead of switching?

Yes. A Child Trust Fund does not have to be moved. Charles Stanley notes that these accounts "have now been replaced by Junior ISAs, but you can still continue to pay into a Child Trust" Fund⁵. Leaving the money where it is remains a valid choice, and the account keeps its tax-free status.

The three options for a Child Trust Fund held for a child under 18 are set out by Which?: "Leave the money with the current provider. Transfer the account to a different CTF provider. Move the money into a junior Isa"²⁶. The third option is the only one that ends the Child Trust Fund, and it is the only one that opens the door to a Junior ISA.

There is one difference worth knowing between the two account types. Child Trust Funds came with an initial government contribution, while "Junior ISAs rely entirely on payments made" into them²¹. A Junior ISA is available to any child under 18 who does not have a Child Trust Fund²¹. So a child born after the Child Trust Fund scheme closed would hold a Junior ISA from the start, and a child with a Child Trust Fund holds that instead until it is moved.

What declaration do I make about a Child Trust Fund when applying for a Junior ISA?

The Junior ISA application includes a formal declaration. The legislation requires that the application contain a declaration that "the child who will hold the account opened pursuant to the application is not an 'eligible child'" under the Child Trust Funds Act 2004¹³. In everyday terms, the person applying confirms the child does not hold a Child Trust Fund.

That is why the transfer is built into the application rather than done separately. AJ Bell explains that "If your child holds a Child Trust Fund (CTF), you can only open a Junior ISA if you transfer the CTF to their Junior ISA as part of the application process"¹⁷. By the time the Junior ISA is open, the Child Trust Fund has gone, so the declaration is accurate.

The transfer rules were introduced after a consultation. At Budget 2013 the Chancellor announced that the government would consult on allowing the transfer of savings from a Child Trust Fund to a Junior ISA²⁷, and the rules followed. The consultation documents carry the references ISBN 978-1-909096-91-2, PU1405 and ISBN 978-1-909790-54-4, PU1590²⁷.

When the child turns 18: what happens to a Child Trust Fund

At 18 the Child Trust Fund matures. Nationwide states that "When the child turns 18, their Child Trust Fund will become a CTF Maturity ISA and they will receive a letter from us"¹². The account does not disappear; it changes into a maturity ISA in the child's own name.

From that point the money can be cashed in or transferred into an adult ISA¹¹. AJ Bell notes that "you can transfer a Child Trust Fund to a Junior ISA. And if they're soon turning 18 or their trust fund has matured, you" can move it to an adult account²⁸. The choice is the child's, not the parent's.

That change of control catches some families out. Up to 18, the registered contact manages the account. At 18, the child takes over completely, and any instruction to move the money has to come from them²⁹. For carers and adoptive parents who have taken on formal parental responsibility, the government publishes guidance on how to take over management of a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA account³⁰.

Finding a Child Trust Fund and getting help

Child Trust Funds were issued automatically, so many families have one without realising. Over 6 million children have a Child Trust Fund⁶. If the provider is unknown, the account can be traced using the child's details.

Children who have been in local authority care for 12 months or more and who are not eligible for a Child Trust Fund are entitled to a £200 payment from the government into a Junior ISA³¹. The government publishes separate guidance for looked-after children³¹, and for carers and adoptive parents of children with a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA³⁰.

If a transfer goes wrong, or a provider delays it, the usual complaint route applies: the provider's own complaints process first, then the Financial Ombudsman Service if it is not resolved. Free, impartial guidance on Junior ISAs and Child Trust Funds is available from MoneyHelper.