How do I transition a JISA into a LISA?

Hello,

My 17-year-old granddaughter has a JISA with approximately £20,000. When she turns 18, I have encouraged her to open a LISA. However, she can only transfer £4,000 per year into the LISA. My question is, how can she best transition from her JISA to a LISA?

Thanks.

Hi,

Transferring ISAs can be complicated, and each provider can have their own rules about what they will and won’t support, so you are best off phoning up your investment provider to check the process with them. It’s important you do not withdraw the money from any account as this removes it from the tax shelter and there are annual limits on what you can then put back in.

I also don’t know where the Junior ISA is held today, but only a handful of places offer a Stocks & Shares Lifetime ISA. If you are looking for a Stocks & Shares Lifetime ISA, our comparison tables will help. I would then contact your chosen provider and just double check the process with them.

As a general rule, when your child turns 18, their Junior ISA will automatically become an adult ISA. You can then transfer the funds to a Lifetime ISA.

It depends how much they have in the Junior ISA now. Once 18, they can pay up to £4,000 a year into the Lifetime ISA. And get the annual 25% bonus of up to £1,000.

So if they have £5,000 in the Junior ISA, for example, when they turn 18 this would become an adult ISA automatically. And you could then transfer £4,000 into a Lifetime ISA. Finally, you would need to wait until the next tax year to transfer over the remaining £1,000.

Hope this helps!