Junior Individual Savings Accounts (ISA)
If your child is terminally ill or dies
The registered contact can take money out of a Junior ISA early if a child is terminally ill.
‘Terminally ill’ means that the child has a disease or illness that is going to get worse and is not expected to live more than 6 months.
If you live in England or Wales, you have 6 months from the date of your child’s diagnosis to take money out of their account.
If you live in Northern Ireland, you have 12 months from the date of your child’s diagnosis to take money out of their account.
If you live in Scotland, there’s no time limit for taking money out of their account.
How to take money out
Fill in the terminal illness early access form to let HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) know that:
- your child is terminally ill
- you want to take money out of their Junior ISA
HMRC will let you know if you can take money out of your child’s Junior ISA.
If your child dies
If your child dies, any money in their Junior ISAs will be paid to whoever inherits their estate.
This is usually one of the child’s parents, but it could be their spouse or partner if they were over 16 and married or in a civil partnership.
What you need to do
You do not need to contact HMRC but you’ll need to tell your account provider so they can close your child’s Junior ISAs.
Your account provider may need proof to do this, for example a copy of the death certificate.