Rising Junior ISA wealth shows the power of early planning

Our Freedom of Information (FOI) request to HMRC revealed that the UK’s top 50 Junior ISA investors have pots exceeding £761,000, putting them on track to become millionaires in their 20s.

The findings showed that 370 of the top JISA investors had pots worth more than £200,000 in the 2021/22 tax year, a sharp rise from 40 the previous year.

Rob Burgeman, investment manager at RBC Brewin Dolphin, said: “Junior ISA wealth is booming as more and more families take steps to help the next generation navigate a world of costly tuition fees and ballooning house prices.

“The annual £9,000 JISA allowance is less than half of its adult counterpart, and for that reason very few people ever imagined that there might be schoolchildren sitting on pots of £750,000 or more. HMRC’s figures, however, underscore the value of long-term planning and the power of compounding.”

Building your child’s JISA pot

While few families can amass such large sums, a more modest pot of £50,000 to £100,000 is within reach for many. The number of children with savings of £50,000 or more in a JISA has more than doubled to 16,470. Meanwhile, the number of children with pots worth £100,000 or more has more than trebled to 1,910.

Burgeman said: “Starting at birth, a £50,000 pot could be built by the child’s 18th birthday on contributions of roughly £150-a-month, assuming annualised returns of 5% after charges. Increase the contribution to £300-a-month, and they’ll be looking at a windfall of around £100,000.”

A £50,000 pot could help your child to cover the cost of university tuition fees, or get a foot on the property ladder.

The benefits of a Junior ISA

Junior ISAs were launched in 2011 for children under 18, offering the choice of cash JISAs or stocks and shares JISAs. The annual allowance has increased from £3,600 to £9,000 today. This allowance means a family of four could now pay up to £58,000 annually into ISAs – £20,000 for each adult and £9,000 for each child – with investments growing free from capital gains tax (CGT) and income tax.

While parents can contribute to a JISA, money can also be gifted by family and friends. Unlike adult ISAs, the savings cannot be accessed until the child turns 18. At this stage, funds can either be withdrawn or transferred into an adult ISA.

The majority of Junior ISA holders are relatively small investors. According to HMRC’s figures, around 1.6 million JISA investors have pots worth less than £10,000.

To have grown the £63,436 from 17 years of maximum JISA contributions into one of the top 50 pots, averaging £761,100, by the end of 2021/22 you’d have needed an extraordinary annual return of nearly 32%. This includes the £1,200 allowable annual contribution from the government’s Child Trust Fund (CTF), the JISA’s predecessor.

While far surpassing average investment returns, Burgeman said: “This kind of turbo-charged growth simply can’t be generated through patient cash saving.” Over the same period, the same contributions to a cash JISA would have amounted to £66,000.

Taking control with trusts

Some parents worry that their children will not be responsible enough to receive a sudden JISA windfall. For parents who want more control over how the money is used, setting up a trust is another tax-efficient way to pass wealth to the next generation.

Burgeman said: “There are many types of trust but a discretionary trust is perhaps the perfect vehicle for families to pass wealth on in a tax-efficient manner at a time of their choosing.”

Unlike the JISA, children and grandchildren don’t have an absolute entitlement to the funds at age 18. The trustees may decide when to release the funds, when they feel the beneficiaries are able to manage the investments themselves.

Saving for your child’s retirement

Another option for parents and grandparents is saving into a pension on the child’s behalf. Anyone can contribute up to £2,880 per tax year into a junior pension. Thanks to 20% income tax relief, this amount is boosted to £3,600. The child won’t be able to access the funds until they reach the minimum pension age, currently 55, rising to 57 in 2028.

Contributions to a junior pension are considered gifts for inheritance tax (IHT) purposes. However, they may fall within your £3,000 annual gifting exemption or be exempt from IHT if made from regular surplus income.

Next steps 

Choosing the right tax-efficient investment option for your child or grandchild’s future isn’t easy. Let’s bring our ideas together and make it a reality. Speaking with a financial adviser can help you feel confident that you’re making the best decisions to provide for the next generation’s financial security.

The value of investments, and any income from them, can fall and you may get back less than you invested. This does not constitute tax or legal advice. Tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in the future. Information is provided only as an example and is not a recommendation to pursue a particular strategy. Information contained in this document is believed to be reliable and accurate, but without further investigation cannot be warranted as to accuracy or completeness. Forecasts are not a reliable indicator of future performance.