Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to allow grandparents to open Junior ISAs on behalf of their grandchildren.

Individual Savings Accounts (ISA) rules are clear that only someone with parental responsibility for the child may open and manage a Junior ISA (JISA). This helps prevent more than one JISA of each type (cash or stocks and shares) being opened in error and ensures that there is a single point of contact for the giving of instructions. A grandparent who does not have parental responsibility is therefore unable to open or manage a Junior ISA on behalf of their grandchild.

While only parents or legal guardians can open a JISA on behalf of their children, grandparents can then add funds to the account, up to the value of £9,000 a year.

As with all aspects of the tax system, the Government keeps the JISA policy under review.