ISAs

Paul Kennedy, head of tax planning at Fidelity Fundsnetwork, explains how Junior ISAs should be a welcome addition to the adviser's tax-planning armoury...

Junior ISAs replace Child Trust Funds from today (1 November). Maria Merricks offers a quick run-down of what advisers need to know.

Fidelity Fundsnetwork has unveiled a shortlist of 16 funds approved by Old Broad Street Research (OBSR) as suitable for Junior ISAs.

Only a handful of platforms will be ready for the 1 November launch of Junior ISAs, with a number confirming they have no current plans to offer the products.

Net retail fund sales for July fell to their lowest level since October 2008 while equity funds saw net outflows for the first time in over two years.

Providers have rushed to enter the Junior ISA market after the government confirmed the regulations governing the product.

The Junior individual savings account (JISA) yearly limit will be raised from £3,000 to £3,600, the Treasury is expected to announce this next week.

Prudential will team up with The Children's ISA to launch one of the UK's first Junior ISA (JISA) schemes, which replace the scrapped Child Trust Funds.

The man at the heart of a charitable fund which last year failed to attract sufficient investor interest said government plans to launch an ISA investing in schemes to help the poor are doomed to fail.

Savers may be offered tax-free individual savings accounts (ISAs) to invest in schemes to help the poor.