To buy a savings bond for someone else, you purchase an electronic Series EE or Series I bond through your own TreasuryDirect account, register it in the recipient’s name using their Social Security Number, hold it in your account’s Gift Box for five business days, then deliver it to the recipient’s own TreasuryDirect account.1TreasuryDirect. Savings Bonds Buying Savings Bonds The minimum purchase is $25, and the whole process takes about a week.
What to Gather Before You Log In
You need three things about the person receiving the bond: their full legal name, their Social Security Number, and their TreasuryDirect account number. The SSN is required for every person named on a bond registration.2eCFR. Part 359 – Offering of United States Savings Bonds, Series I
The recipient’s TreasuryDirect account number is what you’ll use to deliver the bond after purchase. If they don’t have an account yet, they’ll need to open one before you can complete the gift. There is no workaround for electronic bonds. Once logged in, they can find their account number under the “ManageDirect” tab.
Buying for a Child Under 18
Children can’t open their own TreasuryDirect accounts. A parent or someone providing primary financial support for the child sets up a minor linked account inside their own TreasuryDirect profile, and that custodial account has its own number, which is what you’ll need as the gift buyer.3TreasuryDirect. How Do I…?
The parent creates the account by logging in, clicking “ManageDirect,” and selecting “Establish a Minor Linked Account,” then entering the child’s name, SSN, and contact information. When the child turns 18 and opens their own primary account, the securities can be transferred over.
Steps to Purchase the Bond
Once you have the recipient’s information, log in to your TreasuryDirect account and work through the purchase:
- Click the “BuyDirect” tab and choose Series EE or Series I.
- Enter any amount from $25 to $10,000, down to the penny. A $75.38 bond is fine.1TreasuryDirect. Savings Bonds Buying Savings Bonds
- When asked whether the bond is for you or someone else, select “Gift” and enter the recipient’s SSN and legal name.
- Confirm the ACH funding from the bank account linked to your TreasuryDirect profile.
After the purchase clears, the bond lands in your account’s Gift Box rather than your regular holdings. It stays there until you deliver it. The bond legally belongs to the named recipient from the moment of purchase, even while it sits in your Gift Box.4TreasuryDirect. FAQs About Undelivered Gift Bonds You are effectively the custodian until delivery.
Series EE or Series I
Both types earn interest for up to 30 years and come in identical denominations, but they behave differently.5TreasuryDirect. Comparing EE and I Bonds
Series EE bonds earn a fixed rate set at purchase, currently 2.50% for bonds issued between November 2025 and April 2026.6TreasuryDirect. EE Bonds Their standout feature is a federal guarantee that the bond will double in value at 20 years, even if the fixed rate alone wouldn’t get it there. That makes EE bonds a reliable long-term gift for a young child.
Series I bonds combine a fixed rate with an inflation adjustment that resets every six months based on the Consumer Price Index. For bonds issued between November 2025 and April 2026, the composite rate is 4.03%.7TreasuryDirect. I Bonds Interest Rates New rates are announced each May 1 and November 1, so the composite rate shifts over time, though the fixed component stays locked for the life of the bond. I bonds protect against inflation but carry no doubling guarantee.
Delivering the Bond
You must hold the bond in your Gift Box for at least five business days before delivering it. This waiting period lets the Treasury confirm your bank payment has fully cleared.8TreasuryDirect. Giving Savings Bonds as Gifts
After the five days, open your Gift Box, select the bond, click “Deliver,” and enter the recipient’s TreasuryDirect account number. The bond moves into their account and they receive an automated email. If the recipient has no TreasuryDirect account in their name, the bond stays in your Gift Box indefinitely.4TreasuryDirect. FAQs About Undelivered Gift Bonds
If you want something tangible to hand the recipient on a birthday or holiday, TreasuryDirect offers printable gift certificates you can download.9TreasuryDirect. How to Buy a Gift Savings Bond in TreasuryDirect They’re commemorative only, with no financial value.
Annual Purchase Limits Apply to the Recipient
Each person can receive up to $10,000 in Series EE bonds and $10,000 in Series I bonds per calendar year, for a $20,000 combined total.10eCFR. 31 CFR 363.52 The cap applies to the recipient, not the buyer. If three relatives each buy $5,000 in I bonds for the same child, that child has received $15,000 against a $10,000 I bond cap.
What matters is the year the bond is delivered, not the year it was purchased. That gives you a planning option: buy in December, hold in the Gift Box, and deliver in January so the bond counts against the next year’s cap. Bonds you buy as gifts do not count against your own annual limit.
If a delivery would push the recipient over the $10,000 cap for either type, the Treasury may remove the excess and refund the purchase price to the buyer’s bank account. Tracking the total before delivery avoids that reversal.
Redemption Rules the Recipient Should Know
A savings bond cannot be cashed for 12 months after its issue date. This lockup has no exceptions.6TreasuryDirect. EE Bonds
Cashing before the bond is five years old costs the recipient the last three months of interest.11TreasuryDirect. Cash EE or I Savings Bonds After five years, there’s no penalty. Both series stop earning at 30 years.
If you expect the recipient to need the money soon, a savings bond is the wrong tool. They work best as long-term gifts for someone who can let the money sit.
Tax Treatment
Savings bond interest is subject to federal income tax but exempt from state and local income tax.12TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds The person who cashes the bond is generally the one who reports the interest as income, not the person who bought it.13Internal Revenue Service. Savings Bonds 1 Buy a $5,000 I bond for your niece and she cashes it ten years later, she owes tax on the accumulated interest.
Gift Tax
The purchase counts as a gift for federal gift tax purposes. For 2026, the annual gift tax exclusion is $19,000 per recipient.14Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances 1 You’d only need to file IRS Form 709 if your total gifts to that person from all sources exceed $19,000 in the calendar year.
Education Exclusion
If the recipient uses the bond proceeds for qualified higher education expenses, the interest may be excluded from federal income tax entirely. Qualifying expenses include tuition and required fees at eligible institutions, plus contributions to a 529 plan or Coverdell Education Savings Account. Room, board, and recreational courses don’t qualify.15Internal Revenue Service. Exclusion of Interest From Series EE and I U.S. Savings Bonds Issued After 1989
The exclusion phases out at higher incomes. For 2025, it begins phasing out at $99,500 of modified adjusted gross income for single filers and $149,250 for joint filers, disappearing entirely at $114,500 and $179,250.16Internal Revenue Service. Publication 970 Tax Benefits for Education The IRS typically adjusts these amounts for inflation each year.
One requirement trips people up: for the education exclusion to apply, the bond must be registered in the parent’s name, not the child’s. A bond bought in a child’s name does not qualify even if every dollar goes to tuition.
If the Buyer Dies Before Delivery
A gift bond sitting in a deceased purchaser’s Gift Box still belongs to the person named on the bond, not to the purchaser’s estate. The Treasury holds the bond until the named recipient provides instructions, regardless of anything in the purchaser’s will or state inheritance law.17eCFR. 31 CFR Part 363 Subpart C – Gifts The recipient contacts the Treasury directly to arrange the transfer into their account.