Savings Bonds As Gifts
As of January 1, 2012, paper savings bonds are no longer sold at financial institutions. This action supports Treasury’s goal to increase the number of electronic transactions with citizens and businesses. See the press release.
You can give savings bonds for any occasion or purpose - like birthdays, weddings, or graduations. You can buy gift bonds in several denominations.
Buy Electronic Gift Bonds at TreasuryDirect
To buy an electronic savings bond:
- You must already have a TreasuryDirect account.
- Use the Gift Box functionality to buy gift bonds.
- Keep them in your account until you're ready to deliver them.
To give an electronic savings bond, you must know the recipient's:
- Full name
- Social Security Number (SSN) and/or taxpayer ID number
- TreasuryDirect account number
When the bond is delivered to the recipient's TreasuryDirect account, he or she will get an e-mail announcing your gift.
You must be 18 or older to create a TreasuryDirect account and to buy gift bonds. A child under 18 can get gift deliveries in a Minor linked account.
Buy Paper Gift I Bonds Using Your Tax Refund
See our Frequently Asked Questions and visit www.irs.gov for details on using your IRS tax refund to buy paper I savings bonds.
For paper I bonds, if you don't know the recipient's SSN, you can use your own SSN. Should this happen:
- Your SSN will appear on the bond. (The first five digits of your Social Security number will be masked and replaced with asterisks).
- You'll incur no tax liability.
- It won't be used toward your annual purchase limit.
Gift Certificates
Gift information can't be printed on savings bonds. So announce your savings bond gift with a gift certificate.
