How ISAs work

There are 4 types of Individual Savings Accounts (ISA):

  • cash ISA
  • stocks and shares ISA
  • innovative finance ISA
  • Lifetime ISA

You do not pay tax on:

  • interest on cash in an ISA
  • income or capital gains from investments in an ISA

If you complete a tax return, you do not need to declare any ISA interest, income or capital gains on it.

Putting money into an ISA

Every tax year you can save up to £20,000 in one account or split the allowance across multiple accounts. The tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April.

You can only pay into one Lifetime ISA in a tax year. The maximum you can pay in is £4,000.

Example 1

You could save £15,000 in a cash ISA, £2,000 in a stocks and shares ISA and £3,000 in an innovative finance ISA in one tax year.

Example 2

You could save £11,000 in a cash ISA, £2,000 in a stocks and shares ISA, £3,000 in an innovative finance ISA and £4,000 in a Lifetime ISA in one tax year.

Example 3

You could save £10,000 in one cash ISA, £3,000 in another cash ISA and £7,000 in a stocks and shares ISA in one tax year.

Your ISAs will not close when the tax year finishes. You바카라 사이트™ll keep your savings on a tax-free basis for as long as you keep the money in your ISA accounts.

What you can include in your ISAs

Cash ISAs can include:

Stocks and shares ISAs can include:

  • shares in companies
  • unit trusts and investment funds
  • corporate bonds
  • government bonds

You cannot transfer any non-ISA shares you already own into an ISA unless they바카라 사이트™re from an employee share scheme.

Lifetime ISAs may include either:

  • cash
  • stocks and shares

Innovative finance ISAs include:

  • peer-to-peer loans - loans that are given to other people or businesses without using a bank
  • 바카라 사이트˜crowdfunding debentures바카라 사이트™ - investing in a business by buying its debt
  • funds where the notice or redemption period means they cannot be held in a stocks and shares ISA

You cannot transfer any arrangements you바카라 사이트™ve already made or investments you already hold into an innovative finance바카라 사이트¯ISA.

If you have questions about the tax rules for ISAs, you can call the ISA Helpline.