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Tax reliefs referred to are those applied under current legislation, which may change. The availability and value of any tax relief will depend on your individual circumstances.
What are the main types of ISAs?
There are four different types of ISAs to choose from, but not all providers will offer all of them. At Royal Bank of Scotland, we offer Cash ISAs and Stocks & Shares ISAs.
Cash ISA. These are simple, tax-free savings accounts. Some Cash ISAs give you instant access to your money and are a flexible way to save and plan short-term. Some Cash ISAs have variable rates, meaning the interest rate can go up or down. You can also get Fixed Rate ISAs, that give you a guaranteed interest rate for a set period of time.
Stocks & shares ISA. Also known as investment ISAs, stocks & shares ISAs are different to cash ISAs because you put your money in investments such as shares, bonds or funds, rather than earning interest. Any investment gains or income should be tax-free and you could access a variety of investments. The value of investments can go down as well as up, which means you might not get back the full amount you invest. These ISAs are meant to be a medium to long-term investment, meaning they should be held for at least five years.
Innovative finance ISA. This type of ISA lets you put money into peer-to-peer lending.
Lifetime ISA. These can help you to save or invest for a first home or later life.
Instant Access ISA
Our Instant Access ISA is a savings account with variable interest rates. This means the interest rate can go up or down, which would affect how much interest you'll earn. But you can access your savings pot whenever you want.
You'll need to be a UK resident aged 18 or over to apply and you can only subscribe to one Cash ISA with Royal Bank of Scotland in any tax year up to £20,000. Paying into an ISA is also called subscribing.
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Fixed Rate ISA
Our 1 year or 2 year Fixed Rate ISAs give you a fixed rate of interest so you know how much interest you'll earn. You can’t pay in or take money out once the term has started or an Early Closure Charge may apply.
You'll need to be a UK resident aged 18 or over to apply and you can only subscribe to one Cash ISA with Royal Bank of Scotland in any tax year up to £20,000. Paying into an ISA is also called subscribing. Minimum deposit required.
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Adult Stocks & Shares ISA
A Stocks & Shares ISA is an investment account that allows you to invest up to £20,000 a year tax efficiently.
Five investment funds from defensive to adventurous are available to hold in your Royal Bank of Scotland Invest Stocks & Shares ISA.
There's no UK Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax on any money your investment makes. You can withdraw at any time, but you should aim to invest for 5 years or more.
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Junior Stocks & Shares ISA
A Junior Stocks & Shares ISA is a tax-efficient investment account for children. You can put in up to £9,000 a year.
Parents or legal guardians can open a Junior ISA for their child.
When your child turns 18, they get access to the money. It could help them with university costs, travelling around the world or their first home.
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How much can you pay into an ISA?
Paying into an ISA is known as subscribing. You can't subscribe to more than one Cash ISA with us each tax year, or subscribe more than your annual ISA subscription in a cash ISA, stocks & shares ISA, or any other type of ISAs in the same tax year.
The ISA allowance in the UK is currently £20,000. It applies from 6th April to 5th April. Anything you pay into an ISA after 5th April will count as part of your ISA allowance for the next tax year.
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What are the withdrawal rules for ISAs?
If you've got a Cash ISA, you can’t withdraw money and then save it again in the same tax year if it means the total amount you paid in would be more than your ISA allowance of £20,000.
So for example if you pay £16,000 into a Cash ISA and then take out £500, you'd still only have £4,000 of your ISA allowance left.
Got a Fixed Rate ISA with us instead? You can’t take money out during your one or two-year term. To access your money, you’d have to ask us to close your Fixed Rate ISA and an Early Closure Charge might apply. Then we'll convert your old Fixed Rate ISA to an Instant Access ISA so you don't lose out on any of your ISA allowance.
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Top up your ISA
If you've got an Instant Access ISA, you can top it up as often as you like so long as you don’t go over your yearly ISA allowance. You can top up in the mobile app, digital banking and in a branch. If you don’t pay into your ISA for a full tax year, you’ll need to reactivate your ISA account before you can top up again.
Remember, you'll need to top up your ISA before 5th April if you want to make the most of your ISA allowance for the current tax year.
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Reactivate your Cash ISA
You can reactivate your Royal Bank of Scotland ISA in the mobile app or digital banking. Just click the ‘Help’ button and ask to ‘Reactivate my ISA‘. Your ISA will be reactivated the next working day.
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Transfer your ISA
An ISA transfer lets you transfer your ISA from one provider to another at any time. You can transfer your ISA into the same kind of ISA or a different ISA type. You can use the ISA transfer process to combine multiple ISA’s into one new ISA.
If you want to transfer an ISA balance that's been subscribed in the current tax year, you have to transfer the full amount. If you want to transfer an ISA balance from a previous tax year, you can choose to just transfer part of your balance instead.
If you want to transfer your ISA, it's really important to go through a proper ISA transfer process so you don't lose out on any of the tax benefits of your ISA account. Cash ISA transfers can take up to 14 working days. You'll need to allow 5 business days for an ISA transfer with the same provider, 14 working days for a transfer to a different provider, or 30 calendar days for transfers to or from a stocks & shares ISA.
Visit our ISA transfer page to find out more.
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Transfer your Stocks & Shares ISA to a Cash ISA
It’s easy to switch between these types of ISA accounts. Your stocks & shares ISA provider will sell your investments and send the cash to your new provider. The new provider will put the cash into your account. Going through this official transfer process means you won't miss out on any of your tax-efficient entitlement. It can take up to 30 calendar days to complete the transfer of a stocks & shares ISA to a cash ISA.
Head to the ISA transfer page to get started on your transfer.
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App available to customers aged 11+ with compatible iOS and Android devices and a UK or international mobile number in specific countries. Digital banking available to customers aged 11+ with a Royal Bank of Scotland account.
I've already got a Instant Access ISA
If you already subscribe to a Cash ISA, you can carry on saving into this account as long as you don’t go over your annual ISA allowance.
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I want to open an Instant Access ISA
To make the most of your ISA allowance for this tax year, try and make sure your new ISA has been opened before 5th April.
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I want to look at other savings options
If you’re not sure an ISA is the right option for you, there are lots of other ways to save with us.
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