How many ISAs can I have?

How many ISAs can I pay into in a single year?

In total, there are currently seven types of ISA on the market. One of these is no longer available to open, but you can still make contributions if you have one. The different types of ISA are:

• Stocks and shares ISA
• Cash ISA
• Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA)
• Lifetime ISA
• Help to Buy ISA – No longer available, but existing holders can continue to contribute until November 2029
• Stocks and shares junior ISA
• Junior cash ISA

Individual ISAs have their own allowances and you’re only allowed to pay into one of each type in a single tax year. Whether you have one or one of each, you mustn’t exceed your £20,000 personal ISA allowance.

How many ISAs can I open in a year?

The UK’s tax year begins on 6th April each year and ends on 5th April the following year. You are allowed to open a new ISA each tax year, regardless of whether you opened or paid into one the previous year.

Of the adult ISAs still available to open, you can start a new one of each.

If you choose to open a new ISA and pay into it, this then becomes the one of that type you can pay into for the rest of the tax year (unless you then decide to transfer to another provider). You can no longer contribute to an ISA of the same type from any previous years.

You also need to keep an eye on the amount you are paying in if you have more than one ISA. For the 2023/24 tax year, you have a personal ISA allowance of £20,000. This is spread across all types of adult ISA and can be divided between them, so long as the individual allowance for each one isn’t exceeded.

Individual adult ISA allowances by type

*No longer available to open, but can be paid into until November 2029

Transferring an ISA

If you have an existing ISA, or ISAs, and wish to open another in a new tax year, you can transfer some or all its value into the new one. This won’t affect your annual tax-free ISA allowance.

If you want to transfer an ISA you’re currently paying into, you can also do that. You must, however, transfer all the contributions made in the present tax year. As there’s no restriction on the number of ISAs you can have, you may have opened many over the years, with some now sitting idle. ISA transfers offer a way to bring them all together into a single, more manageable pot.

How many ISAs can a child have?

There are two types of ISA available for children. The stocks and shares junior ISA and the junior cash ISA. You can pay into both on behalf of your child each tax year.

Unlike adult ISAs, your child can’t have more than one of each type at any one time, regardless of whether it’s paid into or not. But you are able to transfer between types and from one provider to another.

The annual tax-free allowance for junior ISAs of both types is £9,000. This can be split between the two or used solely on the one.