Stocks & Shares ISA FAQs
A stocks and shares ISA is an individual savings account (ISA) that invests in the stock market on your behalf.
If you're having any problems with opening or managing a OneFamily Stocks and Shares ISA, take a look at our Help and Support pages
Most asked
Absolutely! You can withdraw some, or all, of your money at any time.
Just be aware that you need to leave at least £250 in your ISA to keep it open.
It's important to know that your remaining annual ISA allowance doesn't change when you withdraw money.
But if you then pay that money into another ISA, this will come off your allowance.
A simple way to get round this is to transfer rather than withdraw. As sorry as we would be to see you go, we understand another provider might be a better match for your needs at this time and we don't charge you to transfer out.
Speak to your new provider about transferring to them.
We charge an Annual Management Fee of 1.1% of the account value. This is the only regular fee we charge so there are no surprises.
You can find out more about this fee in the Key Information Document for the fund you choose when you open the ISA.
There are no other regular fees, but you might be charged a small administration fee for:
- cancelling and reissuing cheques
- duplicating or providing additional statements.
We'll always let you know if there are any charges when you ask for either of these so you can decide if you want to go ahead.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
An ISA, or "Individual Savings Account", is a tax-efficient way to save or invest your money. This simply means that you don't pay tax on any growth or interest you earn on the money in your ISA.
You can save or invest up to £20,000 in ISAs each tax year.
With a stocks and shares ISA, like OneFamily's Stocks and Shares ISA, your money is invested in funds that are used to buy various types of investments: things like shares in companies, property and corporate and government bonds.
Your money increases or decreases as the value of those assets changes.
When you withdraw money from your ISA, you're essentially "selling" your shares at their current price – although all you’ll need to do is tell us you want to withdraw money.
This type of investment has good potential to grow, especially over the long-term but, as with all investing, there is a risk that the value could go down and you could get back less than you put in.
The alternative is a cash ISA, which earns interest like some current accounts do. While the balance in your cash ISA can't go down, cash ISAs aren't completely risk-free.
If prices go up faster than the interest you're making (think: inflation rates and cost-of-living), you might be able to buy less with your money in the future.
Of course, the same is true with stocks and shares ISAs, but we believe this option gives your money the best potential to outgrow inflation over the long-term.
If you're intrigued, you can find out whether it's best to save or invest your money here.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
Opening a OneFamily Stocks and Shares ISA
We charge an Annual Management Fee of 1.1% of the account value. This is the only regular fee we charge so there are no surprises.
You can find out more about this fee in the Key Information Document for the fund you choose when you open the ISA.
There are no other regular fees, but you might be charged a small administration fee for:
- cancelling and reissuing cheques
- duplicating or providing additional statements.
We'll always let you know if there are any charges when you ask for either of these so you can decide if you want to go ahead.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
When you open your ISA, you'll be asked to select your "investment style" - cautious, balanced or adventurous.
- If you choose cautious, your money will be invested in the ‘OneFamily Global Select 35% Shares’ fund. Up to 35% of this fund is invested in global company shares, also known as equities. The rest is invested indirectly in lower risk assets, such as corporate bonds, gilts, money market funds and cash.
- With balanced, you'll be investing in the 'OneFamily Global Select 65% Shares’ fund. As the name suggests, up to 65% of this fund invests in global shares, and at least 35% in the lower risk assets mentioned above.
- Those who choose adventurous will invest their money in the ‘OneFamily Global Select 100% Shares’ fund. This fund invests only in global shares.
If you change your mind later on, you can switch between the three funds at any time and we won't charge you to do so.
You can find out more by reading the Fund Factsheets, which are linked to above.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
Unfortunately, we can't answer that question!
It depends on you and how comfortable you are taking some risk with your money.
Our ISA invests in stocks and shares, the value of which can go up and down so you could get back less than you put in if you withdraw at a time when the value is lower.
This is completely normal for this type of investment and it gives your ISA good potential to grow, but it is something you need to be aware of.
You do have a degree of control over how much risk you take with your money when you choose our ISA. We offer three investment style options to suit different risk appetites – cautious, balanced and adventurous.
But, if you're likely to need your money within the next five years, or plan to use it as an emergency fund, this might not be the right product for you as there's a risk the value could have dipped when you need your money.
If you have any doubts, please speak to someone you trust to give you sensible advice.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
You can open a OneFamily Stocks and Shares ISA if you:
- are at least 18 years old
- live in the UK and pay tax here (if you're not sure, you can find out on the government website)
- are not a US citizen (including dual nationals).
Sound like you? Visit the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open your ISA
Of course! We want you to be happy with your choice so we offer a 30 day 'cooling off period' which starts from the date of your first payment.
If you do decide to close your ISA and your money has already been invested, you may get back a different amount (more or less) to what you paid in. This is because the fund your money was paid into may have lost or made money.
Make sure you let us know where to send the money to (eg your bank account details) to avoid delays!
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open your ISA
Absolutely, we'd be delighted to welcome you to OneFamily!
Simply visit our transfer page to check that we accept transfers from your product type and to get started.
Before you do, it's also a good idea to check with your current provider to find out if they charge you to transfer out.
If you've got a matured child savings account with OneFamily (a OneFamily Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA), transferring to a Stocks and Shares ISA is even easier. Simply log into your online account (or create one if you haven't already) and let us know how much you want to transfer.
Managing your OneFamily Stocks and Shares ISA
Absolutely! You can withdraw some, or all, of your money at any time.
Just be aware that you need to leave at least £250 in your ISA to keep it open.
It's important to know, your remaining annual ISA allowance doesn't change when you withdraw money.
But if you then pay that money into another ISA, this will come off your allowance.
A simple way to get round this is to transfer rather than withdraw. As sorry as we would be to see you go, we understand another provider might be a better match for your needs at this time and we don't charge you to transfer out.
Speak to your new provider about transferring to them.
This ISA is provided by OneFamily, which is a trading name used by all companies within the Family Assurance Friendly Society group.
That includes:
- Family Equity Plan Limited (which provides and manages this ISA)
- Family Investment Management Limited (which is the Fund Manager)
The registered address for both companies is: 16-17 West Street, Brighton BN1 2RL.
You have two choices: either pay in regularly by Direct Debit or make one-off payments.
Whichever option you choose, simply log into your online account to pay in. You can also pay money into someone else's account using our pay in process.
You can put up to £20,000 into ISAs in your name each tax year (this is your ISA allowance). If you do have other ISAs, just remember that this limit is split between all your ISAs.
It can take a few days for payments in to show in your account balance, so don't panic if you don't see it immediately.
If it's been longer than a few days, or if you're worried for any reason, just send us a secure message through your online account and we'll see what's going on.
We'd be sorry to see you go but, yes, you can transfer your OneFamily ISA to another provider. We don't charge you to do this.
Contact your new provider to get started.
Simply log in or register for an online account to check your current account balance and to view your statements, which are uploaded into your online account every three months.
You can also see fund performance, update your details, make payments and withdraw money through your online account. It's very useful and available 24/7.
Yes! You can switch funds at any time through your online account.
We won't charge you to do this.
We're making four changes to our ISA, which will happen in September 2025. We'll update this FAQ once the changes have happened.
- The funds our Stocks and Shares ISA invests in are changing. We're launching three new 'life' funds, which will replace the two we invest in currently. Existing customers will be moved from their current fund to the equivalent new fund, which will have a similar level of risk and anticipated investment returns.
- The legal entity of your Stocks and Shares ISA is changing. The legal equity that manages your ISA is changing from “Family Equity Plan Limited” to “Family Assurance Friendly Society Limited”. OneFamily remains the trading name for both.
- Your Direct Debit might look different on your bank statement. Because of the above change, your Direct Debit will go to Family Assurance Friendly Society Limited, instead of Family Equity Plan Limited.
- We’re adding a death benefit. All this means is, if you die while you have an ISA with us, we'll pay out everything in your ISA plus an extra 1% of the account value.
How this affects you
- Your Direct Debit will be sent to a different name.
- You’ll be entitled to a death benefit.
- You’ll have more fund choice.
What’s not changing?
- No expected changes to investment returns.
- No change to charges.
- You’re still covered by Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
- Your online account details and ISA reference number won’t change.
- The Direct Debit guarantee remains in place.
Find out more details about the changes in our Help & Support article.
Information about stocks and shares ISAs
An ISA, or "Individual Savings Account", is a tax-efficient way to save or invest your money. This simply means that you don't pay tax on any growth or interest you earn on the money in your ISA.
You can save or invest up to £20,000 in ISAs each tax year.
With a stocks and shares ISA, like OneFamily's Stocks and Shares ISA, your money is invested in funds that are used to buy various types of investments: things like shares in companies, property and corporate and government bonds.
Your money increases or decreases as the value of those assets changes.
When you withdraw money from your ISA, you're essentially "selling" your shares at their current price – although all you’ll need to do is tell us you want to withdraw money.
This type of investment has good potential to grow, especially over the long-term but, as with all investing, there is a risk that the value could go down and you could get back less than you put in.
The alternative is a cash ISA, which earns interest like some current accounts do. While the balance in your cash ISA can't go down, cash ISAs aren't completely risk-free.
If prices go up faster than the interest you're making (think: inflation rates and cost-of-living), you might be able to buy less with your money in the future.
Of course, the same is true with stocks and shares ISAs, but we believe this option gives your money the best potential to outgrow inflation over the long-term.
If you're intrigued, you can find out whether it's best to save or invest your money here.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
Currently, up to £20,000 each tax year (tax year runs 6 April - 5 April the following year).
This limit is shared between all the ISAs in your name, so if you have an ISA with someone else, you need to include money you've paid into that when working out how much allowance you have left.
The annual allowance limit doesn't include ISAs that are in someone else's name, such as your child's junior ISA.
This is the limit for the 2024/25 tax year, but ISA allowance limits can change so it's worth checking back to see if it's different next year. We'll always give you as much notice as possible if HMRC does change the limit.
You can find out more about ISA limits in our annual ISA allowance limit article.
Remember, you don't need to pay in as much as that! To open an ISA with OneFamily, you just need to set up a minimum monthly Direct Debit of at least £25 or open it with a £250 lump sum.
Once your account is open, you can add to it from as little as £25 at a time.
Got the answers you need? Go to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open a Stocks and Shares ISA
No. As it's an ISA, you won't pay any Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax when you withdraw your money, no matter how much it's grown.
Got the answers you need? Head to the main Stocks and Shares ISA page to open your ISA
When we talk about risk in investing, we're referring to the risk of not being able to buy as much with your money when you decide to withdraw it compared to when you first invested it.
So, getting back less than you put in.
This could be because of changes in the stock market leaving you with less money than you started with.
But it could also be because of the cost of living going up by more than the value of your investments.