How does the annual ISA allowance work?
Individual savings accounts (ISAs) allow UK residents to invest or save their money without paying tax on any money they make.
How much money can I put into ISAs?
You can put up to £20,000 in ISAs in your name each tax year, which is a limit set by HMRC. The allowance limit resets when the new tax year starts and could change each year.
There are currently four types of adult ISA – cash, stocks and shares, innovative finance and lifetime ISAs. If you have more than one in your name, you can spread the £20,000 limit between them.
So, if you have a specific savings goal in mind, you can open an ISA just for that fund.
What is the annual allowance limit for lifetime ISAs?
Lifetime ISAs have their own limit of £4,000. Any money that you put into a lifetime ISA counts towards this limit, but also towards your overall ISA allowance. So, if you put the maximum of £4,000 into a lifetime ISA, you wouldn’t be able to put more than £16,000 into other types of ISAs.
Lifetime ISAs have their own set of rules, including who can open one. Take a look at our lifetime ISA page to find out more.
How much money are you allowed to pay into someone else’s ISA?
The annual allowance limit applies to the person who owns the ISA, not whoever is putting money in. That means you could put up to £20,000 in someone else’s ISA without affecting your own limit.
But that would be very generous! This would need to be a gift, you can't hold money on behalf of someone else in your ISA.
This is relevant when it comes to junior ISAs, which are under children’s names. There is a £9,000 annual allowance limit on junior ISAs, but if you have more than one child then you could pay up to £9,000 into each of their junior ISAs. You could still then put up to £20,000 into ISAs in your own name.
Annual allowance limit for each type of ISA
The table below shows the maximum amount of money you can put in each type of ISA in a tax year. But remember, there is an overall limit of £20,000 no matter how many ISAs you have in your name.
You can put up to £9,000 into a child’s junior ISA without this affecting your own £20,000 limit.
| Type of ISA | Annual allowance limit |
|---|---|
| Cash ISA | £20,000 |
| Stocks and shares ISA | £20,000 |
| Innovative finance ISA | £20,000 |
| Lifetime ISA | £4,000 |
| Junior ISA | £9,000 |
ISA limits: frequently asked questions
What is a tax year and how does it affect ISAs?
In the UK, tax years run from 6 April until 5 April the following year. This tends to be the period of time that’s taken into account when working out how much tax should be paid to HMRC by businesses or individuals.
At the start of the new tax year all the allowance limits for adult and child ISAs reset.
So, from 6 April, you can again put up to £20,000 into adult ISAs, including up to £4,000 in a lifetime ISA. The junior ISA limit resets back to £9,000.
Can I put more than £20,000 in an ISA?
Technically, yes, but not all at once. There's no limit to how much money can be in an ISA. The ISA allowance limit applies to how much you can pay in during each tax year (6 April to 5 April the following year).
So, as long as you’ve staggered your payments so that you've paid in no more than £20,000 within a single tax year, there’s no reason you can’t have more than £20,000 in an ISA.
Can I have more than one ISA?
Yes. You can open as many adult ISAs as you like. The exception is lifetime ISAs, as you are limited to only opening and paying into one each tax year.
Children can have up to two junior ISAs in their name, as long as one is cash and one is stocks and shares.
No matter how many ISAs you have, you can still only put up to £20,000 into ISAs in total each tax year.
What is the ISA allowance for 2025/26?
You can pay up to £20,000 into ISAs in your name during the 2025/26 tax year. The current tax year started on 6 April 2025.
ISA allowance limits are set by HMRC and could change next year.
What happens if I go over the annual ISA allowance?
Most providers will stop you from going over the ISA allowance limits, but if you have ISAs with multiple providers then this is an easy mistake to make.
If you do go over the limit, the best thing to do is contact HMRC by calling their helpline on 0300 200 3312.
What are the ISA allowance rules?
- You can’t pay in more than £20,000 in total into ISAs in your name within one tax year.
- You can’t put more than £4,000 into a lifetime ISA in a tax year. Anything you do put into a lifetime ISA also counts towards your overall ISA limit.
- You can’t put more than £9,000 into a junior ISA in a tax year. Anything you do put in will count towards the child’s junior ISA allowance limit.
- If someone else puts money into your ISA, this will count towards your annual allowance limit. This would need to be a gift, you can't hold money on behalf of someone else in your ISA.
OneFamily's Stocks and Shares ISA
Our stocks and shares ISA gives you the choice of two ready-made funds, which invest on your behalf.
Frequently asked questions
Your next read:
Do you have to pay tax on savings?
Find out if you need to pay tax on the money you make from saving or investing, and how to make the most of your tax-free allowance.
How many ISAs can I have?
Technically, you can have as many ISAs as you like. But your annual allowance stays the same no matter how many you have.
Is it better to save or invest your money?
You can save money in a savings account, where it will grow with interest rates, or you can invest it in an investment fund, which buys shares in the stock market.
What is a “tax year” and does it affect you?
A tax year is simply the 12-month period that HMRC looks at to work out how much tax you should pay. Find out why this matter to you.