Lifetime ISA Query

JamesJdMcN wrote: »

Thanks, what happens if I don't swap over to the LISA by April next year once i've put £1 in it?

The LISA will still exist and accept contributions in the future, but you'll have missed the opportunity to transfer the money into the LISA within your current year LISA allowance (which is basically £4000 plus [whatever you had in the help to buy at the start of this tax year, end of day 5 April 2017]).

If you don't move it this tax year you'll miss the current year window that allows the £4000 plus the special opportunity to move any previous year contributions without it affecting the £4000. You'd be welcome to transfer the money during the the 2018/19 or 2019/20 tax years, or later, but then the entire amount you transfer in from the HTB is going to get counted as new money against that tax year's allowance.

In other words, you may find yourself with some money stuck in your HTB or stuck in your other bank accounts that can't fit into your LISA until another year rolls around, when it would have fitted just fine if you had made use of all the allowances in the years you got them.