Adding to an Old ISA

Oblivion

Despite having looked at the HMRC website and carried out several searches, I still can't find a definitive answer to my question.

Over the years I have set up several cash ISAs with different providers. I am aware of the rules (which I hope I've understood correctly) that say you can only contribute to one cash ISA in any tax year, and that you can only contribute to the same ISA next tax year if you have contributed to it during this tax year i.e. continuous usage.

This has left me with several old cash ISAs that have not been contributed to for several years, but to which I may want to add contributions to in future years. I seem to remember reading somewhere that you can do this, but that you need to submit a form of some sort to the provider to reactivate the old ISA, but I have been unable to verify this or indeed find the appropriate form if it exists.

Can anyone shed any light on this please?

Dave.

Lokolo

Just get the account number, sort code and name and transfer money into it!

You can also transfer all your ISAs into one if you wish to make it all a lot simpler.

Merrywidow

I too have several ISA's but to my knowlege you cannot add to them after the current financial year is over. If I were you I would scoop them all up under one umbrella. Abbey are paying me 9.7 procent on my ISA's if I take out the same in a growth fund. I am sure you will get lots of advice from those who have more understanding of finance than me.

debbie42

You can't just do an electronic transfer to an old, elapsed ISA. You'd need to contact the provider to discover if it's possible to add to it again, as you suggest.

Oblivion

Lokolo wrote: »

Just get the account number, sort code and name and transfer money into it!

Did you actually read my OP, particularly the bit about not being able to add to an ISA that hasn't been contributed to in the previous tax year?

Lokolo wrote: »

You can also transfer all your ISAs into one if you wish to make it all a lot simpler.

I am of course aware of that option, but it's not one I necessarily want to adopt.

Dave.

McKneff

you cannot add to an Isa when it is full. What you have to do is start another ISA with the same company then they add the amount together
it all goes into the same account no. as the old one.

Lokolo

Oblivion wrote: »

Did you actually read my OP, particularly the bit about not being able to add to an ISA that hasn't been contributed to in the previous tax year?

Yes and I ingored it, mainly for that fact I highly doubt they would stop incoming payments.

Barclays told me the only way I could add to my ISA was from my Barclays current account (which I don't have), instead I chose the option I stated above, and it worked.

Have you actually tried the way I suggested?

Oblivion

debbie42 wrote: »

You can't just do an electronic transfer to an old, elapsed ISA. You'd need to contact the provider to discover if it's possible to add to it again, as you suggest.

Thanks debbie, that is my understanding of the situation. I'm just intrigued as to whether there is a standard form available to reactivate an old ISA. I just hoped that maybe someone on the forum had previous experience of this. As you say, I'm probably only going to get to the bottom of this by contacting my old providers.

Dave.

Oblivion

Lokolo wrote: »

Yes and I ingored it, mainly for that fact I highly doubt they would stop incoming payments.

Barclays told me the only way I could add to my ISA was from my Barclays current account (which I don't have), instead I chose the option I stated above, and it worked.

Have you actually tried the way I suggested?

No, because I don't want HMRC coming back at me in a few years time demanding payment of all the tax due on the interest because I transgressed the ISA rules.

Dave.

dzug1

Most providers will treat this as a new ISA application - whether as a result of internal rules or HMRC directive I don't know.

And to be honest from your point of view it's academic as to whether you are opening a new ISA or adding money to an old one, assuming the T&C of the two are the same.

Lokolo

My Egg one from last year states I can deposit money into that.....