Isa - moved abroad

PIE65

Hi there

Hope someone can help me with this:
I lived in the UK for several years before relocating (to Italy) for work purposes. While in the UK I put some of my money into cash ISAs. They had a good rate at the time, but that has since ended. Is there a way to transfer them to another ISA provider while I am out of the country? Just to clarify...I don't want to withdraw my ISAs or anything; I just want to transfer my existing ISAs to another provider. I know that you can't put new money into an ISA when you're not resident, but how does transferring work (if it does work) when you don't have a UK address anymore and/or are no longer considered a resident?
Thanks :-)
Pie65

innovate

According to the HMRC ISA FAQ, you should be able to transfer your existing ISA.

Not sure you can apply for a new ISA though because they usually ask you to confirm you are a UK resident when opening an account. May be call one of them and ask?

xylophone

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/4205201/Brits-abroad-not-taking-advantage-of-Isa-options.html though old might be of interest in respect of the switching option but there is also this http://www.iii.co.uk/articles/15780/can-i-transfer-my-isa-if-i-live-abroad You might need to try here http://search2.hmrc.gov.uk/kbroker/hmrc/contactus/search.ladv?cs=UTF-8&ha=34&tx0=19&fl0=contactid:&raction=view for a ruling "from the horse's mouth"?

I suspect that while in theory it should be possible (since you don't have to close ISAs when you move abroad but simply may not subscribe to a new one), you might find that providers are unwilling to accept the transfer?
http://www.expat.barclays.com/live-abroad/ points out that income from isas might not be tax free in your country of residence.

kidmugsy

I wonder whether it might be easier to transfer an ISA to a different ISA from the same provider rather than transfer to a different provider?

AirlieBird

To transfer your ISA you will need to cross out the lines "I apply to subscribe...." and "I am resident and ordinarily resident..." on the application form for the account you are opening.