Help to Buy ISA guide

Ed-1

Alohamora wrote: »

Hi, We have had an offer accepted on a house 3 weeks ago and my husband and I have each opened a HTB ISA with Halifax. We are having trouble getting a Solicitor as no-one is yet registered to claim the ISAs from the government. I have had several Solicitors advising me to go elsewhere as they don't know if they will ever apply to claim ISAs. This has really held up the sale as the Mortgage Adviser and Estate Agent both need me to name my chosen Solicitor before we can proceed. I can't get anyone to commit to applying. Has anyone else had this problem?
I have recently read that Solicitors are not allowed to apply to be able to claim ISAs until the first week of January, if I did find someone but they are not registered in time for my sale does that mean we would miss out?

The minimum Help to Buy ISA bonus is £400 which means you need £1600 in your account before you can get a bonus.

colsten

Ed-1 wrote: »

The minimum Help to Buy ISA bonus is £400 which means you need £1600 in your account before you can get a bonus.

Therefore the very earliest you can ask for your bonus is the 1st of February.

Alohamora wrote: »

I have recently read that Solicitors are not allowed to apply to be able to claim ISAs until the first week of January, if I did find someone but they are not registered in time for my sale does that mean we would miss out?

There is nothing in the Scheme Rules that suggests solicitors cannot register before Jan 1.

Alohamora

Ed-1 wrote: »

The minimum Help to Buy ISA bonus is £400 which means you need £1600 in your account before you can get a bonus.

Yes, no problems with that as we are not expecting to complete until mid-February at the earliest and have put the maximum amount allowed in.

Alohamora

There is nothing in the Scheme Rules that suggests solicitors cannot register before Jan 1.[/QUOTE]

I agree, I couldn't see anything in the rules so assumed the solicitors would be good to go come February. There was an article on law society .org website posted on 17th December that says otherwise (sorry can't add link as I am a new user).

These are the parts that concern me .
"Solicitors and conveyancers can register for the scheme from the first week in January 2016. They will need to agree to comply with the Help to Buy: ISA Scheme Rules and the Conveyancer Guidelines, through the conveyancer adherence agreement.
Savers can cash in their bonus from February 2016 however it is unlikely that many savers will want to claim their bonus this early as they will want to claim the most bonus as possible. The online portal, through which a conveyancer can make a bonus application, will be open from 31 March 2016."

nihplod

Hello, sorry if this has been asked before but I couldn't find it when I looked.

The Treasury rules say "As is currently the case, it will only be possible for a saver to subscribe to one cash ISA per year".

The MSE notes say that people can pay into any number of Cash ISAs in the year as long as you doesn't go over the limit, but that you can only open one in each year.

The halifax HTB Cash Isa states "You cannot pay into another cash ISA in the same tax year."

These all make for a confusing set of rules. I have paid into two cash ISAs in the 2015-2016 financial year, but not opened one since pre-2015.

So I am wondering: in the treasury rules where they say 'subscribe', do they mean 'open' - have I been doing something wrong by paying into two different ones this year? (I am under the limits)

But my main question is this: Can I open Halifax's HTB ISA now (I haven't opened one this year) if I stop paying into the other Cash ISAs?

Archi_Bald

nihplod wrote: »

The MSE notes say that people can pay into any number of Cash ISAs in the year as long as you doesn't go over the limit, but that you can only open one in each year.

if they say that, they are incorrect, on two accounts

nihplod wrote: »

The halifax HTB Cash Isa states "You cannot pay into another cash ISA in the same tax year."

this is correct if you have an HTB ISA with Halifax as Halifax does not offer split ISAs

nihplod wrote: »

These all make for a confusing set of rules.

the rules are simple. Sadly, people misinterpret and misunderstand them

nihplod wrote: »

I have paid into two cash ISAs in the 2015-2016 financial year, but not opened one since pre-2015.

opening is irrelevant. the only thing that counts is subscriptions

nihplod wrote: »

So I am wondering: in the treasury rules where they say 'subscribe', do they mean 'open' - have I been doing something wrong by paying into two different ones this year?

if they meant 'open', they would say 'open'. They mean 'subscribe', i.e putting new money in. If you did pay into two separate ISAs this year, and these were not with a split ISA provider such as Nationwide, you did make a mistake that will need to be corrected under HMRC guidance.

nihplod wrote: »

But my main question is this: Can I open Halifax's HTB ISA now (I haven't opened one this year) if I stop paying into the other Cash ISAs?

you cannot subscribe to a Halifax unless you close the other cash ISA that you subscribed to this tax year.

Please check out the official HTB ISA FAQ.

nihplod

Thanks Archi Bald,

Archi_Bald wrote: »

you cannot subscribe to a Halifax unless you close the other cash ISA that you subscribed to this tax year.

If I stopped paying money into my existing ISA(s) in March 2016, and then opened a new HTB Cash ISA in the April of 2016 (effectively a new year), presumably then that would also be okay?

nihplod

Archi_Bald wrote: »

if they meant 'open', they would say 'open'. They mean 'subscribe', i.e putting new money in.

And so, to finish this thought, presumably having one open, but not paying into it, is fine?

Archi_Bald

nihplod wrote: »

If I stopped paying money into my existing ISA(s) in March 2016, and then opened a new HTB Cash ISA in the April of 2016 (effectively a new year), presumably then that would also be okay?

yes

EDIT: for completeness I should mention there is another option you have right now but it couldn't involve Halifax as they don't offer split ISAs. Please check the official HTB ISA FAQ.

nihplod wrote: »

And so, to finish this thought, presumably having one open, but not paying into it, is fine?

yes

colsten

nihplod wrote: »

If I stopped paying money into my existing ISA(s) in March 2016, and then opened a new HTB Cash ISA in the April of 2016 (effectively a new year), presumably then that would also be okay?

Why not closing your existing ISA down straight away and putting your money into accounts where you get a decent amount of interest? https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5374614

You can then also start the HTB ISA without having to wait for April.