Newbie seeks ISA advice

SavvyBren

Please forgive me if this question is a bit dumb. I hope someone here can explain the basics.

I have 2 Cash ISAs maturing on 31 May, both with Coventry BS. One is an Active Loyalty Fixed Isa and the other is just a Fixed ISA. Both amount to £37k in total.

The nice lady on the phone told me that I could reinvest in the entire combined sum of £37k in a new ISA and because it was a reinvestment from previous years, it would not count against my ISA allowance for the Current Tax year. Moreover I could also add money to this total sum invested if I wished to. Is this true?

I also have about £50k in 2 Bonds also maturing this month (held with Charter Savings Bank) and if it is allowed, I would like to add this to the combined sum ISA they advise me I could take out.

I also have £20k in my bank account which I would like to invest in a brand new ISA for the current tax year.

So my question is - can I do all this without breaking the ISA rules or was I given wrong advice? Thank you everyone for shining a light if possible...

slinger2

You can only add £20k of "new" money in any tax year. So if you use the £20k in the bank to invest in an ISA then you can't add any more new money. The £50k in the bonds will have to wait for another tax year. Other combinations are possible (eg 10+10) but the total mustn't exceed £20k.

eskbanker

The advice you've been given is correct - you can transfer the money that's already into ISAs into a new one, and top up with an additional £20K of new 2024/25 money as well (but not £50K from non-ISA accounts).

friolento

SavvyBren said:

The nice lady on the phone told me that I could reinvest in the entire combined sum of £37k in a new ISA and because it was a reinvestment from previous years, it would not count against my ISA allowance for the Current Tax year. Moreover I could also add money to this total sum invested if I wished to. Is this true?

Yes this is true. You can combine old ISAs into one new one. Or two new ones.

You also have a £20k ISA allowance for the current year. You can add some or all of that £20k to the ISA(s) you transfer the old ISAs to - subject to the T&Cs of your new ISA(s).

SavvyBren said:

I also have about £50k in 2 Bonds also maturing this month (held with Charter Savings Bank) and if it is allowed, I would like to add this to the combined sum ISA they advise me I could take out.

If those are ISAs, you can transfer them to ISAs. If they are not, in the current tax year you can only put £20k of the £50k into any ISA of your choice, including the one(s) you transfer your old Coventry ISAs into (again, subject to the T&Cs of the ISA).

Whether you want to keep your ISA with Coventry is up to you - there are currently providers with better rates than Coventry though not all of them offer transfers-in. I currently plan to move my Coventry ISA to Zopa when it matures end of the month.

Alexland

In addition to the upto £20k you can contribute into ISA(s) each tax year it might be worth considering that you can hold up to £50k in premium bonds for tax free returns.

jonnypb

SavvyBren said:

I have 2 Cash ISAs maturing on 31 May, both with Coventry BS. One is an Active Loyalty Fixed Isa and the other is just a Fixed ISA. Both amount to £37k in total.

Yes just make sure you do a TRANSFER of this £37k to a new ISA as that will then not count towards this years £20k allowance.