Transfer Cash ISAs Discussion Area

jim_50

Nationwide have extended their bonus rate on my Cash e-ISA till October 2012. So can I start a new Cash ISA with good rate in April for new funds and also choose another new Cash ISA in October to transfer my existing Nationwide funds into - assuming it is better than the one I select in April. I may decide to go for a fixed rate ISA in April and keep some or all the Nationwide funds in an easy access ISA

yascards

Is anyone else frustrated by the time various banks take to fill in the Cash ISA transfer forms. The worst recently is Santander who took over an hour to process three transfers.

murphydavid

Spiggle wrote: »

This is incorrect I'm afraid.

You can transfer current year funds provided the whole of the current years fund is kept together and the t&c on the accounts allow transfers (i.e. the one out isn't fixed term and the one in allows transfers).

This is a question of transfer v subscription. You cannot subscribe (pay in new money) to more than one ISA in a year but you can open without subscribing as many as you like and spend the year transferring your fund around as long as the balance is kept as a whole.

Matured ISA funds can be split for transferring but the current year balance must be kept together until after the 5th April, their maturity date (subject to specific t&c of course).

All the best,
Spigs

Thanks. Just out of curiosity if one invested only part of ones allowance in a new ISA and then transferred it before the end of the tax year; can you then go on to subscribe further funds (up to the allowed amount) to the new provider in the same year or would this be considered as subscribing to more than one ISA ? ie would transferring a current ISA before you invested your full allowance mean you would be unable to use up your full allowance that year?

captain_mainwaring

Right. I don't fully understand ISA's. I have 2 ISA's with different providers. Both 'mature' on April 18th this year, now, I want to move them to better fixed rate accounts. Can someone tell me when the best time is to move them? Should I do it now or wait 'til April 18th?

What I will need to do is get the new provider to transfer for me on one ISA and the 2nd one close and return to my main bank account and then start another in my wifes name with another new provider.

Mainly it's the 'when' do I do it that concerns me because if I move/transfer before April 18th I will lose some interest.

Any advice/thoughts on this.
I can't understand why I find ISA's confusing is, it me? or do others find the same?
Thanks in advance for your help. (Don't confuse me though, I'm there already)

choccyface2006

I am on day 15 of my Nationwide - Santander ISA transfer and am rather worried about the 2nd April deadline, has anyone got any advice? Is anyone else in the same position?

My Natwest - Nationwide transfer last year was very quick.

Sarah

AirlieBird

murphydavid wrote: »

Thanks. Just out of curiosity if one invested only part of ones allowance in a new ISA and then transferred it before the end of the tax year; can you then go on to subscribe further funds (up to the allowed amount) to the new provider in the same year or would this be considered as subscribing to more than one ISA ? ie would transferring a current ISA before you invested your full allowance mean you would be unable to use up your full allowance that year?

When you transfer current year subscriptions your "one ISA a year" allowance moves with them. So, yes, you can use your remaining allowance in your new ISA. The rule isn't really that you are allowed to subscribe to one ISA a year, it is that all current year subscriptions must be held in the same ISA.

10_66

captain_mainwaring wrote: »

Right. I don't fully understand ISA's. I have 2 ISA's with different providers. Both 'mature' on April 18th this year, now, I want to move them to better fixed rate accounts. Can someone tell me when the best time is to move them? Should I do it now or wait 'til April 18th?

What I will need to do is get the new provider to transfer for me on one ISA and the 2nd one close and return to my main bank account and then start another in my wifes name with another new provider.

Mainly it's the 'when' do I do it that concerns me because if I move/transfer before April 18th I will lose some interest.

If your existing ISAs are fixed rate ones, then you're best leaving them until they mature before transferring as you will probably pay a penalty for transferring/closing early. If they're variable rate ISAs then you can usually transfer whenever you like, without any penalty (you would obviously have to check the T&Cs of your ISAs for this information).

To get the new provider to arrange the transfer, when you make an application with them, they will provide you with a transfer form, which you will send back to the new provider, who will arrange for the transfer process to be initiated.

AirlieBird

captain_mainwaring wrote: »

Right. I don't fully understand ISA's. I have 2 ISA's with different providers. Both 'mature' on April 18th this year, now, I want to move them to better fixed rate accounts. Can someone tell me when the best time is to move them? Should I do it now or wait 'til April 18th?

You can do it now but state on the transfer form that you do not want the transfer request to be actioned before 18 April. There should be an option on the form to do this. You do need to bear in mind though that if you are transferring to new fixed rate accounts then there is always the possibility that the fixed rate account you are transferring to is withdrawn between now and then.

captain_mainwaring wrote: »

What I will need to do is get the new provider to transfer for me on one ISA and the 2nd one close and return to my main bank account and then start another in my wifes name with another new provider.

Why? Isn't that a waste of your wife's allowance. Why not transfer in your name and then you have your wife's allowance to put more money in an ISA.

captain_mainwaring

Originally Posted by captain_mainwaring
What I will need to do is get the new provider to transfer for me on one ISA and the 2nd one close and return to my main bank account and then start another in my wifes name with another new provider.
Why? Isn't that a waste of your wife's allowance. Why not transfer in your name and then you have your wife's allowance to put more money in an ISA.

Thanks for the reply. On the second part of your reply: I will do this because I understand that you can only have 1 ISA per year in one name so, I will have one and my wife will have the other. Is that correct?
Regards Captain

Spiggle

captain_mainwaring wrote: »

Originally Posted by captain_mainwaring
What I will need to do is get the new provider to transfer for me on one ISA and the 2nd one close and return to my main bank account and then start another in my wifes name with another new provider.
Why? Isn't that a waste of your wife's allowance. Why not transfer in your name and then you have your wife's allowance to put more money in an ISA.

Thanks for the reply. On the second part of your reply: I will do this because I understand that you can only have 1 ISA per year in one name so, I will have one and my wife will have the other. Is that correct?
Regards Captain

They don't count for the 2012-13 allowance. Even if one was opened and subscribed to in the current 2011-12 financial year, provided you transfer the whole amount subscribed this this year there is no problem transferring before 6th April 2012 (subject to the t&c referred to earlier).

Once a fund has passed out of the year it was paid into it stops counting in your annual allowance. Theoretically, because it probably wouldn't make sense, on 18th April you could transfer each of your mature ISA into two separate ISA (subject to t&c) in your name and then open a separate one in which to deposit your 2012-13 allowance of £5,640. This is how some people have amounts such as £18k, £35k and 50k in one ISA or in a number of different ISA all in their name and all tax free savings.

Hope that helps,
Spigs