The ISA deadline approaches: making the most of your allowances

It may seem as though the year has barely begun, yet the month of March is already upon us. That means that spring is just around the corner. It also means that the ISA deadline of 6th April is rapidly approaching.

Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are tax-free savings accounts open to anyone over the age of 16 to deposit their savings each year. With attractive savings allowances, ISAs have become very popular with people across the UK intent on building a nest egg for their future.

As of the end of the 2017/2018 tax year, the maximum amount you can deposit in an ISA in one financial year is £20,000 per annum, up from £15,240 in the previous tax year.

This limit will remain unchanged into the 2018/2019 tax year. However, as those in the know will tell you, any tax savings are dependent on the amount you deposit into your ISA over the course of the tax year. Deposits cannot roll over from one tax year’s allowance to the next, meaning that you can’t ‘top up’ your savings in 2018/2019 using any unused portion of this tax year’s allowance. When it’s gone, it’s gone!

Maximising your ISA allowance is therefore a great way to save for your future. This is further highlighted by the fact that ISA allowances can be split across different financial products, including cash ISAs, stocks and shares ISAs, innovative finance ISAs and lifetime ISAs (LISAS).

Lifetime ISAs, for example, were first launched in April 2017 to help first-time buyers under the age of 40 buy their first home and/or savers to build a nest egg to use in retirement once they reach the age of 60. Borne of research into economic and behavioural psychology, the Lifetime ISA tackles two problems simultaneously: that many people between the age of 18 and 40 are not saving for a home and nor are they contributing a significant portion of their earnings to a pension.

Making use of an ISA allowance is typically one of the features of sound financial planning. ISAs, though, are just one of many ‘tax-wrappers’ available – meaning investors can ‘wrap’ their investment, sheltering them from paying tax on all, or a portion, of their assets. Your adviser will likely talk to you often about the wrappers you are using, how to maximise them and which are the most appropriate for your current circumstances. If you have any questions around this topic, please feel free to get in touch with us directly.