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Stocks and Shares ISA

Stocks and Shares ISA

Grow your investments with this year’s Stocks and Shares ISA allowance

Top up an ISA Open a Stocks and Shares ISA

Open your Stocks and Shares ISA Transfer an ISA to us

Important information - Stocks and Shares ISA investors need to be happy to make their own investment decisions, and understand that investments can go down as well as up in value, so you may get back less than you invest. The information on this page isn't personal advice - please ask us for investment advice if you’re not sure which investments are right for you. Tax rules for Stocks and Shares ISAs can change and their benefits depend on your circumstances. Before transferring please check for loss of benefits and excessive exit fees.

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Stocks and Shares ISA overview

What is an ISA?

Transfer an ISA

What is a Stocks and Shares ISA?

A Stocks and Shares ISA is an investment account that allows you to invest free from UK tax. And although investing is best for the long term, you can withdraw your money whenever you need to.

Whether you're new to investing or already an expert, you can choose your own investments with our Stocks and Shares ISA.

You can think of a Stocks and Shares ISA as a shopping basket. The investments you put in the basket are up to you, and the ISA shelters them from UK income tax and capital gains tax.

More Stocks and Shares ISA basics

Discover a tax efficient way to grow your wealth with a Stocks and Shares ISA

The words Stocks and Shares ISA are presented on screen as the video starts. The video is animated with various scenes providing illustrations and metaphors for the narration.

A Stocks and Shares ISA offers a simple and tax-efficient way to grow your money for the future.

It’s not an investment in its own right, it’s a type of account.

And it’s special because when you buy investments within an ISA you shelter them from UK tax.

This means that if your investments grow, you won’t have to pay capital gains tax on any future profits.

And if you’re investing for income, you won’t pay UK income tax either, which means you could save thousands of pounds in tax over the long term.

But remember tax rules change and benefits depend on individual circumstances.

You have the flexibility to take money out whenever you need to, but because of the excellent tax benefits, the government limits how much you can put into ISAs each tax year.

This is known as the ISA allowance, it changes from year to year, but for the current year you can pay in up to £20,000 and you have until the 5th of April to use this or you’ll lose it.

How you choose to use your ISA allowance is up to you.

You can invest it all in a Stocks and Shares ISA, or you can spread your allowance between any combination of the other ISAs available, including Cash, Innovative Finance and if eligible, Lifetime ISAs.

A Stocks and Shares ISA gives you the freedom to invest in a wide range of investments, including funds and UK and international shares and bonds.

You can also hold cash, so you can secure your valuable tax break now, and then chose the investments when you’re ready.

If you’re looking for a simple and tax-efficient way to save for the future, a Stocks and Shares ISA is an excellent option.

You can start investing with a lump sum of £100 or £25 per month.

Unlike cash, investments can fall as well as rise in value so you could get back less than you invest. Tax rules can change and the tax benefits of ISAs will depend on your circumstances. This video isn’t personal advice, if you’re not sure whether an investment is right for you, please contact us for advice.

How much can I invest in a Stocks and Shares ISA?

In the 2023/2024 tax year (6 April to 5 April) there’s a limited amount of money you can put in ISAs. This tax year the ISA allowance is £20,000.

Tax rules for ISAs can change and their benefits depend on your circumstances.

Invest up to £20,000 this tax year

HL Stocks and Shares ISA charges

The annual charge for holding investments in an HL Stocks and Shares ISA is never more than 0.45%.

Your dealing and other charges will depend on the investments you choose.

See our Stocks and Shares ISA charges

ANNUAL 0.45% ACCOUNT CHARGE

Your investment options

Your ISA investment options

We offer a wide range of investments. You can pick from:

Ready-made investments
Over 3,000 funds
UK and overseas shares
Investment trusts
Bonds
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and more

See Stocks and Shares ISA investment ideas

How much could your ISA be worth?

Our ISA calculator can help you picture different scenarios. While it only provides examples, which aren’t guaranteed, you can experiment with different variables.

Change things like how much you expect to pay in each year, or the potential rate of investment growth. You might be surprised by the results.

Try the calculator

ISA Investment Ideas

Open a Stocks and Shares ISA

Once you've decided to invest your ISA allowance, it takes less than five minutes to get started. You'll just need a debit card and your national insurance number to hand. Remember that your investments can go down as well as up in value, so you may get back less than you invest.

Two simple ways to start a Stocks and Shares ISA

Open a new Stocks and Shares ISA

Get started from as little as £100.

Make a one-off debit card payment and top up whenever you like
Choose from a range of investments when you’re ready
Ideas and support to help you get off to a great start

Set up a Direct Debit

Pay into a Stocks and Shares ISA from £25 each month.

Invest automatically each month
Start, stop, increase or decrease your Direct Debit whenever you like
Ideas and support to help you get off to a great start

Open an ISA

Want to transfer an existing ISA to us? Just let us know and we’ll take care of the rest. Transfer an ISA to us

Add money to your Stocks and Shares ISA

Add money now

Please read the ISA key features before adding money.

To add money with a debit card online or using the HL app, log in to your account and under 'Actions' choose 'Top up'. Then follow the instructions to enter your debit card details and make your payment.

You can also call us on 0117 980 9950 to add money to your ISA.

Add money now

Set up a Direct Debit from £25 per month

Please read the ISA key features before adding money.

Invest monthly into your choice of funds, FTSE 350 shares, selected investment trusts and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

You can start, stop, increase and decrease your Direct Debit whenever you like. Log in to your account and choose the 'Monthly savings' tab to get started.

Set up a Direct Debit

Want to transfer an existing ISA to us? Just let us know and we’ll take care of the rest. Transfer an ISA to us

Join over 910,000 clients using an HL Stocks and Shares ISA

Security - we're a FTSE 100 company and the largest investment platform in the UK for private investors, with £123 billion in assets under administration, and trusted by over one million clients
Ease - check your Stocks and Shares ISA anytime online or with the HL app
Expertise - investment ideas for your ISA from our expert analysts
Award-winning - we've won over 200 awards, including Best Online Stockbroker 2022/2023 by the Personal Finance Awards, and Best Buy ISA 2023 from the Boring Money Best Buys Awards
UK-based helpdesk - speak to our customer support team if you have any questions
Personalised financial advice - plan and invest for a better future with the help of our flexible financial advice service

Easy to contact and information is made simple to understand
MISS CARTER, Oxfordshire

New to investing?

Getting started could be easier than you think. Watch our videos to get to grips with the basics of investing.

Or download a Guide to ISAs to learn more about how investing in a Stocks and Shares ISAs works.

Learn more about Stocks and Shares ISAs

Who can open a Stocks and Shares ISA?
You can open a Stocks and Shares ISA if you’re over the age of 18 and UK resident for tax purposes. You should also be:
- Comfortable choosing your own investments in an ISA
- Confident making long-term investment decisions
- Free from significant debt (other than a mortgage)
- Clear on our charges
Investments fall as well as rise in value, so you could get back less than you put in. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please ask us about financial advice.
Can I pay into more than one Stocks and Shares ISA?

You can’t pay into more than one of the same type of ISA in the same tax year. So you couldn’t, for example, pay into a Stocks and Shares ISA with two different providers in the same tax year.

You can, however, split your ISA allowance between a Stocks and Shares ISA, a Cash ISA, an Innovative Finance ISA and a Lifetime ISA (up to £4,000 per year).

For example, if you wanted to divide your ISA allowance between cash and investments, you could put £15,000 in a Stocks and Shares ISA and the remaining £5,000 in a Cash ISA.

On top of the £20,000 ISA allowance, it’s also possible to pay up to £9,000 into a Junior ISA for a child.
What’s the minimum amount needed to open a Stocks and Shares ISA?
You can open an HL Stocks and Shares ISA with £100 as a lump sum, or by setting up a Direct Debit from £25 per month.
Can I withdraw money from a Stocks and Shares ISA?

Stocks and Shares ISAs are designed for long-term investing – we usually suggest a horizon of at least five years.

But there are times you might want to withdraw money from your ISA, and you can do this at any time. If you’re selling investments first, the trade will need to settle before you can withdraw cash. This usually takes about two working days for shares and four for funds.

With the HL Stocks and Shares ISA, there's no charge for withdrawing money. Though there might be charges for selling some investments, depending on what you hold.

Just remember that if you take money out of your HL Stocks and Shares ISA, you’ll lose that portion of your ISA allowance.

More Stocks and Shares ISA FAQs

ISA Essentials

What is a Stocks and Shares ISA?

ISAs allow you to save and invest free from UK income and capital gains tax. Here, we look in more detail at what a Stocks and Shares ISA is.

Charlie Hutchence

6m read

5 Myths about Stocks and Shares ISA

5 myths about Stocks and Shares ISAs

We dispel five common myths about Stocks and Shares ISAs.

CJ Hill

4m read

What are the different types of ISA?

What are the different types of ISA?

Decide how to make the most of your ISA allowance by learning more about the different types of ISAs available.

CJ Hill

5m read

Explore more Stocks and Shares ISA Insights

I can speak to someone on the phone and everything is explained in a very helpful and easy to understand way.
MR HARLEY

Best Buy ISA
Boring Money Awards 2023

Best Online Stockbroker
The Personal Finance Awards 2022/2023

Investing & Pensions Gold Award
Times Money Mentor 2022

Help and support

If you have any questions about the HL Stocks and Shares ISA, you can speak to one of our client support experts by calling 0117 900 9000.