ISA Allowance 2026/27: How Much You Can Pay In and What Changes in 2027
The ISA allowance for the 2026/27 tax year is £20,000. You can put it all into one ISA or split it across several, and it resets every year on 6 April.
The bigger change is coming next year. From 6 April 2027, the most anyone under 65 can pay into a cash ISA falls to £12,000, although the overall £20,000 allowance stays the same. This guide covers how the allowance works now, what changes in 2027, and the rules that most often catch people out.
The information provided on this page and throughout the website is for general information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. It is important that you conduct your own research and consider your own personal circumstances before making any investment decisions.
ISA allowance 2026/27 at a glance
| Limit | 2026/27 (now) | 2027/28, under 65 | 2027/28, 65 and over |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall ISA allowance | £20,000 | £20,000 | £20,000 |
| Most you can pay into cash ISAs | £20,000 | £12,000 | £20,000 |
| Lifetime ISA (counts towards the £20,000) | £4,000 | £4,000 | Payments stop at 50 |
| Junior ISA (per child, separate) | £9,000 | Not yet confirmed | |
Sources: GOV.UK How ISAs work, Lifetime ISA and Junior ISAs; HMRC ISA reform 2027 factsheet, 23 June 2026. Checked 10 October 2026.
What is the ISA allowance for 2026/27?
For the 2026/27 tax year, which runs from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027, you can pay up to £20,000 into ISAs. You do not pay tax on interest, income or capital gains inside an ISA, and you do not need to declare them on a tax return.
There are four types of adult ISA: cash, stocks and shares, innovative finance and the Lifetime ISA. You must be 18 or over and UK resident to open one, and under 40 to open a Lifetime ISA. The allowance is per person, so a couple can shelter up to £40,000 between them.
How you can split your ISA allowance
You can put the whole £20,000 into a single account or spread it across several. Since April 2024 you can also pay into more than one ISA of the same type in the same tax year, which was not allowed before.
GOV.UK gives this as an example of a valid split for one tax year:
- £10,000 into one cash ISA
- £3,000 into a second cash ISA
- £7,000 into a stocks and shares ISA
The one exception is the Lifetime ISA. You can only pay into one in a tax year, and the most you can put in is £4,000, which counts towards your £20,000. If you want to know how many accounts you can hold, our guide on how many ISAs you can have covers it in detail.
The cash ISA limit from April 2027
At Autumn Budget 2025 the government announced that, from 6 April 2027, the most someone under 65 can pay into cash ISAs each year will fall to £12,000. The overall allowance stays at £20,000, so to use all of it you would need to put at least £8,000 into a stocks and shares, innovative finance or Lifetime ISA.
A few details matter:
- Turning 65: the £20,000 cash limit applies from the start of the tax year in which you turn 65, not from your birthday.
- No transfers back into cash: moving money from a stocks and shares ISA into a cash ISA will not be allowed for under 65s. Moving from cash into stocks and shares will still be possible.
- Cash held in an investment ISA: interest paid on cash held inside a stocks and shares or innovative finance ISA will face a flat 22% charge, paid by the provider.
Nothing changes for the current 2026/27 tax year. HMRC has said the regulations will be laid this autumn, so treat the detail as settled policy rather than final law until then. Our explainer on the cash ISA limit rules goes through each exception.
Lifetime ISA allowance
You can pay up to £4,000 a year into a Lifetime ISA until you turn 50, as long as you made your first payment before 40. The government adds a 25% bonus, worth up to £1,000 a year.
You can use the money to buy your first home costing £450,000 or less, at least 12 months after your first payment, or withdraw it from age 60. Taking money out for any other reason normally triggers a 25% withdrawal charge, which can leave you with less than you paid in.
Junior ISA allowance
The Junior ISA limit for 2026/27 is £9,000 per child. It is separate from your own £20,000, so paying into a child’s Junior ISA does not reduce your allowance.
A child can have a cash Junior ISA, a stocks and shares Junior ISA or both. The money belongs to the child: they can take control of the account at 16 but cannot withdraw until they turn 18.
Do withdrawals and transfers use up your allowance?
Withdrawals: it depends on whether your ISA is flexible. With a flexible ISA you can take money out and put it back in the same tax year without using more allowance. With a non-flexible ISA, money you take out cannot be replaced without counting again.
GOV.UK’s example: you pay £10,000 into an ISA in 2026/27 and later withdraw £3,000. You could then pay in £13,000 more if the ISA is flexible, but only £10,000 if it is not. Your provider can tell you which type you have.
Transfers: moving an ISA to another provider through a proper transfer keeps its tax-free status. Always start the transfer with the new provider. If you withdraw the money and pay it in yourself, you cannot reinvest that part of your allowance. Transfers between cash ISAs should take no more than 15 working days, and other transfers no more than 30 calendar days. Our guide to ISA transfer rules covers the process step by step.
What if you pay in more than the allowance?
Each provider can only see what you pay into its own accounts, so if you use several ISAs it is up to you to keep a running total for the tax year. If you think you have gone over the limit, contact your ISA provider or the HMRC ISA helpline to sort it out rather than leaving it.
When does the ISA allowance reset?
The allowance resets at the start of each tax year on 6 April. Any part of this year’s £20,000 you have not used by 5 April 2027 does not roll over, but money already in your ISAs stays tax free for as long as you keep it there.
If you are deciding where to use this year’s allowance, our comparisons of the best stocks and shares ISAs and best cash ISAs are a good starting point. Remember that with a stocks and shares ISA your capital is at risk.
ISA allowance FAQs
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