ISA

ISAs can hold a wide range of eligible investments, including most stocks and ETFs. Fractional investing may also be available on eligible instruments within these accounts. Some restrictions apply, as certain investments are not permitted within tax-efficient wrappers or may not be supported for fractional investing. The full list of eligible investments will be set out in our product information.

We offer ISAs to eligible UK tax residents aged 18 or over. Availability is subject to our eligibility checks and account terms. For more information click here.

No, we currently only offer a Stocks and Shares ISA, but we plan to offer more ISA types in the future.

You can currently hold one Stocks and Shares ISA with us at a time. You can also hold ISAs with other providers, subject to HMRC rules and the annual ISA allowance.

No — we do not currently charge an account fee for our ISAs. Other product-specific or market-related charges may still apply where relevant, and these will always be disclosed clearly in our pricing information.

The minimum amount you can deposit or invest in a Stocks and Shares ISA is £1.

Yes. We support in-specie transfers in and out for eligible investments, allowing you to transfer your holdings without selling them first.

Yes. You can invest in different types of ISA, and you can also contribute to more than one ISA of the same type in a tax year. Your total contributions across all ISAs must remain within the annual ISA allowance (£20,000 for the 2026/27 tax year).

Yes, you can. There's a minimum deposit amount of £1.00, so you're free to invest as much or as little as you like. Just keep in mind that your contributions must stay within the annual ISA allowance, which is £20,000.00 for the 2026/27 tax year. ISA allowances reset every 6 April, and any unused allowance cannot be carried over to the next tax year.

An Individual Savings Account (ISA) is a tax-efficient savings and investment account that allows eligible individuals to save or invest money without paying UK tax on the interest, dividends, or capital gains generated within the account. ISAs were introduced by the UK government to encourage personal saving and long-term investing by providing individuals with a tax-advantaged way to build wealth. Each tax year, individuals can contribute up to an annual allowance set by the government, and they may choose to allocate this allowance across different types of ISAs, subject to the applicable rules and eligibility requirements.

There are several types of ISAs available in the UK, including Cash ISAs, Stocks and Shares ISAs, Innovative Finance ISAs, and Lifetime ISAs, each designed to meet different savings and investment objectives. The value of investments held within an ISA can rise or fall depending on market performance, meaning investors may receive back less than they originally invested.

ISAs are offered by authorised banks, building societies, investment platforms, wealth managers, and other financial institutions. Firms providing ISA products and investment services in the UK are generally authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA is responsible for overseeing the conduct of financial services firms, ensuring they operate fairly, transparently, and in the interests of consumers. Its role includes setting regulatory standards, supervising firms' compliance with financial regulations, and helping to maintain confidence in the UK financial system. While FCA regulation provides important consumer protections, it does not guarantee that investments will perform well or eliminate the risk of investment losses.

Overall, a UK ISA is a government-supported, tax-efficient savings and investment wrapper that enables individuals to grow their money while benefiting from favourable tax treatment. By combining tax advantages with a range of savings and investment options, ISAs have become one of the UK's most widely used financial products for individuals seeking to save for both short-term and long-term financial goals.

A Stocks & Shares ISA (often called an Investment ISA) is a tax-efficient "wrapper" that allows you to invest in a wide range of assets without paying UK Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax on the returns. Unlike a Cash ISA, which earns interest, a Stocks & Shares ISA involves investing your money in the financial markets, offering the potential for higher long-term growth, though with the risk that the value of your investments can go down as well as up.

A Stocks & Shares ISA and a standard trading account both allow you to buy and sell investments such as shares, ETFs, and funds. The key difference is how your investments are taxed. A simple way to think about it is that the account is like a container. You can hold many of the same investments in either account, but the tax rules for each container are different.

A Stocks & Shares ISA is a tax-efficient account provided by the UK government. Any profits you make from selling investments and any dividends you receive are generally free from UK Capital Gains Tax and Dividend Tax. However, there is a limit to how much you can contribute each tax year.

A standard trading account does not have an annual contribution limit, so you can invest as much as you like. However, any profits or dividends you earn may be subject to tax if they exceed your available UK tax allowances.

For example, imagine you invest £10,000 in a company's shares, and after five years the investment is worth £15,000. During that time, you also receive £500 in dividends. If these investments are held in a Stocks & Shares ISA, you would generally keep the full £5,000 gain and the £500 in dividends without paying UK Capital Gains Tax or Dividend Tax. If the same investments were held in a standard trading account, some of those gains or dividends could be taxable depending on your income and the tax rules that apply.

A Stocks & Shares ISA is often the preferred starting point because it combines investing with valuable tax benefits. A standard trading account is more commonly used once an investor has used their annual ISA allowance or needs the additional flexibility of a regular investment account.

For the 2026/27 tax year, the annual ISA allowance is £20,000.00. This is the total amount you can pay into all your ISAs combined (Cash, Stocks & Shares, Innovative Finance, and Lifetime ISA) in a single tax year. Note that from April 2027, the government has announced a reduction in the Cash ISA allowance to £12,000 for those under 65, while the Stocks & Shares ISA allowance will remain at the higher level to encourage long-term investing.

Yes; under rules introduced in April 2024, you can open and contribute to multiple ISAs of the same type in the same tax year, provided your total contributions across all of them do not exceed the £20,000.00 limit. This allows you to diversify your providers or take advantage of different platform features.

A Flexible ISA allows you to withdraw money and replace it within the same tax year without the replacement counting towards your annual ISA allowance. This also applies to funds built up in previous tax years — if you withdraw them, you can replace them within the same tax year without affecting your current-year allowance.

For example, if you contribute the full £20,000 annual allowance and later withdraw £5,000, you can replace that £5,000 into the same ISA before the end of the tax year without using any additional ISA allowance.

Our Stocks and Shares ISA is a Flexible ISA.

We offer a vast range of FCA-permissible investments, including:

• Individual Shares: Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange and major international markets (e.g., Apple, BP, NVIDIA).
• Funds & OEICs: Professionally managed "baskets" of investments.
• ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds): Low-cost funds that track specific indices like the FTSE 100 or S&P 500.
• Investment Trusts: Publicly listed companies that invest in other companies.
• Bonds & Gilts: Loans to companies or the UK government.

Because you are investing in the stock market, the value of your ISA is not guaranteed.

• Market Risk: The price of shares can fluctuate based on economic news or company performance.
• Inflation Risk: If your investments grow slower than the cost of living, your "real" purchasing power may decrease.
• Liquidity Risk: Some investments may be harder to sell quickly than others.

There is no minimum age for withdrawals from a Stocks & Shares ISA. You can access your money at any time; this makes it an ideal tool for medium-term goals like a house deposit or a child's education, as well as retirement.

Investing should generally be viewed as a long-term commitment (5+ years). This timeframe typically allows you to ride out short-term market volatility and benefit from the power of compounding returns.

Your cash and investments are held separately from our own assets in accordance with FCA client asset rules and are never treated as EC Markets' assets.

FSCS protection may apply to both your cash and investments, depending on the circumstances. Eligible uninvested cash held with UK-authorised banks may be protected up to £120,000 per person, per banking group. Eligible investments may be protected up to £85,000 per person, per eligible investment firm if the firm fails and is unable to return your assets.

FSCS protection is subject to eligibility and the scheme's rules. It does not protect against losses caused by changes in the value or performance of your investments.

Yes. You can move your ISA from one provider to another at any time. To keep the tax-free status, you must use the official "ISA Transfer" process rather than withdrawing the cash and reinvesting it yourself. For more information please contact our customer service team at clientsupport@ecmarkets.co.uk.

No; any dividends paid by companies you hold within your ISA are credited to your account tax-free. You do not need to report these to HMRC.

Yes; we allow you to hold uninvested cash within the account.

If you move outside the UK, you can keep your existing ISA and it will remain tax-free in the UK. However, you generally cannot make new contributions, and you should check if your new country of residence taxes UK ISAs.