No, providing you make at least one subscription in each tax year your original application will be valid in consecutive tax years.
How can I pay into my OptimISA?
You can make regular payments or individual payments up to the annual subscription limit in cash, by cheque or by standing order.
What are the ISA subscription limits?
- Cash ISA £5,100
- Stocks and Shares ISA £10,200
The total subscription to an ISA is £10,200 in any tax year, of which £5,100 can be subscribed to a Cash ISA. The Vernon only offers a Cash ISA. You can only subscribe to one Cash ISA during any tax year. If you subscribe to more than one Cash ISA, your subscriptions to the last one will be invalid and tax exemptions will not apply.
For example an investor could subscribe:
- £5,100 to a Cash ISA and £5,100 to a Stocks and Shares ISA
- £2,000 to a Cash ISA and £8,200 to a Stocks and Shares ISA
- £0 to a Cash ISA and £10,200 to a Stocks and Shares ISA
Withdrawals do not have any effect on the subscription limits and once withdrawn, funds cannot be reinvested in the ISA if the annual subscription limit will be exceeded.
For example if £5,100 was paid in during a tax year and subsequently in the same tax year £2,500 was drawn out, no further subscriptions could be made until the following tax year.
It is possible to close and subsequently reopen a cash ISA during the same tax year providing the overall subscription limit for the year has not been exceeded.
If the maximum subscriptions have not been made in one tax year, the balance cannot be carried forward into the next one.
Can I transfer my Cash ISA to the Vernon?
Yes. You can transfer your current year subscriptions in whole and/or your previous years' investments in whole or part at any time. To do this you will need a transfer form.
How can I cancel my application?
You will have 14 days from receipt of your ISA acknowledgment letter in which to change your mind and request cancellation of your investment in writing only. Your cancelled ISA will not count as an ISA subscription. Interest will be paid gross during the cancellation period.
How do I transfer my Vernon ISA to another provider?
If you ever wish to transfer your Vernon Cash ISA to another provider simply advise us in writing. The HM Revenue & Customs rules surrounding this are as follows:
- You can transfer from one cash ISA to another cash ISA.
- You can transfer previous years' cash ISAs to a stocks & shares ISA (but not vice versa) without affecting your annual ISA allowance. If you transfer your Vernon Cash ISA to another provider, then all of your savings up to the date of transfer must be transferred. We do not allow partial transfers from our cash ISA accounts.
- If you transfer your current tax year savings from a cash ISA to a stocks & shares ISA, the money transferred will be treated as if you had invested that money directly in the stocks & shares ISA, eg if you had saved £2,000 in a cash ISA and then transferred to a stocks & shares ISA, you could then invest up to a further £8,200 into the stocks & shares ISA, or you could invest up to £5,100 in a cash ISA and the remainder in the stocks & shares ISA.
What are the industry standards for ISAs?
Stakeholder Standards are benchmarks that have been set up by the Government to help customers identify simple and low-cost savings eg: a minimum opening deposit of £10 and unlimited withdrawals. Whilst our ISAs offer attractive features, they are not based on Stakeholder Standards.
Further Information
We are a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and you may be entitled to compensation if we are unable to meet our financial obligations. Payments under the scheme are limited to a maximum of £50,000 of an investor's total shares and/or deposits in the Society. Details of the scheme can be obtained from: FSCS, 7th Floor, Lloyds Chambers, 1 Portsoken Street, London E1 8RN. Telephone helpline: 020 789 27300 www.fscs.org.uk
Opening an account with the Vernon could not be easier – simply read through our Terms & Conditions, complete an application form and take or post it to your nearest branch along with your initial investment and identification. Click here for details of suitable identification.