Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Individual Savings Account (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026 and come into force on 6th April 2027.

Amendment of the Individual Savings Account Regulations 1998

2. The Individual Savings Account Regulations 1998(3) are amended as follows.

Amendment of regulation 2

3. In regulation 2 (interpretation)(4), in paragraph (1), in sub-paragraph (b), in the appropriate places insert the following definitions—

““alternative finance return” has the meaning given by Part 10A of ITA 2007;”;

““money market fund” means a money market fund authorised in accordance with Article 4 or Article 5 of Regulation 2017/1131 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14th June 2017 on Money Market Funds(5);”.

Amendment of regulation 2D

4. In regulation 2D (regulations that do not apply to junior ISA accounts)(6)—

(a)after “7(2)(h)” insert “and (10A)”;

(b)after “21” insert “, 22A”.

Amendment of regulation 4

5. In regulation 4 (general conditions for accounts and subscriptions to accounts)(7), in paragraph (1B), in sub-paragraph (e) for “limit in regulation 4ZA(1)” substitute “limits in regulation 4ZA(1) and (1ZA)”.

Amendment of regulation 4ZA

6. In regulation 4ZA (subscriptions to an account other than a junior ISA account)(8)—

(a)at the end of paragraph (1) insert “, subject to paragraph (1ZA)”;

(b)after paragraph (1) insert—

“(1ZA) In any year in which a qualifying individual is 64 or under at the end of that year, the subscription limit for the aggregate of the individual's subscriptions to cash accounts is £12,000.”

Amendment of regulation 4A

7. In regulation 4A (repair of certain incompatible account and excess subscriptions - accounts other than junior ISA accounts)(9)—

(a)in paragraph (1A)—

(i)after “because” insert “one or both of the”;

(ii)for “limit” substitute “limits”;

(iii)after “4ZA(1)” insert “and (1ZA)”;

(b)in paragraph (3), in sub-paragraph (b)—

(i)after “with the” insert “conditions of the”;

(ii)for “limit” substitute “limits”;

(iii)after “4ZA(1)” insert “and, where relevant, (1ZA)”;

(c)in paragraph 4, in sub-paragraph (a), in paragraph (ii) after “4ZA(1)” insert “and, where relevant, (1ZA)”.

Amendment of regulation 5DDB

8. In regulation 5DDB (flexible account)(10), at the end of paragraph (3A), insert “and, where applicable, must not exceed the subscription limit in regulation 4ZA(1ZA)”.

Amendment of regulation 7

9. In regulation 7 (qualifying investments for a stocks and shares component)(11)—

(a)in paragraph (2), after sub-paragraph (s) insert—

“(t)subject to the conditions specified in paragraph (10A), money market funds.”;

(b)after paragraph (10) insert—

“(10A) The condition specified in this paragraph is that 100% of the value of the investments, other than cash, held under the stocks and shares component, must not be money market funds.”.

Amendment of regulation 8

10. In regulation 8 (qualifying investments for a cash component)(12), in paragraph (2)—

(a)for paragraph (p) substitute—

“(p)money market funds.”;

(b)omit paragraph (q).

Amendment of regulation 10

11. In regulation 10 (qualifying individuals who may invest under an account that is not a junior ISA account nor a Lifetime ISA)(13), in paragraph (2), in sub-paragraph (ca) for “limit in regulation 4ZA(1)” substitute “limits in regulation 4ZA(1) and (1ZA)”.

Amendment of regulation 12

12. In regulation 12 (conditions for application to open an account that is not a junior ISA account or a Lifetime ISA)(14), in paragraph (3), after sub-paragraph (ea) insert—

“(ec)that in the case of a cash account the applicant has not subscribed, and will not subscribe, more than the subscription limit in regulation 4ZA(1ZA)—

(i)in the year to which paragraph (2) refers, and

(ii)in each successive year following that year, in which the declaration has effect and the subscription limit in regulation 4ZA(1ZA) applies;”.

Amendment of regulation 21

13. In regulation 21 (transfers relating accounts other than junior ISA accounts)(15)—

(a)in paragraph (4)—

(i)at the beginning, for “The” substitute “In the case of a cash account, the”;

(ii)in sub-paragraphs (a), (c) and (d) omit “(if the account investor is 18 years of age or over)”;

(b)after paragraph (4) insert—

“(4ZA) In the case of a stocks and shares account or an innovative finance account, the current year’s subscriptions and the previous years’ subscriptions may be transferred to—

(a)a stocks and shares account,

(b)an innovative finance account,

(c)a Lifetime ISA, or

(d)a cash account, if the account investor is 65 or over at the end of the year,

belonging to the same account investor.”;

(c)in paragraph (4DA), in sub-paragraphs (e) and (f) omit “, a cash account”.

Amendment of regulation 22

14. In regulation 22 (exemption from tax of account income and gains)(16), in paragraph (1)—

(a)in sub-paragraph (a), in paragraph (ia) omit “paid by a financial institution in accordance with Part 10A of ITA 2007”;

(b)in sub-paragraph (e) omit “held under a cash component”.

Insertion of regulation 22A

15. After regulation 22 insert—

Interest or alternative finance return on cash deposits held under a stocks and shares component or innovative finance component

22A.—(1) When in any year, a sum of interest or alternative finance return is paid or credited in respect of a cash deposit which is held under a stocks and shares component or innovative finance component in accordance with regulation 6(4) to (6)—

(a)no relief from tax applies to such interest or alternative finance return, but

(b)paragraph (2) applies.

(2) Where this paragraph applies—

(a)the account manager must pay to the Board a flat rate charge on all sums of interest or alternative finance return referred to in paragraph (1) paid or credited in that year, and

(b)any amount so payable is to be treated as an amount of tax due under an assessment which is final and conclusive and payable not later than 6 months after the end of the year in which the interest was paid or credited.

(3) The “flat rate charge” in paragraph (2) is charged at the savings basic rate in force for the year under section 7A of ITA 2007(17).

(4) The interest or alternative finance return referred to in paragraph (1) in all other respects, except for the purposes of section 629 of ITTOIA 2005, is to be regarded as if it were not income for any income tax purposes, and no repayment of tax or amounts representing tax may be made to the account investor receiving or entitled to such interest.

(5) In paragraph (1) “interest” has the same meaning as in regulation 22.”.

Amendment of regulation 24

16. In regulation 24 (tax liabilities and reliefs—account manager to act on behalf of account investor)(18), in paragraph (3)—

(a)omit the “and” at the end of sub-paragraph (a);

(b)after that sub-paragraph insert—

“(aa)any sum which is payable under regulation 22A;”.

Amendment of regulation 26

17. In regulation 26 (repayments in respect of tax to account manager—annual returns and annual claims)(19), for paragraph (2) substitute—

“(2) An account manager must, within six months after the end of the year, make a return to the Board of—

(a)all income,

(b)all sums of interest or alternative finance return falling within regulation 22A(1),

(c)the total amount payable under regulation 22A(2)(a),

(d)any gains treated as arising in accordance with regulation 36(3), and

(e)an annual claim to establish the total of repayments due under an account for that year.”.

Amendment of regulation 31

18. In regulation 31 (returns of information by account manager)(20), paragraph (4), sub-paragraph (a), after paragraph (viii) insert—

“(ix)funds in a money market fund,

(x)any sum which is payable under regulation 22A,”.