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What is a Stock and Shares ISA?

What is a Stock and Shares ISA?

A Stocks and Shares ISA is an investment account that allows you to invest tax efficiently.

What you’ll benefit from:

  • Any income or gains you make are free from UK Income and Capital Gains Tax. 
  • Complete flexibility, as you choose to invest your money in a wide range of investments

Open a Stocks and Shares ISA

Get rewarded when you transfer

Get rewarded when you transfer

Get up to £1000 cashback on your first 5 transfers of £5000 or more (excluding SIPPs). Offer ends 31st January 2024. Account fees and offer terms apply.

Capital at Risk. 

More about the offer

How will it work?

You can invest up to £20,000 (in the current tax year), less any payments made to other permitted types of ISA.

Choose from a variety of investment options, including UK and international shares, managed funds, bonds and gilts.

Trade regularly with our commission-free scheduled investment service.

Please remember that the value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invest. If you’re not sure about investing, seek financial advice. There will normally be a charge for that advice. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.

Why invest with Halifax?

Simple prices

 
  • Our annual fee is just £36, no matter the size of your portfolio.
  • Zero commission on international online trading (1.25% foreign exchange rate still applies).

Stay in control

Stay in control

You can invest a lump sum at any time. Or if you don’t want to invest a large amount, you can invest small amounts on a monthly basis.

All in one place

All in one place

Use the mobile banking app to check your investments and everyday banking in one place.

Simple to switch

Simple to switch

We’ve made it easy to transfer to us. 

Find out how you can transfer your account with Halifax.

What charges do I pay?

We want to keep you in the know. That’s why we’re always transparent about our costs. Below are the dealing commission and account charges you'll pay as standard. 

Type of charges

What you’ll pay 

Type of charges

Customer admin fee

What you’ll pay 

You can hold an ISA and a Share Dealing Account, all for a single charge of £36 a year (£3 a month)

Type of charges

Real-time online UK trades

What you’ll pay 

£9.50 dealing commission per trade

Type of charges

Fund trades

What you’ll pay 

£9.50 online dealing commission per trade

Type of charges

International online trading

What you’ll pay 

£0 dealing commission, 1.25% foreign exchange rate

Type of charges

Scheduled regular investments

What you’ll pay 

Commission-free

Type of charges

Telephone trading

What you’ll pay 

£25 dealing commission per trade

If you invest in a fund, you’ll also pay an ongoing charge directly to the fund manager. You may also pay government taxes and levies depending on the investment you choose. For full details, please read our Charges.

Understanding a Stocks and Shares ISA

Making withdrawals

Halifax Stocks and Shares ISAs are not flexible ISAs. Any money you withdraw then pay back in during the same tax year will count towards your ISA allowance.

You’ll need a Share Dealing Account

When opening a Stocks and Shares ISA, a separate Share Dealing Account will automatically open for you. This could be a good way of investing if you’ve used up your ISA allowance.

Your ISA limits

You can invest up to £20,000 in your Halifax Stocks & Shares ISA less any subscriptions made to other permitted types of ISAs, in the current tax year. You can only subscribe to one Stocks & Shares ISA per tax year.

Free from UK tax

Investing in a Stocks and Shares ISA means you pay no UK tax on any potential income or gains.

We don't provide advice so if you are in any doubt about making your own investment decisions, we recommend you seek advice from a suitably qualified financial adviser. There will normally be a charge for that advice.

Ready to apply for a Stocks and Shares ISA?

I’m new to Share Dealing

I’m new to Share Dealing

To get started, you’ll need your address, debit card details and national insurance number to hand. This can be set up in minutes.

Open an ISA

Terms and Conditions (PDF, 356 KB)

I have a Share Dealing Account

I have a Share Dealing Account

Sign in to access your account.

You can also use your mobile banking app to check your investments.

Sign in to Share Dealing

Sign in to Online Banking

Frequently asked questions

  • You can have more than one Stocks and Shares ISA, but you may only pay into one of them each tax year. You are allowed to have other permitted types of ISAs at the same time. However, you can only pay into one of each type of ISA in a tax year (subject to the annual ISA allowance). 

  • No, that’s one of the best things about a Stocks and Shares ISA. Any dividends and interest payments from your shares are completely tax-free. You also won’t need to pay Capital Gains Tax on any gains from your investments. If you do earn any interest, this will also be free from tax.

  • Yes, you can. When you transfer, the cash will stay in your account until you choose to invest it. You can transfer an existing Halifax cash ISA or a cash ISA from another provider to one of our Stocks and Shares ISAs.

    Learn more about transferring your ISA.

  • As with all investments, there is risk involved with a Stocks and Shares ISA. It’s important to remember that the value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise. Before taking out any investment product, you’ll need to be clear with how you feel about risk and how able you are to take losses.

    Learn more about investment risk.

  • A dividend is a payment made from a company to those who have bought and hold their shares, on a set date, usually when a company has made a profit.

    If you do not invest within an ISA, you may pay tax on any amount over the dividend allowance, which is currently £2,000.

    However, following the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, the dividend allowance will change to £1,000 in April 2023. It will be further reduced to £500 from April 2024.

    But don’t worry, if you are investing through an ISA, you are protected from this tax. If you’re not investing through an ISA, you can open one today.

  • Capital Gains Tax is tax you pay on any gains you’ve made from selling assets, such as shares. The current allowance is £12,300, and you may have to pay tax on any gains above this amount.

    Following the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) allowance will drop to £6,000 from April 2023. A further reduction to £3,000 will take place from April 2024.

    If you invest through an ISA, you will not pay this tax on any gains made through your investments. If you are not investing through an ISA, you can open one today.

    Find out more about Capital Gains Tax.

If your question hasn’t been answered, take a look at our help and guidance page for further information and support. 

Want to learn more about investing?

Want to learn more about investing?

If you’re new to investing, we can help you understand the basics. Take a look out our simple investing guide and articles.

Investing for beginners

Risk explained

Boost your skills

Investing quick guide (PDF, 1.8 MB) 

 

FSCS logo

Investments with Halifax Share Dealing Limited are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This limit is applied to the aggregated total of any stock or cash held across the following brands which we administer.

This is in addition to any other savings deposits you may hold across Lloyds Banking Group.

Halifax Share Dealing Limited. Registered in England and Wales no. 3195646. Registered Office: Trinity Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX1 2RG. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under registration number 183332. A Member of the London Stock Exchange and an HM Revenue & Customs Approved ISA Manager.