The ISA rules changed significantly in April 2024, and many investors are still unsure what’s now allowed. The short answer: you can open multiple ISAs across different providers and contribute to more than one in the same tax year.
Here’s a plain-English explanation of the current rules for 2026/27.
The old rules (before April 2024)
Before April 2024, you could only subscribe to one ISA of each type per tax year. If you opened a Stocks and Shares ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown in October, you couldn’t open another Stocks and Shares ISA with Vanguard until the following April. You had to choose a single provider for the year.
You could hold ISAs from previous years with multiple providers — your money didn’t have to move — but you could only pay into one of them in any given tax year.
The new rules (April 2024 onwards)
Since 6 April 2024, you can open and pay into multiple ISAs of the same type in one tax year. This means you can:
- Open a Stocks and Shares ISA with Vanguard in May 2026
- Open another Stocks and Shares ISA with Interactive Investor in January 2027
- Contribute to both in the 2026/27 tax year
The annual ISA allowance remains £20,000 for 2026/27. This is a combined limit across all your ISAs — you can split it however you like, but the total must not exceed £20,000.
For the latest official rules, see HMRC’s ISA guidance on gov.uk.
What still stays the same
A few restrictions were not changed:
- One Lifetime ISA per year. You can only open and contribute to one LISA per tax year. The LISA annual limit is £4,000 (which counts towards your overall £20,000 allowance), and the 25% government bonus only applies to qualifying withdrawals — non-qualifying withdrawals incur a 25% penalty that claws back the bonus and more.
- The £20,000 overall limit. This applies across all ISA types — Stocks and Shares, Cash, Innovative Finance, and Lifetime ISA combined.
- Junior ISA limits. The Junior ISA allowance is £9,000 per year per child, which is entirely separate from the adult £20,000 allowance.
What happens if you accidentally exceed the £20,000 limit?
This is more likely now that you can pay into multiple ISAs simultaneously — it’s easy to lose track of contributions spread across several providers.
If you overpay, HMRC will identify the breach when providers submit their annual ISA returns. HMRC will write to you asking you to withdraw the excess. You may also owe tax on any income or gains earned on the overpaid amount.
The important thing: no single platform knows what you’ve contributed elsewhere. It’s your responsibility to track your total ISA contributions across all providers in a tax year. If you’re using multiple ISAs, keep a simple running total.
Can you have a Stocks and Shares ISA and a Cash ISA in the same year?
Yes. You can hold a Stocks and Shares ISA and a Cash ISA simultaneously, and contribute to both in the same tax year, as long as your combined contributions stay within £20,000.
For example, you could put £15,000 into a Stocks and Shares ISA and £5,000 into a Cash ISA in 2026/27 — that’s £20,000 total, within the limit.
Can you open a new ISA if you already have one?
Yes. There is no restriction on opening new ISA accounts. You can open a Stocks and Shares ISA with a new provider even if you already have an existing ISA from previous years. You can also contribute to both — the old one and the new one — in the same tax year.
This makes it much easier to switch platforms gradually, or to test a new provider before committing to a full transfer.
Which platforms support multiple ISAs?
All UK investment platforms must follow the post-April 2024 rules — there are no providers that legally block you from also holding ISAs elsewhere. The more relevant question is what each platform lets you invest in, since that’s what would drive a decision to split across providers.
| Platform | Investment types | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Hargreaves Lansdown | Funds, ETFs, shares, investment trusts, bonds, gilts | Broadest range; 0.35% fee |
| Barclays Smart Investor | Funds, ETFs, shares, investment trusts, bonds, gilts | Zero platform fee; free fund dealing |
| AJ Bell | Funds, ETFs, shares, investment trusts, bonds, gilts | 0.25% fee; ETF cap £42/yr |
| Fidelity | Funds, ETFs, shares, investment trusts | 0.35% fee; no fund dealing charge |
| Interactive Investor | Funds, ETFs, shares, investment trusts, bonds, gilts | Flat £71.88/yr (Core plan) |
| Vanguard | Vanguard funds and ETFs only | 0.15% fee; min £48/yr |
| InvestEngine | ETFs only | Zero fee; ETF specialist |
| Freetrade | Funds, ETFs, shares | Zero fee (Basic plan) |
| Trading 212 | ETFs and shares | Zero fee; fractional shares |
A common reason to use two ISAs is pairing a specialist platform with a broader one — for example, InvestEngine for a low-cost ETF portfolio alongside Interactive Investor for individual shares.
Use our fee calculator to compare what each platform would cost at your portfolio size before splitting contributions.
Should you hold multiple ISAs?
For most investors, there’s little practical advantage to holding multiple ISAs long-term. The main reasons you might:
- You’re switching platforms and want to keep your old ISA open while building up the new one
- You want specialists for different purposes — for example, InvestEngine for ETFs and Interactive Investor for individual shares
- You have a Cash ISA earning interest alongside a Stocks and Shares ISA
- ISA laddering — some investors spread cash across multiple fixed-rate Cash ISAs with staggered maturity dates to maintain access to funds while maximising interest rates
For most passive investors, consolidating into one platform is simpler and makes tracking your portfolio easier. If fees are your main concern, our fee calculator compares annual costs across all eight platforms at your exact portfolio size.
What about existing ISAs from previous years?
ISAs you’ve held in previous years are not affected by the annual subscription limit. You can hold as many old ISAs as you like — from as many different providers as you like — and the money can stay invested indefinitely. Only new contributions in the current tax year are subject to the £20,000 limit.
Transferring ISAs
If you want to consolidate multiple ISAs into one, you can transfer them without losing the ISA wrapper. Crucially:
- Transfers don’t use your annual allowance — they’re not treated as new subscriptions
- Transfers don’t trigger a tax event — the ISA wrapper moves with your money
- Always use the official transfer process — don’t withdraw and re-deposit. Withdrawing breaks the ISA wrapper and the re-deposit counts against your £20,000 allowance for the year
Most platforms accept ISA transfers in. Some charge exit fees for transferring out — check with your current provider before initiating a transfer.
Based on HMRC guidance current as of June 2026. Tax rules can change — verify current rules at gov.uk before making decisions.