How long should an ISA transfer take?
An ISA transfer lets you move money from one ISA to another, without affecting your ISA annual allowance or your savings’ tax-free status. If you’ve already started an ISA transfer, or you’re thinking of moving your funds, here’s how long an ISA transfer should take.
Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future
How long should an ISA transfer take?
How long an ISA transfer takes depends on your current provider, the type of ISAs you’re transferring, and the method used to move the money. Usually, transferring a Cash ISA to another can take a few weeks, but it can take longer than this if there are complications.
Transferring to Tembo Cash ISA typically takes up to 14 working days. However, the process of your Cash ISA being switched from your current provider to us can take up to 30 days if there are delays. Rest assured, our team deal with our part of the process as quickly as possible!
Compare interest rates: The best Cash ISAs in the UK right now
How long should a Lifetime ISA to Lifetime ISA transfer take?
If you already have a Lifetime ISA with one provider and you’d like to switch to another, you can usually complete a Lifetime ISA to Lifetime ISA transfer within 4 to 6 weeks, although it can be much quicker than this. How long your LISA transfer takes is dependent on how quickly your old provider processes your request. You can help to speed up the process by ensuring you input the correct details into your new ISA application. One of the most common reasons we see LISA transfer delays is small mistakes like typos in names.
Let’s say you’ve got a LISA with Moneybox, Skipton, or Hargreaves Lansdown, for example, and you want to transfer to our market-leading Cash Lifetime ISA. You can request a transfer in as little as 5 minutes on the Tembo app. We’ll then send you a transfer form which you need to fill out with information like your current providers' details and your account details. It’s all digital, so there’s no need to print out any forms or rummage through your kitchen junk drawer in search of a stamp!
Once you’ve completed your transfer form, we’ll take care of the rest. This includes requesting your funds from your current provider. We’ll keep you posted on the process, and you can see where your transfer is up to in the Tembo app.
This process works the same whether you have a Stocks & Shares Lifetime ISA or a Cash Lifetime ISA. You don’t have to stick with the same LISA type either. We can switch your Stocks and Shares LISA to a Cash LISA or the other way around!
Save for your first home faster with the market-leading Lifetime ISA
Boost your savings by 25% for free, up to £1,000 each tax year by saving into a Lifetime ISA. Plus, with the Tembo Cash Lifetime ISA your savings will earn our market-leading 4.33% AER (variable) rate. Over 5 years, that's hundreds more added to your house fund in interest vs saving with the nearest competitor.
When considering opening a LISA, remember that withdrawals for any purpose other than buying a first home or for retirement will incur a 25% government penalty, meaning you may get back less than you paid in.
How long does it take to transfer a Help to Buy ISA to a Lifetime ISA?
You can usually transfer the money held in your Help to Buy ISA to a Lifetime ISA within a matter of days, but it depends on your chosen provider.
The transfer process differs from a Lifetime ISA to Lifetime ISA transfer, as you may need to withdraw the money from your Help to Buy ISA and deposit it in your Lifetime ISA yourself. This is fairly straightforward if you’ve got less than £4,000 to move across (and you won’t pay a withdrawal penalty like you would if moving money out of a LISA), but check with your current provider first to see if any rules or government conditions apply.
If you’ve got more than £4,000 in your Help to Buy ISA, you’ll have to spread the transfer across multiple tax years due to the £4,000 per tax year LISA limit.
To move your Help to Buy funds to a Tembo Lifetime ISA you’ll need to follow these steps:
- Withdraw your funds from your existing Help to Buy ISA (check first with your current provider on any rules or government conditions regarding the withdrawal)
- Open a Tembo Lifetime ISA in minutes by downloading our savings app.
- Deposit your savings into your LISA, up to £4,000 per tax year.
- Wait for your funds to appear in your LISA. This can take between 1 to 3 working days, depending on your chosen payment method.
Perfect for you: How to transfer a Help to Buy ISA to a Lifetime ISA
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