You can open an ISA if you are a UK tax resident and over the age of 18, if you meet the eligibility criteria. Parents or guardians can open a Junior ISA on behalf of their children.

By having a stocks and shares ISA, it means you are investing your money and not just saving it in cash. Whether or not you should open a stocks and shares ISA will depend on what your individual goals are, how long you want to invest and what your appetite for risk is.

You can transfer your ISAs whenever you want to. You may transfer an ISA to reduce fees you pay or to increase your chances of getting higher returns on your investment. If you transfer an ISA, make sure to use the transfer service offered by your new provider. If you withdraw money yourself, it may impact your annual allowance.

If you withdraw from certain types of ISA, depending on the type of ISA it may include penalties or charges. If you have a John Lewis Investments stocks and shares ISA, you won’t be charged a fee for any withdrawals.

Until they are closed, even after you pass away, ISAs retain their tax benefits. Regardless of who you leave your ISAs to in your will, your spouse or civil partner can inherit the value of your ISA as a one-off additional tax-free allowance.

You can open or contribute to the following types of ISA per tax year, as long as you don't exceed the £20,000 annual allowance:

• Stocks and shares ISAs
• Cash ISAs
• Innovative Finance ISAs
• Lifetime ISAs (£4,000 annual limit, only one per tax year)
  
  John Lewis Investments only offers stocks and shares ISAs and Junior ISAs.
  
  Each child can have one cash JISA and one stocks and shares JISA. On turning 16 you can take control of your JISAs but cannot withdraw the money until you're 18. Once 18, you can choose to consolidate your cash and stocks and shares JISAs into one ISA, or change provider. Each child has a £9,000 per year JISA limit, which is separate to the parent/guardian's £20,000 allowance. Once a parent or guardian has opened a JISA for their child, anyone can contribute to it - up to the annual limit.
  
  You’re able to split the amount any way you like between the different ISA types you're eligible for, as long as you make sure never to contribute more than £20,000 during the tax year. If you invest more than this year’s ISA allowance in your John Lewis Investments account before the end of the current tax year, any investments beyond the ISA allowance will be held in a General Investment Account (GIA) and you may have to pay tax on any returns. It’s important to remember that the Junior ISA allowance is separate to the £20,000 ISA allowance. 

A general investment account is a simple way to invest more money once you've used up all of your ISA limit for the tax year. Unlike an ISA or pension, there are no tax benefits or contribution limit when investing in a general investment account. But like our ISAs, our experts will create a globally diversified portfolio in a way that works for you.

The general investment account is flexible and easy to use. Our investment experts will put your money to work for you, so you don’t have to spend valuable time managing it yourself.

To open a general investment account, you have to be over 18, a UK or EEA resident and have a UK bank account.