At Self Investor we offer two types of account: a Stocks & Shares Individual Savings Account (ISA) and a Trading Account. These are both closed to new customers, but if you already have an account you can still fully manage your investments online.
A Stocks & Shares ISA is a tax-efficient way of investing. You can invest up to £20,000 for the 2021/2022 tax year. As a minimum, you can invest from as little as £50 per month or a lump sum of £500 or more each year.
Unlike an ISA, there’s no maximum limit to how much you can invest in our Trading Account (also known as a General Investment Account). You also have access to a full range of investment funds.
However, there are no tax benefits with this account. Any income from your investments could be subject to income tax, and when you cash in your investments you may need to pay Capital Gains Tax.
| Features | Stocks and Shares ISA | Trading Account |
|---|---|---|
| Invest up to £20,000 for the 2021/2022 tax year | ||
| Invest an unlimited amount | ||
| Tax-efficient * | ||
| Choose from over 1,200 funds | ||
| Minimum monthly payment of £50 | ||
| Minimum initial lump sum payment of £500 | ||
| Transfer in from another provider | ||
| No cost to transfer in or out ** | ||
| No transaction fees |
For both options, if you know which funds you’d like to invest in, you can choose them through our online services. You could also use money in your Trading Account to top up your Stocks & Shares ISA if you have allowance still to use for the current tax year, to make the most of your tax-efficient allowance.
If you are unsure which funds to invest in you, you can place cash into your account and choose funds later. Self Investor will pay interest on cash balances held within the Smart+ Stocks and Shares ISA and the Trading Account.
Learn more about interest rates on cash balances
* This depends on your personal circumstances and if you’ve used your capital gains tax (CGT), dividend and personal savings allowances to cover the growth and distributions you receive from your investments. Laws and tax rules may change in the future. Personal circumstances also have an impact on tax treatment.
** abrdn does not take a charge for transferring in, but you may be charged by your current provider for transferring out.
If you have another Cash ISA or Stocks & Shares ISA, you can transfer all or part of this into our Stocks and Shares ISA. And if you hold investments outside of an ISA, you can transfer all or part of this into our Trading Account. This makes it easier to manage your funds in one place. The minimum amount you can transfer is £100.
To start a transfer, call us on 0800 1522 522 and one of our dedicated team members will help you. Please be prepared to provide your National Insurance number and details of the investments of ISA you want to transfer. Call charges will vary.
You can also initiate a transfer yourself by logging in to your account, then clicking on 'Manage portfolio' and selecting 'Transfer to Self Investor' from the drop down. Follow the steps on screen then print, read and sign the confirmation form, then return it to us.
You should check with your current provider if you will be charged for transferring out.
We'll arrange the transfer for you by liaising with your current provider, so once we have your signed transfer form you won't need to do anything. Please don't withdraw money from your current ISA to reinvest with us as it will impact this year's ISA allowance.
We'll transfer your investments as long as we offer the same funds. If we don't, we'll arrange for your current provider to sell your funds or investments and transfer across as cash for you to invest in new funds.
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