If you are from London and living or working in London, you might be looking for ways of investing your money to grow. If so, you should look into opening an ISA account. This article covers the basics of trading stocks on an ISA account.
What is an ISA?
An ISA account or Individual Savings Account is a particular bank account where you invest your money without paying tax on any gains that your investments make. Your capital is safe from the capital gains tax, and there are no income tax implications for funds within this type of banking arrangement. You can open more than one account with different banks, but only one per person is allowed at any given time. Moreover, just like most standard bank accounts, your ISA funds are secure if a financial institution goes bankrupt.
ISA vs standard brokerage account
While some might confuse an ISA with a standard brokerage account, the two are wholly different entities. You cannot invest in stocks or shares directly from your ISA account, but rather it is a place to deposit pre-tax money. What you do when you withdraw from this account will be subject to taxation. However, if you put money into the ISA, then that money is protected against taxation and won’t be touched by any levy that can result in a loss of capital gains tax-free status.
Trading without triggering a taxable event
Certain products can be traded without triggering a taxable event when trading stocks on an ISA account. One such product is covered bonds which are otherwise known as high quality covered bonds or high quality collateralised covered bonds. These are debt instruments issued by banks or other types of financial entities where the money that has been raised is secured by assets such as government bonds that act to lower the risk involved with owning this type of investment. Another example would be corporate stocks that you can buy and sell on an exchange without fear of paying extra taxes for engaging in a taxable event. Assets like these can be held in your ISA account so long as they don’t trigger any tax liabilities when you withdraw funds from the banking institution.
However, it’s essential to realise that holding foreign currency in your ISA may not offer you the same protection against taxation should you wish to trade stocks using this type of arrangement. Your capital might not be fully protected if you use funds denominated in a foreign currency such as the Euro or the US dollar.
Cash account
In the United Kingdom, most people with an ISA are limited by law to investing their money in cash accounts, which means that they cannot buy stocks or bonds directly from the account. However, there is a work-around for this particular rule. If you want to invest your ISA in securities outside Great Britain, you must open a broker-assisted portfolio management account instead of a regular cash ISA. The best brokerage options for this include Interactive Brokers, Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade. You cannot transfer your ISA money directly into the new portfolio management account, but you can ask your existing financial institution to move it for you.
In conclusion
Unfortunately, if you don’t meet any of the qualifications listed above, trading stocks in an individual savings account is not possible. You can still invest in funds through most online brokers with no annual fees, though; consider looking at Vanguard or Fidelity, which offer low expense ratios on index funds. If you want more control over how your investments are managed, look into Robo-advisors like Betterment or Wealthfront; these services will automatically invest your money in a pre-selected mix of funds and ETFs at no cost to you.
For more information on trading stocks on an ISA account, contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau, which will be able to provide you with the necessary guidance for this type of transaction.
