Individual Savings Accounts

(asked on 15th May 2020) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of removing penalties from savers who need to withdraw funds from lifetime ISAs to enable them to tackle financial difficulties as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.


Answered by
John Glen Portrait
John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This question was answered on 20th May 2020

As announced on 1 May 2020, to help investors withdraw funds from their Lifetime ISA during the COVID-19 pandemic the withdrawal charge has been temporarily reduced from 25% to 20%. The reduced withdrawal charge applies to all unauthorised withdrawals made in the period from Friday 6 March 2020 until Monday 5 April 2021. This means savers will get back all the money they originally put in, subject to any investment losses incurred on stocks and shares Lifetime ISAs. There is no withdrawal charge if it is made to buy a first home or the investor has a terminal illness.

Further information on the reduced charge is available at: www.gov.uk/guidance/lifetime-isa-withdrawal-charge-reduced-to-20

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