Are Octopus Money ISAs flexible?
Yes, all Octopus Money ISAs are flexible ISAs, which means you have more freedom and control over your money compared to a standard (non-flexible) ISA.
What's the difference?
In a non-flexible ISA, the annual contribution limit is fixed (currently £20,000 per tax year). This limit only counts what you pay in, regardless of what you take out.
For example:
Say you added £10k in June to a NON-flexible ISA but withdrew £10k in July, you would still only be allowed to add another £10k for the rest of that tax year because non-flexible ISAs only count the money you put in and don’t consider what you withdraw.
But with a flexible ISA, withdrawals do count. If you take money out, you can put it back without affecting your annual limit, as long as it's within the same tax year.
Here's the same example with a flexible ISA:
If you add £10k in June, but withdraw £10k in July, you would be allowed to contribute a full £20k for the remainder of the tax year.
A more advanced example:
Let's say you've built up an ISA balance of £50k over the years.
In June, you withdraw £30k. With our flexible ISA, you can replace the £30k you withdrew, plus use your £20k annual allowance. So you could contribute up to £50k back into your ISA within the same tax year.