How does a flexible ISA withdrawal work in the UK?

Full answer

A flexible ISA is a cash ISA (or in some cases a stocks and shares ISA) that allows you to withdraw money and replace it in the same tax year without losing that portion of your annual ISA allowance. **Standard vs flexible ISA** With a standard ISA, if you subscribe £15,000 and withdraw £5,000, you can only add a further £5,000 (because you have used £15,000 of your £20,000 annual allowance and you cannot re-subscribe the withdrawn amount). With a flexible ISA, withdrawing £5,000 restores £5,000 of subscription capacity — so you can still add up to £10,000 more in the same tax year, giving you £20,000 total remaining capacity. **Annual allowance 2026/27** The ISA annual subscription limit remains £20,000 for 2026/27 (unchanged since 2017/18). Junior ISA limit: £9,000. **Rules and restrictions** - Flexible re-subscription capacity resets at the start of each new tax year — you cannot carry unused flexibility forward - Flexibility only applies within the same ISA product; you cannot withdraw from ISA A and replace in ISA B - Not all providers offer flexible ISAs — you must check before assuming your ISA has this feature - Lifetime ISAs and Help to Buy ISAs are NOT flexible **Worked example** You have a flexible cash ISA with £30,000 of existing savings. In June 2026 you withdraw £8,000 to cover a home repair. In August 2026 you deposit £8,000 back in — this counts as re-subscription of withdrawn funds, not a new subscription. You can still subscribe up to the full £20,000 new allowance for 2026/27 on top.