How to complete an ISA transfer

You cannot transfer to a Nationwide ISA that is already open. Instead, you need to apply to open a new Nationwide ISA.

We will ask you during your application if you want to transfer from another provider.

We accept cash ISAs and stocks and shares ISAs but you will have a cash ISA after the transfer. We do not offer stocks and shares ISAs.

If you have paid money into your non-Nationwide ISA applicable to this tax year and have not made any withdrawals, you will need to transfer all of that money to us. For example, if you have deposited £1,000 into your ISA this tax year, you will need to transfer the full £1,000 to us. If you have deposited £1,000 into your ISA this tax year and withdrawn £200, you will only need to transfer £800 to us.

For money you deposited applicable to previous tax years, you can transfer all or part of it to us as long as your other provider allows this.

You can also close your old ISA and have any unpaid interest paid into your new Nationwide ISA.

Some providers will charge you for transferring a fixed term ISA before it matures. Check your terms and conditions before applying to transfer.

Depending on your current ISA provider, you can apply to transfer your ISA to Nationwide either online or in person at any Nationwide branch.

Check your provider is on the following list before applying to transfer online.

• A: AIB (NI) (formerly First Trust Bank), Aldermore Bank, Atom Bank PLC
• B: Bank of Ireland, Bank of Scotland, Barclays Bank, Bath Building Society, Brent Shrine Credit Union Ltd (My Community Bank)
• C: Castle Trust Bank, Charter Savings Bank, Chelsea Building Society, Cheltenham and Gloucester, Chip Financial Ltd (Provided by ClearBank Ltd), Chorley Building Society, Close Brothers Savings, Co-Operative Bank plc (and trading as Smile), Coventry Building Society, Cumberland Building Society, Cynergy Bank (formerly Bank of Cyprus)
• D: Danske Bank, Darlington Building Society, Digital Moneybox Ltd
• E: Ecology Building Society
• F: First Direct, First Trust Bank, Ford Money, Furness Building Society
• G: Gatehouse Bank PLC, GE Capital Direct, Goldman Sachs International Bank (Marcus), Goldman Sachs International Bank (Saga Savings)
• H: Halifax PLC, Hampshire Trust PLC, Handelsbanken PLC, Harpenden Building Society, HSBC Bank PLC
• I: IFAST Global Bank, Integrated Financial Arrangements Ltd
• K: Kent Reliance
• L: Leeds Building Society, Lloyds Bank PLC
• M: M&S Bank, Manchester Building Society, Market Harborough, Marsden Building Society, Metro Bank PLC, Monmouthshire Building Society, Monument Bank
• N: National Westminster Bank plc, Newcastle Building Society, Nottingham Building Society
• O: OakNorth Bank Ltd, OneFamily
• P: Paragon Bank Limited, Principality Building Society, Progressive Building Society
• R: RCI Bank UK Limited, Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
• S: Santander UK plc, Scottish Widows Bank Plc, Secure Trust Bank plc, Shawbrook Bank Ltd, Skipton Building Society, Starling Bank, State Bank of India, Swansea Building Society
• T: Tandem Bank, Tesco Bank, TSB Bank PLC
• U: Ulster Bank Limited, United National Bank, United Trust Bank Ltd
• V: Vanquis Bank Ltd, Vida Bank Limited, Virgin Money
• W: WealthKernel Limited, West Bromwich Building Society, West Bromwich Building Society Websave
• Y: Yorkshire Building Society

If you have less than £100,000 in your Nationwide ISA, we will transfer your money electronically. We will use Faster Payments once we have closed your ISA and your new provider will receive your money by the end of the next working day. If your new provider cannot accept electronic transfers, we will post them a cheque.

If you have £100,000 or more in your Nationwide ISA, we will transfer your money by cheque. We will post the cheque to your new provider once we have closed your ISA. Your new provider will backdate your interest to the earlier of 2 dates:

• the date printed on the cheque we sent
• day 16 of the transfer process

If your new provider asks for your Nationwide ISA details, the easiest way to find your account number and sort code is usually by logging in to our app or internet bank and selecting your savings account.

You can also find your details on letters and emails from us or on your statement.

The best time depends on your financial circumstances and savings goals.

You can transfer your ISA at any time without affecting your ISA allowance, if you follow the correct transfer process.

Some things you might want to consider when transferring an ISA include:

• interest rates – does another provider offer a better rate?
• flexibility and account features – do you want easier access to your money or are you happy to lock away a lump sum?
• early access charges – if you have a fixed rate ISA, you might be charged for transferring before the end of your account term.

This depends on:

• if you are transferring an ISA to us or from us
• what type of ISA you are transferring

Transfers to Nationwide

If you are transferring a cash ISA to Nationwide, it will take up to 15 working days once we receive your request. It may take longer if your ISA funds have a notice period.

If you are transferring another type of ISA to Nationwide, it can take up to 30 days. You can also request a later date.

Transfers to other providers

If you are transferring a cash ISA to another provider, it will take up to 15 working days once we receive your request.

Where your ISA goes while it is being transferred

While the transfer completes, your old ISA may no longer appear in your old provider’s online banking and your new ISA might not yet appear. This is a normal part of the process. Your money has not disappeared.

Your ISA funds will be moving safely and securely between providers. You will be able to see them as soon as the transfer finishes.

If you are under 18, you cannot open a new ISA with us. We only offer a children’s savings account, not children’s ISAs.

If you are 18 or over, you can open multiple cash ISAs and stocks and shares ISAs within a tax year.

Some providers will allow you to open multiple ISAs of the same type with them, for example 3 cash ISAs. However, others might only allow you to open 1 cash ISA with them at a time.

Your annual ISA allowance of £20,000 is shared between all your ISAs, across all providers.

If you open multiple Nationwide ISAs

When you open more than one cash ISA product with us, we create a 'portfolio cash ISA'. This keeps all your products together as a single cash ISA.

The portfolio means you get more control of your savings. You can spread your ISA allowance across any Nationwide ISA products and track how much you have used in our app. You will also get a unique account number for each of your ISA products. So you can choose which ISA to deposit your savings into. For example, you could pay part into a fixed rate ISA, for a guaranteed savings rate, and part into a limited access ISA, so you can dip into your savings if you need to.

Some of our 'standalone' cash ISAs are excluded from the portfolio. For example, our CTF Maturity ISA. The product terms and conditions will say if a cash ISA is standalone.

There is no limit on how many times you can transfer an ISA each tax year.

You must follow the correct ISA transfer process to keep the ISA’s tax-free status.

Before you transfer, you should check whether there are any charges or penalties for leaving your ISA early.

For the current tax year, you have an annual ISA allowance of £20,000.

This is shared between all your ISAs, across all providers. This means you can pay in up to £20,000 across your ISAs, whether they are with Nationwide or another provider.

If you follow the correct transfer process to transfer a non-Nationwide ISA to us, only the money you have paid into your ISAs this tax year will count towards your annual ISA allowance. Money saved in previous tax years and the transfer itself will not also count.

Here are a couple of examples to show how this works.

Example 1

In a previous tax year, for example 2025/2026, you paid £10,000 into a cash ISA with another provider. This tax year, you have not paid anything into any of your ISAs. You decide to transfer your cash ISA with £10,000 (plus any interest) to a Nationwide ISA.

Because you have not paid anything into your ISAs this tax year, you will still have your full £20,000 ISA allowance after the transfer. So you can still pay in up to £20,000 across your ISAs this tax year.

Example 2

In a previous tax year, for example 2025/2026, you paid £10,000 into a cash ISA with another provider. This tax year, you paid a further £2,000 into your cash ISA. Your balance is now £12,000 (plus any interest).

Because you have paid in £2,000 this tax year, you have used £2,000 of your ISA allowance. So you now have £18,000 left.

If you transfer that ISA to us, you will still have £18,000 left of your allowance. We will only deduct the £2,000 you have paid in this tax year from your allowance, not the full £12,000 ISA account balance.

Be careful when withdrawing money as you may lose your ISA’s tax-free status.

When you pay money into your ISA, follow the rules for depositing funds to avoid exceeding your annual allowance.

For more information, use the following guides.

Withdrawing money from an ISA

Paying money into an ISA

Some of our cash ISAs are flexible.

This means you can replace any money you take out during a tax year without it counting towards your allowance, as long as you pay it back in during the same tax year.

So if you pay £50 into your Nationwide ISA, then take out £10 and pay in another £10, we will only count this as £50 towards your £20,000 ISA allowance.

The interest you earn does not count towards your allowance.

Check your ISA terms and conditions to find out if your ISA is flexible.

Yes, you can choose to reinvest your money when your ISA matures, if you meet the eligibility criteria. For example, you must be a UK resident aged over 18.

Use our guide to ISA maturity to understand your full range of options and what to do next.