What Is An IFISA?

With the increasing popularity of alternative finance, the UK government introduced Innovative Finance ISAs (IFISA) on 6th April 2016. The purpose was to provide investors with an alternative asset class and a way to diversify their investment portfolios. 

The IFISA enables investors to invest in Peer to Peer (P2P) loans and receive interest in a tax-free wrapper. It means that any interest you earn through P2P loans will not be subject to tax, and will not count towards your saving allowance.

However, there is a limit on how much you can subscribe to ISAs every tax year, known as the Annual ISA limit. Currently, the annual allowance limit in the UK is £20,000. You can either fully deploy this allowance in an IFISA or spread it across different types of ISAs. 

In addition, you can also transfer funds from cash ISAs, stocks and shares ISAs into IFISAs. Your previous year’s ISAs do not count towards the current year’s allowance, so it provides you with a great opportunity to explore P2P lending. 

Who Can Open An IFISA? 

To open an IFISA account, you must meet some requirements including:

• You must be of age 18 or over 
• You should be a resident of the UK 
• A crown servant, spouse, or civil partner if you are not a UK resident.    

How Do IFISA Transfers Work?  

The rules for transferring your ISA savings to Innovative Finance ISAs are the same as those governing you for transferring to cash or stocks and shares ISAs. You can open only one IFISA account each tax year. However, you can transfer funds from your cash ISA or stocks and shares ISA to an Innovative Finance ISA. 

You can transfer funds by following simple steps:

• If you want to transfer cash from your current tax year’s cash or stocks and shares ISAs, you have to transfer the full amount. 
• From your previous year’s ISAs, you can transfer as little as you want to, and it will not affect your current year’s annual allowance. 
• You need to fill out a transfer form given to you by the innovative finance ISA provider you choose to transfer funds to. 
• You should not withdraw cash from other ISAs to transfer because it can impact your current annual allowance. 
• You can transfer cash, if you have stocks and shares, you have to sell them, and then the cash will be used to invest in P2P loans.

How Many ISAs Can You Have?

You can have different ISAs, but you can open only one IFISA account per tax year. As of the 2022-23 tax year, you can collectively invest up to £20,000 in all ISAs. It is your choice whether you want to spread this investment across Cash ISAs, stocks and shares ISAs, Lifetime and Innovative Finance ISAs, or invest all money in a single type of ISA. 

By opening an IFISA account with Kuflink, you can start investing with just £100 and earn up to 7.44% (compounded rate of return) gross interest per annum.* 

Why Choose Kuflink IFISA? 

Kuflink provides an opportunity to invest in property-backed loans* and enjoy the benefits of tax-free returns that come with ISAs. 

1) Auto Invest IF-ISA, which allows you to create a diversified portfolio and spread your investment and risk across multiple property-backed loans*. In addition, you can choose loan terms and earn interest in relation to it. Kuflink’s Auto-Invest IF-ISA comes with the following features:

• Up to 7%* gross interest per annum.
• Blended LTV & LTGDV circa 65%.
• Flexible terms of 1,3, and 5 years.
• You can get started with £100.
• Entire Pool secured against UK Property* (1st & 2nd legal charges).
• Diversify your funds across multiple secured loans*.
• Tax-efficient Innovative Finance ISA wrapper

2) Select Invest IF-ISA – where you can allocate your funds across any secured loan* and get the tax free benefits you do in Auto Invest IF-ISA. 

• Up to 7.44%* gross interest per annum.
• Secured against UK Property* (1st & 2nd legal charges).
• Secondary market available for Select Invest IF-ISA investments (T&C’s apply)
• Kuflink co-invests up to 5% in every loan with you*
  
• ISA Previous and ISA current wallets available
• Tax-efficient Innovative Finance ISA wrapper

Interested in learning more?  Visit https://www.kuflink.com/innovative-finance-isa/ to begin.

*Capital is at risk and Kuflink is not protected by the FSCS. Past returns should not be used as a guide to future performance. Securing investments against UK property does not guarantee that your investments will be repaid and returns may be delayed. Tax rules apply to IF ISAs and SIPPs. Tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. Kuflink does not offer any financial or tax advice in relation to the investment opportunities that it promotes. Please read our risk statement for full details.