If you’ve been putting off some money-life admin, now could be the time to act before you lose your tax allowances.
The UK tax year ends on 5 April and after that, most of these allowances vanish. We’re here to remind you to use them – because HMRC certainly won’t!
💰 Your ISA allowance: £20,000
This is the big one – every adult in the UK gets a £20,000 ISA allowance each tax year – whatever you don’t use is gone forever. You can’t carry it forward.
That £20,000 can be split across a Cash ISA, a Stocks & Shares ISA, or an Innovative Finance ISA in whatever combination works for you. The magic of an ISA is that once your money is in there, it grows completely free from income tax and capital gains tax (forever).
Under 40 and saving for your first home? A Lifetime ISA (LISA) lets you put in up to £4,000 (which counts towards your £20,000 total) and the government will top it up with a free £1,000 bonus. That’s a 25% instant return before you’ve done anything.
Even if you can only put in a little before the deadline, it’s worth it. Get it inside the ISA wrapper.
🏦 Your pension: up to £60,000 (and carry forward from previous years)
Pension contributions are one of the most effective ways to reduce your tax bill – especially if you’re a higher or additional rate taxpayer.
For most people, the annual allowance is £60,000. You get tax relief at your marginal rate on contributions – meaning a £100 pension contribution can cost a higher rate taxpayer just £60 in real terms, because HMRC tops it up.
There’s also a carry forward rule: if you haven’t used your full allowance in the previous three tax years, you can bring that unused amount into this year. Any unused allowance from 2022/23 will be gone permanently after 5 April 2026.
Note: If you’ve already started drawing flexibly from a pension, your annual allowance may drop to £10,000 (AKA Money Purchase Annual Allowance).
Even if you’re employed, you could still make a one off additional voluntary contribution before the deadline into your pension.
📈 Capital gains tax allowance: £3,000
This one isn’t as commonly used as the other allowances for everyday money management but if you do have investments outside an ISA – shares, funds, a second property – and they’ve grown in value, you can realise up to £3,000 of gains this tax year completely tax-free. If you don’t sell your assets and “realise the gain” this year, just know that it disappears.
💸 Dividend allowance: £500
If you own shares outside of an ISA, you can receive up to £500 in dividends tax-free this year. Anything above that is taxable.
This allowance has been cut dramatically over the past few years (it was £5,000 in 2017), and from April 2026, dividend tax rates are also going up. So if you have dividend-paying investments outside a tax wrapper (for example in just a general investment account), it’s worth reviewing whether to move them into an ISA before the rates rise.
👶 Junior ISA: £9,000 for the child in your life
If you have children under 18, they get their own ISA allowance – completely separate from yours. The Junior ISA (JISA) allowance for 2025/26 is £9,000, and like the adult ISA, anything you don’t use before 5 April is gone.
Money in a Junior ISA grows free from tax and can’t be touched until your child turns 18, at which point it becomes their money – a brilliant head start. You can split the £9,000 between a Cash Junior ISA and a Stocks & Shares Junior ISA, or put it all in one. For money you won’t need for a decade or more, a Stocks & Shares JISA gives the best chance of real growth over time.
And if you have a special child in your life that you’d like to help out – any family member or friend can contribute – so it’s worth asking parents if you can contribute before the tax deadline! (Rich auntie vibes).
Your pre-5 April checklist
- Top up your ISA / ISAs (up to £20,000)
- Make any additional pension contributions (and check if you have carry-forward allowance from 2022/23)
- Review non-ISA investments for gains to crystallise (up to £3,000)
- Check dividend income
- Contribute up to £9,000 to the child-in-your-life’s JISA
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Always consider speaking to a qualified financial adviser before making decisions about your money.