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Online Lifetime ISA

Let the Government help boost your deposit

Moving into your first home or increasing your retirement pot is easier thanks to a generous 25% Government boosted savings account.

What's a LISA?

LISA (pronounced lie-sa) is short for Lifetime ISA. It’s a tax-free savings account and Government scheme designed to help you save for two big milestones: your first home purchase and retirement. 

If you are 18-39 and looking to save for one of those milestones, a Lifetime ISA could be ideal. This tax-free savings account is boosted by a 25% Government bonus, which means as well as earning interest, you could earn up to £1,000 a year in bonuses alone until you turn 50.

It works like this. For every £4 you save, the Government will add £1. So each tax year you can put an annual total of £4,000 into your Beehive LISA and you can earn up to £1,000 in bonuses.

Use our Lifetime ISA calculator to work out how much you could earn based on how much you can afford to save.

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The highlights

  • Percentage 25% Government bonus
  • Users UK residents aged 18-39
  • Thumbs Up Must be funded before you turn 40
  • Mouse Pointer Open online with £1 today
  • Piggy Bank Save for your first house or retirement
  • Coins Deposit up to £4,000 per year
  • House Fee-free mortgage advice from Mortgage Advice Bureau for first-time buyers
  • Sun Earn interest tax-free
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Earn up to £1,000 a year

You’ll get a free 25% Government bonus for every £4 you save, up to a maximum yearly bonus of £1,000. It’s a great way to supercharge your savings.

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Transfer to another provider any time

You can transfer your existing Lifetime ISA to us and you’re not locked in if you change your mind. You can move your LISA to another bank or building society in the future.

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Fee-free mortgage advice

If you're saving for your first home, you get access to fee-free mortgage advice from our expert partner, Mortgage Advice Bureau, who will find your perfect mortgage.

Who's eligible?

Anyone aged 18 to 39 saving for their first home or retirement. You can’t withdraw money from this account for pretty much any other reason – there are just a couple of exceptions, including terminal illness – and if you do, you’ll have to pay a 25% Government withdrawal charge. So if you’re saving for something else, have a look at our other savings accounts.

Mortgage Advice

Saving for a house deposit

Generally, mortgage lenders will require you to save 10% of the property price, so having a 25% Government boost could be a really good way to moving into your first home sooner. 

Then, once you've saved your deposit, customers using their Lifetime ISA to buy their first home can get fee-free expert mortgage advice to secure the right deal from our partner Mortgage Advice Bureau

Their expert advisers will search thousands of mortgages from over 90 different lenders so you can be sure they’ll find you the right deal for your first home. You can learn more by reading the full terms and conditions here.

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Retirement savers

If you’re thinking about planning your long-term financial security, you can use your Lifetime ISA to save for retirement. You have up to the age of 40 to open an account, and can add up £4,000 a year and earn Government bonuses until you turn 50. After that, the account will remain open and keep earning interest until you can start withdrawing when you turn 60. 

It’s as simple as that, really. It’s not the only way to save for retirement, though, so you might think about getting financial advice to explore your options.

Additional information about the LISA

Now we’ve given you an overview of the LISA and how it works, you might have one or two questions. We’ve answered some of them below.

What is the interest rate and is it fixed? arrow

The annual interest rate is variable and there may be times we need to change it. Right now, it’s set at 3.30% tax-free p.a/AER.

Will I have to pay tax on the interest? arrow

No, you won’t. The LISA is a tax-free savings account, so you won’t have to pay tax on the annual interest you earn or the 25% Government bonus. However, if you have other ISAs you’re investing in, make sure you’re aware of your annual ISA limits.

How do I get the bonus payments? arrow

We add the 25% Government bonus to your account automatically once it’s been processed by HMRC, which is usually 4-9 weeks after each deposit. Remember: bonuses are capped at £1,000 a year, and you can only access your savings when you spend your LISA savings on your first home purchase or when you turn 60 years old.

Can I withdraw my money arrow

Technically yes but if you take money out for anything other than your first home purchase or retirement, you’ll have to pay a 25% Government withdrawal charge. That means you might get back less than you paid in. There are some exceptions, like if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness, and you can find out more about these here. By the way, you have to wait until 12 months after you open your LISA to use it to buy your first home; if you’re hoping to buy a house quite soon, you might be better off with a different type of account.

How do I open a LISA with Beehive? arrow

We've made the process of opening a Lifetime ISA really easy. Start our online application where we’ll ask you for a few details, including your National Insurance number, your bank details and previous addresses, so make sure you have those to hand. If you’re aged 40 or over, though, you can’t open an account. Sorry about that. 

Find out even more about the Lifetime ISA.

Can I transfer from another Lifetime ISA provider? arrow

Yes, absolutely. Full transfers from a single LISA provider are permitted for applications to our Online Lifetime ISA.

After a year, how much could I save? arrow

Well, that depends! Your total will be the money you’ve put in your account, plus the 25% Government bonus, plus interest. At most you can put away £4,000 and earn a £1,000 bonus, plus interest, every year. Have a go with our Lifetime ISA calculator for an estimate.

When can I buy a home with a Lifetime ISA? arrow

12 months after you open your account; if you withdraw money to buy a house any sooner, you’ll have to pay the 25% Government withdrawal charge.

Will I need to meet any criteria to be eligible? arrow

Yes, just a few. You’ll need to be a UK resident, aged 18-39, and you can have more than one LISA but can only fund one each tax year. You can only use the money to buy your first home. To benefit from the bonus to buy your first home, you need to have opened your Lifetime ISA at least 12 months before you want to buy a house. The house can’t cost more than £450,000, and it has to be your actual home – not a buy-to-let, or anything like that. If you are turning 18 you’ll need to ensure that your chosen nominated bank account is changed to an adult account and the data needs to be shared with Experian credit reference agency as this can take a couple of months to update – please refer to your financial provider for this. To benefit from the bonus for retirement, you must be aged 60+ to withdraw your funds.

I'm ready to buy my first home. How do I withdraw money from my Lifetime ISA? arrow

You’ve taken the first major step and opened your Lifetime ISA. You’ve worked hard to save every payday and you’re ready to buy your first home. But how do you access your funds? Read our step-by-step guide to using your savings to buy your first home.

How to open an account

Step 1

Get registered!

To join Beehive Money you can do this one of two ways. You can register on your desktop, or if you'd prefer you can install our app and follow the instructions on your screen.

Step 2

Take your pick of accounts

Once you have access to Beehive, choose the account that's right for you. We have a whole range available, such as fixed rates, easy access accounts, Cash ISAs and the Lifetime ISA.

Step 3

Set goals, achieve milestones

We know that you’re more likely to achieve your dream if you set goals. Our goal tracker and a helpful milestone will help motivate you to save for a brighter future.

Your savings are protected

Your savings will be protected up to a total of £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. There’s more about that here.

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Looking for something different?

Don’t sweat it, we have a range of accounts you can choose from. Check them out below.

Regular savers

If you'd like to put money away on a monthly basis or are looking to get into the habit of saving a bit more, a Beehive regular savings account could be the savings account you need as you to pay in a set amount of money each month, letting your balance consistently grow over time. 

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Fixed rate

If you can put your money away for a set period in a fixed rate savings account, we'll pay you a fixed rate of interest. You can be rest assured that the interest rate will stay the same for the term of your account.

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All savings accounts

Not sure about which account you’re after? Whatever your goals and however you’d like to save, we have a range of accounts for almost everyone at Beehive.

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