Choosing between a stocks and shares ISA and a General Investment Account (GIA)

When you open an Investment Pot you can choose to open a Stocks and Shares ISA or a General Investment Account (GIA). We can’t tell you which one is best for you, but you can find more information about each type of account below.

Stocks and Shares ISA A Stocks & Shares ISA is one of four types of Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) currently available in the UK.

You can put up to £20,000 in ISAs each tax year — either adding this to one ISA (depending on its limit) or spreading it across a few different types. You can only pay into one of each type of ISA in a tax year.

With our Stocks & Shares ISA, you invest in different BlackRock funds, and your money then ends up in a mix of different types of investments (for example; shares in companies, bonds issued by companies and governments, real estate and cash).

You don't pay income or capital gains tax on any returns you make.

General Investing Account (GIA) A General Investment Account is an account that allows you to invest your money instead of saving it as cash. You may need to pay tax on any income or gains you make.

You can read more about paying capital gains tax on Investment earnings on the Government website

There’s no limit on how much you can invest in a General Investment Account per year.