Are French residents allowed to keep a UK ISA savings account?
People who opened an ISA when they were UK residents may retain one
Your tax guide includes information for holders of ISAs. I thought if you live in France you are not allowed to have an ISA?
An ISA – Individual Savings Account – is a popular form of investment in the UK, typically for saving either cash or stocks and shares. In the UK you do not pay income tax on interest or dividends/capital gains that accrue in the ISA.
It is not possible for residents outside the UK, in France for example, to open an ISA, but people who opened one when they were UK residents may retain one.
However, they may not pay anything into it after they become non-UK resident (and their non-residents status should be notified to the provider).
The only exception is for UK Crown employees working abroad or their spouses and civil partners.
UK tax relief still applies to money and investments within it (however, these should in any case be UK-tax free for residents in France). You can also start to make payments into the ISA again if you move back to the UK.
While it is therefore possible to hold an ISA in France, some financial experts advise that it may not be an optimal savings solution for residents in France as interest/gains/dividends accruing in the ISA are declarable and taxable in France.
A popular alternative in France is an assurance vie policy, which can similarly hold stocks and shares or cash and has tax advantages in France.