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Tax year end 2023/24: key dates for the current tax year

To help you take full advantage of your ISA and pension allowances before the end of the 2023/24 tax year, here’s your guide to the key dates you should know ahead of the deadline at 23:59:59 on Friday 5th April 2024.  

Leaving yourself plenty of time to invest before the tax year end deadline means you can avoid any last-minute worries and make the most of your allowances. Some providers have complicated rules around cut-off times and contribution limits. Therefore, we recommend getting prepared, speaking to your bank if needed and contributing as soon as you can.  

If you have a Nutmeg ISA, Lifetime ISA (LISA) or Junior ISA (JISA) there are a variety of ways to contribute and invest your money in a way that works for you.  

A Nutmeg pension will have different deadlines that you need to be aware of, some as early as Friday 15th March, which we’ll discuss later.  

Different types of ISAs and pensions have specific annual allowances. Understanding these allowances means you can plan when and how you invest, which can have a big impact on the tax efficiency of your portfolio.  

Read about the annual allowances in this blog, while you may also be wondering how many ISAs you can actually have.  

If you have a Stocks and shares ISA, Junior ISA or Lifetime ISA with Nutmeg 

There are a variety of ways to contribute to your Stocks and shares ISA, JISA and LISA to invest your money in a way that suits you and make sure contributions are attributed to the 2023/2024 tax year.  

Regular contributions  

If you have regular contributions, via a Direct Debit that are usually collected from your bank account on the 4th or 5th of the month, your April Direct Debit contribution will fall into the new tax year. Therefore, you’ll need to change your Direct Debit date so that it is collected on or before 23:59 on Wednesday 3rd April. 

Be aware that it can take up to five business days for updates to be applied, so it's best to make any changes before Monday 25th March.  

If you haven’t set up a Direct Debit before, be aware that this can take up to 10 business days, so you’ll need to plan ahead.  

If you make regular contributions with a standing order, you’ll need to be aware of the deadlines for manual bank transfers. For most standing orders the deadline is 12:00 (noon) on Friday 5th April, but for BACS and CHAPS transfers, the deadlines are earlier.   

Other contributions  

You can contribute to your ISAs as many times as you like before tax year end with lump sum contributions, providing you don’t exceed the annual allowance. The deadline for contributions by easy bank transfer, debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay is 23:59 on Friday 5th April. An easy bank transfer (where money goes directly from your bank account to your chosen Nutmeg pot) is the fastest method for contributing to your ISAs.   

Manual bank transfers are transfers made directly from your bank to your Nutmeg account, using your Nutmeg account number for reference. The deadline for most people using manual bank transfers is 15:55 on Friday 5th April, however if you specifically use BACS or CHAPS there are earlier deadlines. Be aware that depending on your bank you may need to split your contribution over several days.  

  • For BACS transfers, the deadline is 12:00 (noon) on Tuesday 2nd April. 
  • For CHAPS transfers, the deadline is 12:00 (noon) on Thursday 4th April. Some banks will require a manual set-up which may increase the time it takes to process these contributions.   

Remember:

If you have a pension with Nutmeg 

 All contributions into a Nutmeg pension can only be made via a Direct Debit contribution at this time.  

 If you’re making your first Direct Debit contribution into your pension  

The deadline is 16:00 on Friday 15th March. The first Direct Debit contribution takes 10 business days to process from when the mandate is put in place. Direct Debits initiated after this date are not guaranteed to reach us before the end of the tax year.  

We may also need to ask for documents to verify your identity or support your Direct Debit set-up, in which case, it could take longer to get your contribution set up. So, plan ahead to make sure your pension contributions arrive on time.  

If you’ve already set up monthly Direct Debit contributions into your pension 

The deadline is Friday 5th April. Any active Direct Debits and active regular contribution expectations set up to collect on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th of April will be classed as 2023/24 tax year contributions and will be reported as such to HMRC.

Remember you can use Direct Debits to make one-off contributions if you need to top up your pension before tax year end.  Note that you can carry an unused pension allowance forward for up to three years. The deadline for one-off Direct Debit contributions is the 27th of March.

If you haven’t contributed to your Nutmeg pension in the last year, you may need to check your Direct Debit is still active. Different banks will have different policies, but usually banks will cancel a Direct Debit that has been inactive for a period of 24 months. If this is the case, more time will be needed to set up a new Direct Debit.

If you need any help  

Our client services team is available to answer any of your questions as we approach tax year end. Drop us an email at support@nutmeg.com. You can also book a free call to talk to one of our experts for more in-depth guidance on making the most of your allowances. 

Risk warning   

As with all investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your portfolio with Nutmeg can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you invest. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change. 

Copyright © 2022 Nutmeg Saving and Investment Limited. Nutmeg® is a registered trade mark of Nutmeg Saving and Investment Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, no. 552016, registered in England and Wales, no. 07503666, with a registered office at 25 Bank Street, Canary Wharf, London E14 5JP.