Long Term Asset Funds to be permitted in Stocks & Shares ISAs from April 2026

Long Term Asset Funds (LTAFs) will be permitted in Stocks and Shares ISAs from 6 April 2026, under the Individual Savings Account (Amendment) Regulations 2026¹. The Government had set out the change in its response to the Treasury Committee's report on Cash ISAs, published on 14 January 2026².

The statutory instrument adds investments in a long-term asset fund to the list of qualifying investments for a stocks and shares component¹. It also removes the provision that allowed LTAFs to be held under an innovative finance account, and provides that LTAFs held under an innovative finance account immediately before 6 April 2026 are treated as qualifying investments for a stocks and shares component held under a stocks and shares account for as long as they remain held¹.

The same instrument changes the treatment of UK cryptoasset exchange traded notes. It defines such a note as a debt security traded on a trading venue or a market operated by a UK recognised investment exchange, featuring no periodic coupon payments, whose return tracks the performance of an unregulated transferable cryptoasset minus applicable fees, whether featuring delta 1, inverse or leveraged exposure or other exposure to the cryptoasset tracked¹. A UK cryptoasset exchange traded note is not a qualifying security for a stocks and shares component, and cannot be held under a stocks and shares account unless it was already held in one immediately before 6 April 2026¹. Notes already held in that way are treated as qualifying investments for a stocks and shares component for as long as they are so held¹. UK cryptoasset exchange traded notes become eligible for an innovative finance account¹.

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Lucy Rigby MP, wrote that the change would allow "more individuals to invest in assets that will support the UK's future success, like innovative businesses and infrastructure and deliver better returns"².

The Government response also restated other ISA measures. At Autumn Budget 2025 the annual ISA allowance was kept at £20,000, with the Cash ISA limit set at £12,000 from April 2027 for under-65s; savers over 65 will continue to be able to save up to £20,000 in a Cash ISA each year². The Government said it is working with the Financial Conduct Authority to roll out Targeted Support for consumers from April 2026². Help to Save will be made permanently available for new savers and expanded from April 2028 to all households receiving the child or carer's element of Universal Credit².

Why it matters for households

From 6 April 2026, savers and investors holding a Stocks and Shares ISA will be able to hold LTAFs inside it, which were previously only permitted in an Innovative Finance ISA. LTAFs are funds that invest in assets such as private companies and infrastructure, and they are typically less liquid than listed shares, meaning holdings may take longer to sell. Anyone holding an LTAF in an innovative finance account immediately before 6 April 2026 keeps it on the same tax basis, treated as held in a stocks and shares account¹.

For cryptoasset exchange traded notes, the position tightens for new purchases inside a Stocks and Shares ISA from 6 April 2026, while existing holdings are protected¹. The rules on what a Stocks and Shares ISA can hold therefore change on that date, and the treatment differs between accounts. The Cash ISA limit change for under-65s takes effect later, in April 2027, and does not alter the £20,000 annual ISA allowance².

What happens next

The regulations come into force on 6 April 2026¹. A Tax Information and Impact Note covering the instrument is to be published on the gov.uk website¹. The Government said it will continue to work with the Treasury Committee as it delivers on its ambition to boost economic growth².