Service overview
The Bacs Cash ISA Transfer Service automates the communication between an acquiring party and a ceding party for a Cash ISA transfer. It involves information exchanges (messages) between both of the parties. Participants are registered to use the service by Bacs or Faster Payment (FPS) Scheme members. A participant is registered on the service as a service user and is identified by a Service User Number (SUN). The service only supports transfers of:
- An adult Cash ISA to another adult Cash ISA
- An adult Cash ISA to an adult Stocks and Shares ISA
- A junior Cash ISA to another junior Cash ISA
- A junior Cash ISA to a junior Stocks and Shares ISA
- An adult Cash ISA to an Innovative Finance (IF) ISA
- The payment to transfer the balance is outside the scope of the service.
Eligibility criteria
To use the Cash ISA Transfer Service a participant must meet the eligibility criteria. Participants must:
- Carry out business and operate an office within the European Economic Area (EEA)
- Be approved to offer ISA products by HMRC
- Have relevant FCA permissions
- Have the ability to comply on a continuous basis with the technical and operational requirements of the Cash ISA Transfer Service as set out in the operational documents relating to that service from time to time
- Have completed a Direct Debit Instruction to enable payment of charges referred to below
- Pay the agreed charges for usage of the Cash ISA Transfer Service and any other transaction based costs that may apply
- Agree to be bound by the Guide and Rules to the Bacs Cash ISA Transfer Service
- Provide details of anticipated annual volumes of automated Cash ISA Transfers. This information shall be supplied to a designated official of Bacs who is under duty not to disclose the information to other participants other than in aggregate form for planning purposes
- Be able to send and receive CHAPS and/or Faster Payments (and/or by exception only Bacs payments) - this may be through an Agency Agreement.
Applying to use the service
ISA providers wishing to apply to use the service should contact us to request an application form to join the service. Once Bacs has received the application and the applicant has been assessed against the eligibility criteria, successful applicants will be given access to documentation to both further their application and prepare for using the service. This documentation will include a take-on process which will incorporate a testing requirement.
In addition to contacting Bacs about using the service, applicants will also need to obtain technology from a Bacs or Faster Payments (FPS) member PSP to enable them to submit and receive messages in a secure and safe manner.
Bacs proposes to offer testing windows in February and October 2019, reflecting the approach adopted in previous years. Applicants are advised to allow 4 months before testing commences to ready themselves for using the service and so applications should be submitted as early as possible. The number of applicants that can be accommodated in each window is limited and spaces will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
For more information about the service or to access operational and reference documents relating to the Bacs Cash ISA Transfer Service visit Cash ISA Transfer Service.