At the same time the ISA allowance will be raised to £20,000. Anyone between the ages of 18 and 40 can open a Lifetime ISA, and any savings put in before their 50th birthday will receive an added 25% bonus from the government.
The ISA can be used for either retirement saving or towards a house deposit.
The money can be withdrawn tax-free after the saver s 60th birthday, but if it is withdrawn at anytime before the age of 60 savers will lose their government bonus, including any interest or growth. They will also have to pay a 5% charge.
Pushed into pensions
The Lifetime ISA could become part of the pension regime, falling under the £40,000 annual allowance for pension contributions.
Your annual allowance for pensions will be £40,000, but you have to deduct from it any payment you make into your Lifetime ISA. It could be the beginning of the end of the current regime as we know it, albeit something that takes place over the next 30 to 40 years, he said.
Claire Trott, director at Sipp provider Talbot and Muir, pointed out people who wanted to withdraw savings before they turned 60 faced a large exit penalty.
You can use the funds at any time to buy your first home, however if you want to withdraw the funds at any time before you re 60, the government will reclaim their bonus, and there s a 5% charge as well, including any growth, she said.
