I can't transfer money into my ISA - am I stuck with it forever?

Q: I have an ISA that can't have money transferred into it. Am I stuck with it forever or can I close it after its maturity date? If so, how would I go about taking the money out and putting it into a new ISA?

Patrick Connolly is a certified financial planner for AWD Chase de Vere.

A: A number of ISA products won't allow customers to transfer more money in beyond the opening deposit.

However, this doesn't mean you are stuck with your current ISA forever because you will be able to transfer money out to another product or to another provider.

If your ISA has a maturity date then it is likely there will be penalties for transferring your money out before this. You need to find out what the penalties are. In all likelihood, the best approach will be to hold your ISA until the maturity date and then compare it with what else is available in the market.

It is easy to transfer from one ISA provider to another. You should obtain a transfer form from the company you wish to move to. Complete it and give it back to the company. It will then contact your existing ISA provider and arrange for your money to be transferred.

It is important that you don't withdraw your money to move it to a new ISA. If you do this then the money loses its ISA status and when you put it into a new ISA it will count as part of your annual allowance.

For more on using ISAs as an investment strategy, read: Make 2012 the year of the ISA.