As with many other financial products, isas are also geared to over 50 year olds. In 6th October 2009, the amount that an over 50 can invest in an isa went up from £3600 to £5100. To qualify for this, you need to have turned 50 by 5th April 2010. Therefore it could be called the over 49 and a half year old isa!!

The financial company Moneyfacts recently consucted a surver which showed that all the isa providers barring online bank  EGG were letting over 50’s make this extra £1500 contribution. Egg stated that they were putting off the ability to use this £1500 increase until April 2010 for “commercial reasons”.

To help you ge an idea of the benefits of an over 50 isa, USWITCH provided the following quote :

“a 50-year-old who takes full advantage of the £5,100 allowance each year until they are 65 could build up a £104,000 pot of cash, which includes £27,700 in interest – though this assumes a pretty generous 4% interest rate. Remember, it’s an allowance for individuals, so a husband and wife, both 50 now, could shelter £208,000 from Revenue & Customs between now and age 65.”