How it works

The Investment Account is simple to use. You can start one with just £20, and then make further deposits of at least £20 whenever you want. Once your account is open, we’ll send you a passbook to help you keep track of how much you’re saving.

• NS&I - 100% security for your money
• Paying money in
• Cheque and debit card clearance 
• Taking money out
• Saving regularly
• Interest
• Who can invest?
• Joint accounts
• Children's accounts
• Tax
• Investment limit
• About the terms and conditions
• Your right to cancel
• Protecting your personal information
• Our committment to good service 

NS&I - 100% security for your money

With NS&I you can be sure that all of your capital is 100% secure, however much you invest. We can give you this guarantee because National Savings and Investments is backed by HM Treasury.

Paying money in

You can put money into your account at any Post Office® branch by sending cheques to us in the post, or by standing order if you want to save regularly. 

Post Office® branch

At a Post Office® branch: simply give your money and passbook to the counter clerk. If you pay by cheque, please make it payable to 'Post Office Ltd'. Or, of course, you can pay in cheques made payable to the Investment Account holder.

Post

By post: please make your cheque payable to 'National Savings and Investments'. Write your name, address and Investment Account number on the back of the cheque and send it, along with your passbook (which we will return), to: National Savings and Investments, Glasgow G58 1SB. Again, you can also pay in cheques made payable to the Investment Account holder. Please do not send cash by post.

Your deposit will start earning interest from the day we receive it or the date it is paid in at a Post Office® branch. The minimum for each deposit is £20.

Cheque and debit card clearance

Once your account is open, you’ll start earning interest on all deposits from the day we receive them. Cheque deposits will be available for withdrawal from the 7th working day (ie excluding weekends and English bank holidays). If you open your account by telephone using a debit card, the same clearance period will apply.

For example, if we receive your cheque or debit card details on a Monday, your payment will be cleared on the Tuesday of the following week. Allow one additional day for each English bank holiday.

If you make a cheque deposit at a Post Office,® your payment will take two working days longer to clear.

Please make sure you have enough money in your account at the time you write a cheque or authorise a debit card payment.

Taking money out

You can take money out at any time with no notice and no penalty. You can pick up a withdrawal form at any Post Office® branch along with a pre-addressed envelope. Simply complete the form and return to us - we'll send you your payment within a few days of receiving your request.

You can choose to receive your payment either by direct credit to your bank or building society account or by crossed warrant (like a cheque). Or you can collect it in cash at any Post Office® branch in the UK. There is a limit of £2,000 for withdrawals collected in cash.

If you ask for payment by direct credit or crossed warrant, you will need to send us your passbook along with your completed form.

Saving regularly

The most convenient way to save regularly is by standing order, with regular payments from your bank or building society. You'll earn interest from the date we receive each deposit and there's no need to send in your passbook every month. We'll just bring it up to date the next time you send it in.

Once you’ve opened an Investment Account and have received details of the account number, you can download a standing order form.

Interest

Your balance will earn interest at attractive rates, even if you only save a little. And because the rates are tiered, you’ll earn higher rates as your savings build up.

The interest rates are variable.

The balance in your account (subject to £1 minimum) earns interest daily from the date we receive your deposit until you withdraw it.

Your interest is credited to your account automatically on 31 December each year. You don’t need to send us your passbook just to get your interest entered – we’ll update your book when you next send it to us, for example when you ask for a withdrawal.

Who can invest?

Anyone aged seven or over can open an Investment Account, either individually or jointly with one other person.

Accounts can also be opened on behalf of a child under seven but withdrawals will normally only be paid to a parent or guardian until the child reaches seven.

Accounts can be held in trust for up to two personal beneficiaries of any age.

Joint accounts

We will ask you on the application form to decide whether both account holders together or either one of you individually are to sign for withdrawals. Please note that if you choose either one of you individually, then either account holder can withdraw all the money in the account independently.

Either holder can write to us at any time to change this arrangement. If either account holder tells us of a disagreement, we'll freeze the account and contact both holders.

We'll send the passbook and any correspondence to the first named holder, although the second holder can ask to see copies of correspondence.

Children's accounts

Accounts can be opened for a child under seven years old. The child will not be able to withdraw the money, but if cash is needed for his or her benefit, the parent or guardian can make a withdrawal on their behalf.

Children aged seven and over can open and manage an account themselves, making their own deposits and withdrawals.

Tax

Even though the interest earned in an Investment Account is taxable, it is automatically credited to your account gross (ie with no tax deducted). This means that non-taxpayers get to keep it all without having to complete an HM Revenue & Customs registration form, as long as the interest doesn't take their total taxable income above their tax allowance.

If you are a taxpayer you will need to declare your interest to HM Revenue and Customs. Click here to find out more about tax and savings.

Investment limit

You can invest from £20 up to a maximum of £1 million. If you reach this limit you can't make any more deposits, but we'll continue to add interest on the full amount.

About the terms and conditions

Please read the terms and conditions before you invest. If we make any changes to the terms and conditions after you invest, we will let you know. If any change is to your disadvantage, we will tell you personally by writing to you at least 30 days before the change*. In this case you can switch to another product or close your account, without notice or penalty, within 60 days of our telling you. For any other changes, we will let customers know within 30 days, either by including a notice with a statement or other communication, or by updating our website.

*Please note, this does not apply to changes of interest rate, which will be notified in a range of national newspapers, on our website and in Post Office® branches.

Your right to cancel

If after opening your account you decide it does not meet your needs, let us know in writing* within 14 days of receiving your welcome letter and we will help you change to a different account or refund your money with any interest due.

* Either by post to Investment Account, National Savings and Investments, Glasgow, G58 1SB, or by fax on 0141-636 8744 or by email to customerenquiries@nsandi.com

Protecting your personal information

When you become a customer of ours, we will treat all the personal information we hold about you as private and confidential. Find out more about our privacy policy. 

Our commitment to good service

We are committed to providing you with a high standard of service. If we make a mistake we’ll aim to put things right quickly and without fuss. And if you have a complaint, we have a procedure designed to resolve it fairly. We are also covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service. To find out more, you can download a copy of our complaints procedure leaflet or contact us and we’ll send you one.