The 6.5% ISA

What's the deal?

So far this year Barclays are heading up the ISA race with their tax free offering. Their Tax Haven ISA (for existing customers only) pays 6.5% AER variable and is surprisingly flexible for an account that offers a market leading rate.

You can open the account with as little as £1 and can pay in up to £3000 during the 2007/2008 tax year (ending on April 5th) and up to £3600 during the 2008/2009 tax year. You can also withdraw funds at any time without penalty.

Barclays guarantee that the rate will remain 1% gross above the base rate for the first 12 months. However, there is a catch, the account is only available to existing Barclays customers so if you're not an account holder then another ISA option may be more suitable for you click here for details.

How do I benefit?

Visit www.barclays.co.uk to apply. You will need to have both your National Insurance number and details of the Barclays account that holds the funds you'd like to open the ISA with (remember this can be as little as a £1) to hand.

Conditions

You can only open an ISA account if you are over 16, a UK resident and have not contributed to any other ISA during the current tax year.