Claiming your additional tax relief is easy

InvestEngine is committed to offering a cost‑effective platform for UK investors. Here’s a breakdown of our fees:

Platform fees

• ISAs and SIPPs: No platform fees
• Business accounts: No platform fees
• General investment accounts: No platform fees
• DIY Portfolios: No platform fee
• Managed Portfolios: 0.25% per annum

These fees are calculated daily and deducted monthly from your account balance. 

You can view these fees at any time in your InvestEngine account in the Funding section of your profile.

ETF costs

While InvestEngine doesn’t charge dealing fees, the ETFs themselves have their own costs:

• DIY Portfolios: ETF charges start from 0.03% per annum, depending on the ETFs selected.
• Managed Portfolios and LifePlans: Average ETF charge is 0.12% per annum.

These charges are built into the performance of the ETFs. 

Additional costs

There is also a small difference ‑ the market spread, between the buying and selling prices of the ETFs. With our Managed Portfolios and LifePlans, these spread costs average 0.08% per annum. 

To keep our service as low‑cost as possible, we retain the interest on any uninvested cash in your account. This reduces the potential return you could have earned on that cash, and while there’s no explicit fee, it can be viewed as an indirect cost to you.

InvestEngine does not charge for withdrawals or transfers, and there are no hidden fees.

Investing in ETFs through InvestEngine can be a tax‑efficient way to grow your wealth ‑ especially when using accounts like ISAs or SIPPs. But if you’re investing through a General Account, you will need to consider tax on interest, dividends, or capital gains.

Here’s a simple overview of how tax works for UK investors.

Tax‑free wrappers: ISA and SIPP

If you’re investing through a Stocks & Shares ISA or Self‑Invested Personal Pension (SIPP):

• You won’t pay Income Tax, Dividend Tax, or Capital Gains Tax on your investments
• There are annual contribution limits for both, check our ISA and SIPP FAQs for details
  Withdrawals from a SIPP may be subject to tax depending on your age and how much you take

General Investment Account (GIA)

If you’re using a GIAt, your investments will be subject to UK tax depending on how much income or gain you make.

You may need to pay:

• Dividend Tax ‑ if you earn over your tax‑free dividend allowance (£500 in the 202025/26 tax year)
• Capital Gains Tax (CGT) ‑ if your total gains across all investments exceed the annual CGT allowance (£3,000 in 2025/26)
• Income Tax ‑ on any interest you earn (for example, from bond ETFs), above your Personal Savings Allowance (£1,000 for basic‑rate taxpayers; £500 for higher‑rate)

Understanding marginal tax rates on investment income

If your investment income goes over the relevant tax‑free thresholds, the excess will be taxed at your marginal rate, the rate of tax you pay on your regular income.

For example:

• Basic‑rate taxpayers (earning £12,571 – £50,270) would pay:
  • 20% on interest
  • 8.75% on dividends
  • 10% on capital gains
• Higher‑rate taxpayers (£50,271 – £125,140) would pay:
  • 40% on interest
  • 33.75% on dividends
  • 20% on capital gains
• Additional‑rate taxpayers (over £125,140) would pay:
  • 45% on interest
  • 39.35% on dividends
  • 20% on capital gains

For the latest tax rules, visit HMRC: Tax on savings and investments.

InvestEngine doesn’t provide personal tax advice. Your individual circumstances may affect how much tax you pay and you’re responsible for reporting any taxable income to HMRC. Depending on your situation you should consult HMRC or a qualified tax adviser for personalised guidance.

Need more information?

• HMRC: Tax on dividends
• HMRC: Capital Gains Tax
• ISA and SIPP tax rules
• Tax relief on pensions

You can also download your CTC or CGT Report from your dashboard at the end of the tax year.

When investing in ETFs, it’s important to understand the potential impact of withholding tax:

• Withholding Tax: Some countries deduct tax at source on dividends paid to foreign investors. This means the tax is deducted from the dividend before it’s paid, meaning investors receive less than the full dividend. 
• Double Taxation Agreements: The UK has agreements with many countries to reduce or eliminate withholding tax.

Withholding Tax and ETFs

Even when buying a single ETF, that fund may hold many international investments‑ and withholding tax is still applied at the fund level when those underlying companies pay dividends.

Example:

• You invest in an Irish‑domiciled ETF (like iShares S&P 500 UCITS ETF – CSP1) which holds US stocks.
• The US imposes a 15% withholding tax on dividends going to Irish funds (thanks to the US–Ireland tax treaty).
• So, if Apple pays a $1 dividend, only $0.85 reaches the ETF.

You, the investor, don’t see the tax directly‑ but it reduces the income the ETF receives and therefore what it can pay out or reinvest.

This means the effect of withholding tax is typically reflected in the ETF’s performance. For specific details, consult the ETF provider’s documentation.

Note: Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change. Seek professional advice if unsure.

InvestEngine ensures that all ETFs available on our platform have UK Reporting Fund Status.

Excess Reportable Income (ERI) is the portion of income accumulating funds receive but do not distribute to investors‑ essentially, income that’s reinvested back into the fund.

Even though you don’t receive this income as cash, HMRC still considers it taxable.

ERI applies to the accumulating share classes (marked as ‘Acc’ or ‘Accumulating’) of offshore funds (i.e. most Irish or Luxembourg‑domiciled ETFs). 

No ERI reporting or tax applies inside ISA or SIPP wrappers.

For more information, refer to HMRC’s Offshore Funds Manual. Please consult a tax adviser for guidance on reporting ERI.

InvestEngine offers Business Accounts for UK limited companies. Here’s what you need to know about taxation:

• Corporation Tax: Realised gains from investments are usually subject to corporation tax
• Dividend Income: Generally exempt from corporation tax, but exceptions apply
• Interest Income: Taxable as part of trading profits

For more information on how InvestEngine Business Accounts work, see our Business Accounts FAQs.

For tax‑specific guidance, refer to HMRC’s Corporation Tax Manual.

Note: Tax treatment depends on your company’s individual circumstances. Professional advice is recommended.