When is interest paid?

Interest is calculated daily and paid into each of your Smart Saver or Smart ISA pots once a month.

We apply it to your savings account each month, on the calendar day your account was opened. However, if your account was opened on the 29th, 30th or 31st of a month, we'll pay interest on the 28th of every month. Should you close your Smart Saver, a final payment will be made on the day the account is closed.

Do I have to pay tax on my interest?

Depending on your individual circumstances, you may need to declare your earnings to HRMC if they exceed your annual Personal Savings Allowance (PSA). Introduced in 2016/17, the PSA gives all tax-payers a tax-free savings allowance. If you're a basic rate tax-payer, you can earn up to £1,000 per year tax-free. Higher earners can earn up to £500 per year.  

You may need to consider paying tax on earnings for the tax year during which the interest was applied to your account.

What is the Bank of England base rate?

The Bank of England base rate is the interest rate that banks, like Zopa, are charged for borrowing money. This affects the interest rates that we're able to offer our customers when they save with us.

You can check the current Bank of England base rate here. If that rate goes up or down, we’ll change your Boosted pot interest rate by the same amount within 2 working days and notify you through email.

Can the interest rate change?

This depends on the type of pots you have with us. Here’s a breakdown of the details:

Smart Saver

Access pots:

• The interest rate on Access pots is variable, which means it can move over time based on changes in the savings market.

• If your interest rate is going up, we’ll apply the new rate immediately and let you know about the change via email.

• If your interest rate is going down, we'll give you a heads-up via email at least 14 days before the new rate is implemented.

Boosted pots:

• The interest rates on 7, 31 and 95-day Boosted pots are set at a certain percentage below the Bank of England base rate. We have the right to change these percentages, and we’ll notify you via email if we ever do.

• If the base rate changes, your Boosted pot interest rate will change by the same amount within 2 business days, and we'll give you a heads up via email afterwards.

Fixed Term pots:

• The interest rate on Fixed Term pots is fixed for the duration of the term. This means we can't change the rate until your fixed term has ended.

Smart ISA

Access ISA pots:

• The interest rate on Access ISA pots is variable, which means it can move over time based on changes in the savings market.

• If your interest rate is going up, we’ll apply the new rate immediately and let you know about the change via email.

• If your interest rate is going down, we'll give you a heads-up via email at least 14 days before the new rate is implemented.

Fixed Term ISA pots:

• The interest rate on Fixed Term ISA pots is fixed for the duration of the term. This means we can't change the rate until your fixed term has ended.

Click here to see a list of all the changes we've made to our interest rates over time.