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Retire at 57

ISA bridging: how many years of spending to hold

By Graeme Watson·

ISA bridging means holding enough in ISAs to cover your spending for the years before you can — or want to — draw a pension. Because ISAs have no minimum access age and withdrawals are tax-free, they are the natural bridge to pension access at 57 (from 2028) or to the State Pension at 67. A rough guide: hold the number of years you need to bridge multiplied by your yearly spending.

Why ISAs are the bridge

A pension cannot normally be touched before 57 (from 2028), and the State Pension does not start until 67. An ISA has neither restriction: you can withdraw at any age, and you pay no income or capital gains tax on what comes out. That makes ISA savings the obvious pot to lean on in the earliest retirement years.

How many years should you hold?

Work out the gap you are bridging, then multiply by your annual spending:

  • Bridging to pension access at 57: hold roughly (57 minus your retirement age) years of spending in ISAs. Retire at 54 and that is about three years.
  • Bridging to the State Pension at 67: if you rely mainly on ISAs, that could be closer to ten years of spending from 57 — though most people blend in pension income from 57, so the ISA share is smaller.

As an illustration only: if you spend £30,000 a year and want ISAs to cover five bridge years, that is about £150,000 held in ISAs — before any allowance for growth or the pension income you will blend in. Treat it as a scale, not a precise target.

Building the bridge

You can put up to £20,000 a year into ISAs (the current annual allowance — check the latest on gov.uk), so a bridge is usually built over several years. A stocks-and-shares ISA is often used for money you will not need for a while, and cash or short-dated holdings for the years you will spend soonest — so a market fall does not force you to sell at the wrong time.

The bridge is what turns 'I can access my pension at 57' into 'I can actually stop work at 57'. Size it against the gap you are covering, keep the soonest years in something stable, and blend in pension income once you reach 57. More on the wider plan in can you retire at 57?

Figures correct as of July 2026. Tax rules, allowances and rates change over time — always check the current position before acting.

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Common questions

Questions about retiring at 57

What is ISA bridging?

Holding enough in ISAs to cover your spending for the years before you can, or want to, draw a pension. Because ISAs have no minimum access age and are tax-free to withdraw, they bridge the gap to pension access at 57 or the State Pension at 67.

How many years of spending should I hold in ISAs?

Roughly the number of years you are bridging times your annual spending. Bridging to pension access at 57 might be a few years; bridging toward the State Pension at 67 could be more, though most people blend in pension income from 57 so the ISA share is smaller.

Should ISA bridge money be in cash or investments?

Often a mix: cash or short-dated holdings for the years you will spend soonest, so a market fall does not force a sale at the wrong time, and a stocks-and-shares ISA for money you will not need for several years.