Pre-launch profile
Lightyear PIA: fees, terms and review
Lightyear's position: Stated plan. No verdict until Lightyear publishes full terms — this page tracks what has been said and what is still missing.
Updated 30 October 2026
What Lightyear has said
Lightyear confirmed to PIA·IE on 30 October 2026 its intention to offer a Personal Investment Account. No launch date, fees, minimums or investment range have been published.
Source: Confirmation to PIA·IE from Lightyear (30 October 2026)
Stated plan: The firm has publicly stated it plans to offer the account; this does not mean applications are open or terms are published.
Authorisation: EEA MiFID firm passporting into Ireland
What to expect on investment choice
Lightyear has not published its PIA investment range. Firms usually build from what they already sell, so our working expectation is that it will reflect its existing investing app: European and US shares, ETFs and money market funds, bought in your own name.
- If Lightyear carries its current app into a PIA, the range would be shares and ETFs you choose yourself, which the Bill allows.
- Its pricing today is low, per-trade fees plus currency conversion costs rather than a percentage platform fee. PIA pricing is not published.
- Lightyear passports into Ireland from another EEA country, so how it will handle Irish PIA tax reporting has not been explained yet. Whether money market funds are eligible inside a PIA is also an open question.
Individual shares: likely
Lightyear is a share-dealing app, so individual shares and ETFs are its core product. It has not confirmed the PIA range.
Advice or DIY
No advice. Lightyear is execution-only today and we do not expect an advised PIA.
Existing range: Lightyear. This section is PIA·IE's reading of Lightyear's current offering, not a statement from Lightyear. We will replace it with published PIA terms when they appear.
Existing investments and the PIA
Short answer: they stay separate. The Finance Bill lets only new cash into a PIA. Your existing investments, with Lightyear or anywhere else, cannot be moved into it as they are.
Outside the PIA
Your existing investments
- ✕ Can't be moved in as they are
- • Keep their current tax rules
- • Keep their own charges and terms
Inside the PIA
New cash only
- ✓ Money paid in, then invested (s.747L(2)(c))
- ✓ Up to €12,000 a calendar year (s.747H(1))
- ✓ Moves as is only from another PIA (s.747W)
What if…
- I want my existing investments in a PIA? You would have to sell them and pay the money in, within the €12,000 yearly limit. Selling can trigger exit tax on funds and ETFs, or CGT on shares.
- I keep my existing plan? Nothing changes for it under section 26. It carries on under its current rules alongside any PIA.
- I open a PIA elsewhere and later switch to Lightyear? A PIA-to-PIA transfer is allowed, if Lightyear offers a PIA and accepts transfers in.
Not advice: whether to keep or cash in an existing plan depends on your gains, charges and plans. In the Finance Bill, not yet law. See moving existing investments into a PIA.
Fees and total yearly cost
| Provider / platform fee | Not published yet |
|---|---|
| Fixed account fee | Not published yet |
| Fund ongoing charge | Not published yet |
| Adviser or broker commission | Not published yet |
| Dealing and FX fees | Not published yet |
| Entry, exit and switching charges | Not published yet |
The PIA tax itself — 1% of value above €50,000, nothing up to that amount — is the same at every provider and is shown separately on the cost comparison.
What to check when terms arrive
- Every yearly charge added together, not just the headline platform fee.
- Whether advice or commission is built in, and whether you can opt out.
- Fund charges on the funds you'd actually hold.
- Exit and transfer charges if you later move provider.
In the Finance Bill, not yet law
Common questions
Can I buy individual shares in a Lightyear PIA?
Lightyear is a share-dealing app, so individual shares and ETFs are its core product. It has not confirmed the PIA range.
Will Lightyear's PIA be advised or DIY?
No advice. Lightyear is execution-only today and we do not expect an advised PIA. Not yet confirmed by Lightyear for the PIA.
What fees will Lightyear charge on its PIA?
Unconfirmed. Lightyear has not published PIA fees. We will add each cost line, with its source, as soon as it does.
Can I move existing Lightyear investments into a PIA?
No, not as they are. Under section 26 of the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, only cash can be paid into a PIA (s.747L(2)(c)), and investments can only move across as they are from another PIA (s.747W). Holdings outside the account would have to be sold first (with any tax due) and paid in as cash, up to €12,000 a calendar year. In the Finance Bill, not yet law.
What will I be able to invest in through Lightyear's PIA?
Unconfirmed. Budget 2027 said shares, bonds, ETFs and other funds may be held, but each provider's range is not yet known.
How is the PIA tax handled with Lightyear?
Under the Finance Bill, providers deduct the 1% charge on value above €50,000 — accounts up to €50,000 pay no PIA tax. Not yet law.
Next: PIA calculator · how fees compound · provider tracker
Run your own numbers
Compare a Personal Investment Account against a deposit account and a standard fund over 10, 20 or 30 years — with real Irish rates.
Open the PIA calculatorInformation only, not financial or tax advice. PIA rules are as written in the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, published 19 October 2026, and are not law until the Bill is signed. Figures cited are from the Department of Finance roadmap, Revenue, Skatteverket, GOV.UK and the IRS.