The Budget contained good news for one group: the 18 million people with money tucked away in individual savings accounts (Isas).

From next April the maximum amount that can be put into these tax-privileged products each year will rise from £7,200 to £10,200. For those aged 50 or over the lifting of the annual limit is being brought forward to this tax year.

The investment industry said that the change was long overdue, although it was disappointed that those under 50 would have wait for the benefits. In the ten years since Isas were introduced, the limit had been raised by only £200 – from £7,000 to £7,200. If the limit had been increased in line with average earnings since 1999, the figure would now stand at £10,500.

James Davies, investment manager at Chartwell Group, said: “Finally the Chancellor has realised, rather late in the day, that savers and investors have been dealt a dodgy hand by previous Budgets.”Investors will be able to put the full £10,200 into a stocks and shares Isa but only half that into a cash Isa.

Mike Warburton, senior tax partner at the accountant Grant Thornton, said: “It is a shame that the Revenue did not abolish the distinction between cash Isas and stocks and shares Isas. People should be free to make investment decisions based on what is appropriate for them, rather than be constrained by the fairly arbitrary limits imposed by the Revenue.”

Those with money in offshore accounts will have until March 2010 to inform HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) of any unpaid tax or duties and to settle any tax bills before HMRC begins a crack-down.

The “new disclosure opportunity” follows a similar initiative in 2007, when 45,000 people came forward to give HMRC details of their nonUK savings. The offshore disclosure facility promised less harsh penalties for those who volunteered information and by agreeing to levy a penalty of only 10 per cent on top of the tax and interest that was due, the HMRC succeeded in collecting £400 million.

This time round the penalty is likely to be stiffer but Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of tax at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, said that those with undeclared offshore accounts should reveal them now. “This is likely to be their last chance to do so. The net is closing in on those with hidden overseas income and they should own up now before they receive a knock on the door,” he said.

Critics attacked the Chancellor’s attempts to simplify venture capital trusts (VCTs) and enterprise investment schemes (EISs) as inadequate and a missed opportunity. Both offer upfront tax breaks for people investing in riskier small businesses.

The new rules allow more time for money put into these schemes to be invested in companies. In the case of EISs, investors will also be able to claim upfront tax relief about a year earlier than they previously could. David Brookes, a tax partner at the accountant BDO Stoy Hayward, said: “While these changes are welcome they don’t go nearly far enough. It is a great pity that the Revenue did not raise the level of upfront tax relief on EISs from the current 20 per cent to 40 per cent.

“It could also have relaxed the rules governing which companies are eligible for EIS investment. At present they can raise only £2 million a year from all types of venture capital schemes and must have less than 50 employees.

“You would have thought that with small companies having difficulty raising loans in the current economic climate the Government would want to encourage companies to raise equity finance.”

HMRC plans to “name and shame” those who have sought to avoid paying large amounts of tax. It is going to publish the names of individuals and companies that incur a penalty because they have deliberately understated more than £25,000 of tax.