The Corporate Tax team at top 100 UK law firm Birketts have launched a new app for checking the eligibility of companies for the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), which could offer potential investors highly attractive tax incentives for backing certain businesses.
By answering a series of questions, the app can quickly tell business owners whether they are potentially eligible for either scheme, with the SEIS specifically for start-up companies and the EIS open to a broader range of enterprises. The step-by-step design of the app simplifies the highly complex criteria required to qualify for the schemes, saving businesses valuable time.
Eligible businesses can issue SEIS/EIS qualifying shares, with the SEIS capable of raising up to £150k; however, certain companies could raise (in combination with EIS and Social Investment Tax Relief) as much as £20m over the lifetime of a company.
At any point whilst using the app a business owner can contact the Corporate Tax team directly with further questions regarding how they may become eligible for these schemes.
Partner and Head of Corporate Tax at Birketts Karl Pocock, said: “Ever-changing tax legislation can leave businesses facing a wealth of complex tax issues – our new app is designed to cut through these complications to make finding new investment opportunities as clear as possible.
Our Corporate Tax team has a wealth of diverse experience, accumulated across regional, national and international law firms, so we can navigate any queries regarding these schemes and broader tax with tailored, transparent legal advice.
The SEIS and EIS give investors a chance to reduce their income tax liability and benefit from an exemption from capital gains tax when the shares are sold, which makes them highly attractive investments and valuable opportunities for businesses in need of additional finance.
We usually suggest that any company wishing to issue SEIS and/or EIS qualifying shares seeks advance assurance from HMRC. Birketts is well-versed in successfully obtaining advance assurances and we offer a competitive, fixed pricing structure designed to accommodate the nature and complexity of your situation.”
The SEIS and EIS Checker app can be found on the Birketts website.
There is also a Q&A page which goes into more detail on the specificities of each scheme.