EIS Tax Relief Calculator 2025/26

SEIS (Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme) targets very early-stage companies and offers 50% income tax relief on up to £200,000/year. EIS (Enterprise Investment Scheme) targets growth-stage companies and offers 30% income tax relief on up to £1 million/year (£2 million for knowledge-intensive companies). SEIS companies must be very small (under 25 employees, under £350k gross assets) while EIS allows larger companies (under 250 employees, under £15M gross assets). Both offer CGT exemption on gains after 3 years.

EIS CGT deferral relief allows investors to defer paying capital gains tax on any gain (from any asset, not just shares) by investing the same amount into qualifying EIS shares. The deferred gain is held over until the EIS shares are disposed of. Unlike the CGT exemption on the EIS gain itself, deferral relief does not require the shares to be held for 3 years. This makes EIS a useful planning tool for investors who have recently realised a capital gain.

Yes — an investor can use both SEIS and EIS in the same tax year, investing in different qualifying companies under each scheme. The annual limits apply separately: up to £200,000 under SEIS and up to £1 million under EIS. You cannot use SEIS and EIS for the same company — they are mutually exclusive for any given investee company. However, a company can raise SEIS funding first, and later raise EIS funding once the SEIS conditions are met.