Changes to enterprise investment schemes (EIS) and venture capital trusts (VCTs) will be introduced to comply with the latest state aid rules and increase support for high growth companies.
Seed enterprise investment schemes (SEIS) will be affected by the new rules, which include the requirement for companies to be less than 12 years old when receiving their first EIS or VCT investment, except where the investment will lead to a substantial change in the company’s activity. A cap on total investment of £15m will be introduced under the tax-advantaged venture capital schemes, increasing to £20m for knowledge-intensive companies.
The employee limit for knowledge-intensive companies will also increase, subject to state aid approval, to 499 employees from the current limit of 249.
The government also wants to make it easier for money to be moved between schemes by removing the requirement that 70% of SEIS funds be spent before VCT or EIS fundraising can occur.
Article by ACCA In Practice