Earlier this year in FT Adviser, David Mott, our Founder Partner, set out the case for strengthening EIS, including higher limits so serious investors could commit more capital through the scheme rather than being pushed into less efficient structures. We argued for higher individual allowances. The Chancellor has not moved there yet, but the direction of travel is clear.
What we did get is:
- Higher company limits for EIS and VCT from April 2026
- A cut in VCT income tax relief to 20%
- EIS income tax relief left at 30%
One disappointment is that the EIS age limit for qualifying companies has not been relaxed, which keeps some later-developing businesses, especially outside London and the South East, on the wrong side of the line.
For the next tax year and beyond, that is a very explicit signal. If you want 30% income tax relief for backing UK growth companies, the favoured route is now EIS, not VCT. The Treasury has increased the capacity for companies to raise under the schemes while pushing investors toward the structure that puts new risk capital directly into startups and scale ups.
For our corner of the market this matters. Oxford University produces more spinouts than any other university in the country, and many of those companies now raise larger rounds later in their journey. Higher EIS company limits mean:
- More Oxford spinouts and scale ups can remain EIS eligible for longer
- Later stage rounds can still sit inside the EIS framework
- Larger individual tickets can be deployed into more mature businesses, not only into very early seed
That opens up a wider opportunity set for investors who want exposure to Oxford’s science and technology pipeline with EIS terms attached. It tilts the playing field toward putting more money directly into high growth companies, rather than into pooled VCT structures where relief has just been cut.
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