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Raising angel investment for a UK startup

Most UK angels invest under SEIS or EIS. We get the company, the share structure and the tax schemes ready before you pitch.

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Business angels are people who invest their own money in a company in exchange for shares, alone or through a syndicate, network or club. In the British Business Bank's 2025 survey, the median first investment was £15,000 and 88% of angels used EIS or SEIS.

An angel round usually involves several investors, each relying on the company qualifying for SEIS or EIS. The work that makes the round go smoothly is mostly accounting and tax: current books, a forecast, a clean share structure and advance assurance.

Business angels in the UK

The British Business Bank describes business angels as people who invest their own money in businesses in exchange for a share of the capital. They may invest alone, or through an angel syndicate, network or club (Small Business Equity Tracker 2025). The UK Business Angels Association is the trade body for angel and early-stage investing.

The bank's 2025 survey of angels, run with the association, found that:

  • the median first investment in 2023/24 was £15,000, and the mean was £50,000
  • the median follow-on investment was £7,500
  • 88% of angels who invested in 2023/24 used EIS or SEIS
  • an angel made just over 3 new investments a year on average

The bank says to treat these figures as indicative only, because they come from 249 responses. They do suggest that an angel round is usually made up of several investors, each of whom will need the paperwork that goes with their shares.

HMRC's latest figures, for 2024-25, show 2,430 companies raising £276m under SEIS and 3,735 companies raising £1,575m under EIS (HMRC statistics, May 2026).

Getting SEIS or EIS ready

Because most angels use the schemes, the company needs to qualify and the share issue needs to be done in the right order. Apply for advance assurance before you pitch, so you can show investors HMRC's reply. Issue SEIS shares before any EIS shares. After the round, file the compliance statement so each investor gets the certificate they need to claim.

SEIS advance assurance
The company limits, the documents HMRC asks for and how to apply.
EIS advance assurance
The limits from 6 April 2026, the knowledge-intensive tests and the application.
SEIS1 and EIS1 compliance statements
When to file, the deadlines and the certificates your investors need.

Advance subscription agreements

An advance subscription agreement lets an investor pay now for shares the company issues later. HMRC sets out when one is acceptable for EIS (VCM12025) and SEIS (VCM33025):

  • the money cannot be refunded under any circumstances
  • the agreement cannot be varied, cancelled or assigned
  • it pays no interest
  • it has a long-stop date for issuing the shares, which HMRC expects to be no more than 6 months from the date of the agreement
  • it must not work as a loan, and an agreement used to convert existing debt into shares does not qualify
  • its timing and terms should fit the company's business plan for growth

The investor's relief starts on the date the shares are issued. Our post on advance subscription agreements and convertible notes compares the two.

Where to find angel investors

Find Investment

List a raise of £100,000 to £2 million with a plan, a deck and a short video, and let investors make the first approach.

For professional investors, certified high net worth individuals and self-certified sophisticated investors. Run by Founder Capital LLP. Founders pay a monthly fee to list.

How listing works

SEIS and EIS

Tax relief that makes your shares more attractive to individual investors.

Advance assurance £499 + VAT before you pitch. The compliance statement and investor certificates £599 + VAT after the round.

SEIS and EIS

Find Investment and Founder Capital are run by Founder Capital LLP, a separate firm from Buzz Accounting Ltd, the company behind this site. Andy Jackson is a director of Buzz Accounting Ltd and a designated member of Founder Capital LLP. Swoop is an independent company. Each site applies its own criteria and makes its own decisions.

Anything that invites people to invest can be a financial promotion, which the law restricts. Take legal advice on your pitch and investor emails before you send them.

Our fees for an angel round

Investor readiness

Quoted before we start
  • Books, filings and share records brought up to date
  • A forecast with its assumptions written down
  • The financial documents investors ask for

Business Pulse set-up

From £750 + VAT, one-off
  • Annual budget and 12-month cash flow forecast
  • The KPIs investors will ask about
  • A planning meeting to agree the assumptions

SEIS and EIS

£499 then £599 + VAT
  • Advance assurance before you pitch
  • The compliance statement after the round
  • A certificate for every investor

Other funding pages

SEIS and EIS
How we handle a round under the schemes, from advance assurance to investor certificates.
Raising venture capital
The funding stages, what venture capital funds check and the 2025 market.
Investment due diligence
What investors check, how to prepare and what goes in the data room.
Startup valuation and dilution
Pre-money and post-money, a worked dilution example and EMI share valuations.
Term sheets explained
The terms in a UK term sheet and the model documents for Series A.
Raising your first investment round
Getting the books and cap table ready, and the filings afterwards.

Common questions

How much does a business angel usually invest?

In the British Business Bank's survey with the UK Business Angels Association, the median first investment in 2023/24 was £15,000 and the mean was £50,000. The median follow-on investment was £7,500. The bank says to treat these figures as indicative, because they come from 249 responses (Small Business Equity Tracker 2025).

Do angels expect SEIS or EIS?

88% of the angels in the same survey who invested in 2023/24 used EIS or SEIS. Applying for advance assurance before you pitch lets you answer the question when it comes up.

What is an advance subscription agreement?

An agreement where an investor pays now for shares the company issues later. HMRC accepts one for SEIS and EIS only if it cannot be refunded, varied, cancelled or assigned, pays no interest, works in no way as a loan, and has a long-stop date for the shares to be issued.

Can we email our pitch to people we know?

Anything that invites people to invest can be a financial promotion, which the law restricts. Take legal advice on the pitch deck and on any investor emails before you send them.

What do you do on an angel round?

We prepare the accounting and tax side: books and filings brought up to date, a forecast, the share structure, SEIS or EIS advance assurance, and the compliance statement and certificates afterwards. Our investor readiness page sets out the work and the prices.

Talk to us before your angel round

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