Advance assurance is HMRC's statement that a planned SEIS investment is likely to qualify. We check the company, prepare the documents and send the application for £499 + VAT.
The company can raise up to £250,000 under SEIS, and investors can claim 50% income tax relief on what they put in. Apply before you pitch, so you can show investors HMRC's reply when they ask whether the company qualifies.
Sources: HMRC, apply to use SEIS and HMRC, raise money by offering tax reliefs.
HMRC lists what it wants to see with an application on its advance assurance guidance page. Have these ready before you start the form:
Test the company against the limits above, and check the trade is a qualifying one. A share structure that needs changing is easier to fix before you apply.
The business plan, forecasts, articles, register of members and investor documents need to agree with each other, because HMRC reads them together.
The application is made through HMRC's online form, which needs a sign-in. If we apply as your agent, we include the letter of authority.
HMRC aims to respond to most applications within 15 working days and complex cases within 40, and allows no more than two rounds of correspondence after it gives its opinion (VCM60170).
HMRC's reply says whether the investment is likely to qualify. You can show it to investors before they commit, and then issue the shares.
An SEIS investor can claim income tax relief of 50% of the amount invested, on up to £200,000 a tax year. That limit was £100,000 before 6 April 2023. There is also Capital Gains Tax reinvestment relief on 50% of the amount invested, up to £100,000 (HMRC, tax relief for investors).
The investor has to hold the shares for 3 years to keep the relief, and the company has to keep to the scheme rules for the same period. An investor must claim no later than the fifth anniversary of the 31 January Self Assessment filing date for the tax year (section 257EA). They cannot claim until the company has filed its compliance statement and given them an SEIS3 certificate, which our compliance statements page explains.
No. A company can issue SEIS shares without it. Advance assurance is HMRC's statement that the investment is likely to qualify, which you can show to investors before they commit. Angel investors usually ask for it, because their relief depends on the company qualifying.
HMRC's internal manual says it aims to respond to most applications within 15 working days, and to complex cases within 40 working days (VCM60170). The GOV.UK guidance page itself gives no turnaround time, so allow for the longer figure when you plan the round.
HMRC charges nothing. Our fee for preparing the application and dealing with HMRC's questions is £499 + VAT. The compliance statement and investor certificates after the round are £599 + VAT.
Yes. An agent can apply on the company's behalf, and the application then includes a letter of authority from the company.
HMRC uses the same online form for both schemes. If you plan an SEIS round followed by EIS, say so in the application. Our EIS advance assurance page sets out the EIS limits.
An SEIS investor can claim income tax relief of 50% of the amount invested, on up to £200,000 a tax year, and must hold the shares for 3 years to keep it.
