Which equity scheme should I raise under: SEIS, EIS or VCT?
How to choose between SEIS, EIS and VCT funding for a UK growth-stage round.
Key takeaway
How to choose between SEIS, EIS and VCT funding for a UK growth-stage round. This guide weighs Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), British Patient Capital against your stage, funding type and timeline using verified FundingAtlas data, and explains when each is the right call.
The question
How to choose between SEIS, EIS and VCT funding for a UK growth-stage round.
Key considerations
The factors that should shape your decision before you commit operator hours to an application.
| Funding stage | startup, growth |
|---|---|
| Funding type | tax_incentive, equity |
| Funding amount | Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS): Up to £250k raised • Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS): Up to £12m raised • British Patient Capital: Funding levels vary and should be confirmed through the official scheme guidance. • Investors' Relief: 14% CGT (from April 2025) |
| Eligibility | UK trading company; under 3 years trading; <25 FTE; <£350k gross assets; qualifying trade; max £250,000 lifetime SEIS raise; investors must be unconnected individual UK taxpayers. |
| Timeline | Advance Assurance typically 4–8 weeks. SEIS1 compliance statement can only be filed after 4 months of trading or after spending 70% of the funds. SEIS3 certificates to investors usually 2–6 weeks after HMRC approval. |
| Region | Some programmes are England-only, others run across the devolved nations or are restricted to combined-authority footprints. Check each official source. |
Recommended route
**Quick Answer**
Founders choose between SEIS and EIS. VCT is an investor-side wrapper — your company qualifies for VCT investment under broadly the same rules as EIS, so you do not "choose" VCT, you welcome it.
**SEIS** — Default for first equity rounds: company under 3 years, gross assets under £350k, lifetime cap £250k.
**EIS** — Default for subsequent rounds: under 7 years of first commercial sale (10 for KIC), gross assets under £15m, £5m annual and £12m lifetime cap.
**VCT** — A retail tax-incentivised fund structure. VCTs invest in companies under the same risk-finance rules as EIS, but with a few extra investor-side restrictions. A VCT-led round is typically larger (£1m–£5m) and more institutional in process.
**How to sequence**
1. Use SEIS first if you qualify. 2. Move to EIS once SEIS is exhausted. 3. Welcome VCT participation in the EIS round if a VCT manager wants to lead or co-invest.
**Common pitfalls**
- Treating VCT as a separate route — it is an investor wrapper inside the EIS framework. - Accepting non-qualifying investment before SEIS/EIS that breaks the risk-finance ceiling.
**Conservative Note**
VCT, SEIS and EIS rules are set in UK tax legislation and can change at Budget. This is editorial guidance, not tax, financial or investment advice.
Alternative routes
Where the primary recommendation is not the right fit, these are the programmes most commonly considered alongside it.
- Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS)
tax_incentive · Up to £12m raised
- British Patient Capital
equity · Funding levels vary and should be confirmed through the official scheme guidance.
- Investors' Relief
tax_incentive · 14% CGT (from April 2025)
Common mistakes
- Starting with the largest scheme rather than the highest-fit scheme.
- Treating funding as a one-off project rather than a 24-month strategy.
- Underestimating the documentation effort: prior trading, prior R&D, finance pack.
- Missing the interaction between grant income and downstream R&D tax relief.
- Engaging a contingent-fee broker before checking whether the scheme is broker-eligible.
- Self-selecting out of a programme based on an optimistic read of eligibility.
Decision checklist
- Confirm your business stage, region and headcount against scheme thresholds.
- Map the next 24 months of funding need before applying to any one programme.
- Identify the official source for each programme on your shortlist.
- Quantify match-funding and staged-drawdown impact on cashflow.
- Check subsidy-control / de minimis ceilings across stacked awards.
- Model the interaction with R&D tax relief on subsidised costs.
- Decide whether the assessment timeline fits your delivery plan.
- Schedule the application in the calendar before committing operator hours.
Frequently asked questions
- What is this decision guide about?
- How to choose between SEIS, EIS and VCT funding for a UK growth-stage round.
- Which funding stage does this guide cover?
- Programmes referenced here target: startup, growth.
- What types of funding are compared?
- This guide considers: tax_incentive, equity.
- How much funding could I access?
- Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS): Up to £250k raised. Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS): Up to £12m raised. British Patient Capital: Funding levels vary and should be confirmed through the official scheme guidance.. Investors' Relief: 14% CGT (from April 2025).
- Who is eligible for the recommended routes?
- UK trading company; under 3 years trading; <25 FTE; <£350k gross assets; qualifying trade; max £250,000 lifetime SEIS raise; investors must be unconnected individual UK taxpayers.
- How long will it take to receive funding?
- Advance Assurance typically 4–8 weeks. SEIS1 compliance statement can only be filed after 4 months of trading or after spending 70% of the funds. SEIS3 certificates to investors usually 2–6 weeks after HMRC approval.
- Can I apply to more than one of these programmes?
- Some combinations are permitted, others are restricted by subsidy-control rules or scheme-specific exclusivity clauses. Refer to the latest programme guidance before stacking applications.
- Will receiving a grant affect my R&D tax relief claim?
- It can. Grant-subsidised R&D expenditure is often relievable only at a reduced rate, and the interaction depends on which scheme funded which costs. FundingAtlas could not verify the interaction for every combination; confirm with a qualified adviser.
- What if my situation does not match any of the recommended routes?
- Use the Funding Finder to build a personalised shortlist, or request a Funding Strategy Review for a reviewer-led assessment.
- Where do I find the official source for each programme?
- Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS): https://www.gov.uk/guidance/venture-capital-schemes-apply-for-the-seed-enterprise-investment-scheme — Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS): https://www.gov.uk/guidance/venture-capital-schemes-apply-for-the-enterprise-investment-scheme — British Patient Capital: https://www.britishpatientcapital.co.uk/our-portfolio/ — Investors' Relief: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/investors-relief
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