Rates & allowances
Tax reliefs for individuals — UK rates and thresholds
EIS, SEIS, VCT and SITR reliefs and limits.
2026/27
Tax reliefs for individuals
- EIS — annual limit£1,000,000 + £2m for knowledge-intensive
- EIS — income tax relief£30 %
- SEIS — annual limit£200,000
- SEIS — income tax relief£50 %
- VCT — annual limit£200,000
- VCT — income tax relief£30 %
EIS/SEIS — CGT exempt on disposal after 3 years. SEIS reinvestment relief: 50% on other gains. SIR closed to new investments from 6 April 2023.
Tax reliefs for individuals
A range of reliefs can reduce an individual’s tax bill — from the marriage allowance and gift aid to venture capital schemes such as EIS, SEIS and VCTs, which give income tax relief on qualifying investments. The tables above summarise the current reliefs and limits.
Used well, these reliefs can make a real difference. We help you claim what you are entitled to and invest tax-efficiently.
SEIS and EIS
These reliefs exist to make investing in young companies worth the risk, and the incentives are substantial: income tax relief on the amount invested, exemption from capital gains on the growth if the shares are held long enough, and relief against income if the investment fails. For the company raising money, being able to offer them is often the difference between a round happening and not.
The conditions are strict on both sides and several are about timing. The company must be young enough and small enough, carrying on a qualifying trade; the shares must be newly issued ordinary shares, fully paid in cash, without preferential rights; and the investor must not be connected to the company. Advance assurance from HMRC before the round is what most investors ask to see.
The part that goes wrong is on the company side and it is not recoverable: the wrong share class, money accepted before the paperwork is right, or a connected investor can disqualify a round, and once the shares are issued it cannot be undone.
The reliefs people forget to claim
Higher-rate relief on personal pension contributions and on gift aid donations is not given automatically — the extra relief above basic rate has to be claimed through the tax return. People who pay into a pension personally and never file a return are quietly leaving it behind every year.
Frequently asked
What is the marriage allowance?+
It lets a lower-earning spouse or civil partner transfer part of their personal allowance to the other, saving tax. We can check if you qualify and backdate a claim.
Do EIS and SEIS give tax relief?+
Yes — qualifying investments attract income tax relief and capital gains advantages. These are higher-risk, so take advice first.
What is the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme?+
A relief that gives investors in qualifying young companies income tax relief on what they invest, a capital gains exemption on the growth, and loss relief if it fails — which is why a qualifying round is far easier to raise. Get advance assurance from HMRC before taking money: several conditions turn on timing, and a disqualified round cannot be undone once the shares are issued.
Do I have to claim higher-rate pension relief myself?+
Yes, if you contribute personally. Basic-rate relief is added to the pension automatically; anything above that is claimed through your tax return. Higher and additional-rate taxpayers who do not file are leaving it behind every year.
Rates in context
Knowing the rate is not the same as knowing the bill.
Thresholds interact — allowances taper, reliefs stack, and the order you take income in changes the total. We plan for that.
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