SEIS and EIS statistics 2026: investment and advance assurance
Reviewed and updated: 21 September 2026.
HMRC's May 2026 release covers investment in 2024/25 and advance assurance applications in 2025/26. Those are different datasets and periods. The distinction matters when interpreting the figures for a new funding round.
The investment figures
HMRC reports £1,575 million raised through EIS and £276 million through SEIS in 2024/25. EIS funding was unchanged from the preceding year; SEIS funding increased by 14%.
Those totals describe investments recorded under the schemes, not funds committed by government to individual startups. They do not show how easy any particular company will find fundraising.
Advance assurance: approvals so far are not final outcomes
For 2025/26, HMRC reports 4,085 SEIS requests, with 3,090 approved so far, and 3,310 EIS requests, with 2,365 approved so far. The reported proportions are 76% and 72% respectively. Some applications remained in progress at the reporting date.
It is incorrect to describe the remaining 24% and 28% as rejection or failure rates. These figures also do not establish first-attempt success rates. Comparing an incomplete cohort with an older, more settled one cannot on its own establish that HMRC has tightened its standards.
The data supports preparing a complete application. It does not identify which technical issue accounts for most refusals, prove a crackdown or guarantee a particular processing time.
Source: HMRC's May 2026 statistics, sections 1 and 5. Recent investment estimates are also subject to revision.
What founders should take from the figures
A national total is context, not an eligibility decision. Start by checking the business, the share rights and the funding history. A first fundraising round is not automatically eligible for SEIS; an established company is not automatically excluded from EIS. Each scheme has its own tests.
A strong application describes the real business plan and proposed investment coherently. Where an issue is difficult, such as acquired IP, a group structure or unusual investor rights, address it directly. Better wording cannot make an ineligible transaction eligible.
Plan around the actual process
HMRC publishes response aims of 15 working days for most SEIS advance assurance applications and 40 working days for complex cases. A response may request information or decline assurance. These are not guaranteed completion times. VCM60270.
Allow time to resolve questions before the round is due to complete. Review the final transaction against what was disclosed and remember that the company still has a subsequent compliance process. Investors also need to meet their own conditions.
Our SEIS advance assurance guide covers the documents, evidence and application steps. Our SEIS1 guide explains what follows after issue.
A useful way to read future releases
Ask four questions before using a headline in a pitch or business plan:
- Which tax year does it cover?
- Does it measure investment, applications or completed decisions?
- Is the cohort complete or still subject to processing and revision?
- Does the source actually support the conclusion being drawn?
That approach makes the statistics useful without turning provisional administrative data into a forecast of your company's prospects.
For help with a proposed investment, discuss your SEIS or EIS position with IP Tax Solutions. We can agree the scope of a review around the facts and the point causing concern.
This article provides general information. Company, share and investor conditions require separate consideration.