What is the EIIS (Employment Investment Incentive Scheme) in Ireland?
The Employment Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS) is an Irish tax relief designed to encourage individual investors to invest in small and medium-sized Irish companies. It is Ireland's equivalent of the UK's EIS (Enterprise Investment Scheme).
How EIIS works:
An individual who subscribes for eligible shares in a qualifying company can claim income tax relief at 35% on the amount invested. This means a ā¬20,000 investment generates a ā¬7,000 income tax deduction (saving ā¬7,000 if you pay tax at the higher rate, or up to ā¬2,940 at the 42% effective combined rate).
From Finance Act 2024, the relief was increased to 50% if the company meets additional conditions related to employment creation or is an innovative enterprise.
Conditions for investors:
- Investment must be in new, fully paid-up ordinary shares
- Minimum holding period: 4 years (shares cannot be sold within 4 years)
- Investor must not be connected with the company (no more than 30% ownership)
- Maximum investment for relief: ā¬500,000 per year (with a lifetime limit)
Conditions for qualifying companies:
- Must be an Irish-registered trading company with Irish and/or EEA operations
- Must be an SME (fewer than 250 employees, turnover under ā¬50m)
- Must not be in financial difficulty at the time of investment
- Most trading activities qualify; property development, financial services, and certain professional services are excluded
Risk: EIIS investments are high-risk by nature ā these are small, often early-stage companies. Tax relief does not protect against the risk of losing the investment entirely. Investors should take independent financial advice.
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