Is there a minimum investment for the seed enterprise investment scheme?

Oxbotica was founded to ‘spin out’ technology from Oxford University’s department of engineering science. Under a licence granted by the university its aim was to design and develop ‘highly innovative products’ invented by professors. It issued 100 000 fully paid-up ordinary shares to five shareholders – four individuals and the university.

It applied for seed enterprise investment scheme (SEIS) compliance certificates for the issue of shares to three of the investors. HMRC refused on the basis that the amount raised by the company on subscription £316 was not ‘enough to be of meaningful use to the company in its business’. It accepted there was no statutory minimum investment under the SEIS legislation but said its purpose was to raise investment through crowd funding. Further parliament could not have envisaged a share issue for £316.

The taxpayer appealed.

The First-tier Tribunal said the matter was simple. It...