Tax Efficient

Henny Dovland talks about TIME Investment’s new EIS offering in Dry Bulk Shipping. She discusses why this sector is a non-contentious fit with EIS, and why this is crucial in the light of the recent regulatory changes. Henny also covers why TIME think that now is the right time to invest in shipping and takes us through some of the other features of the product, including the asset backed nature of the investment and how that gives assurance around opportunities to exit. We also examine exactly how the underlying assets earn revenues, and what the best-case, worst-case and base-case returns to investors are likely to be. Finally, we cover the fee structure of the product and how the charges have been structured to allow the maximum amount of tax relief.

In this in-depth interview, Robert takes us through the five step process an EIS manager typically goes through to put together, run and eventually exit a portfolio of EIS investments. He covers sourcing deal flow, selecting opportunities, structuring deals, ongoing management and finally (and most importantly!) exiting investments. We discuss the numbers involved, the challenges encountered at each step and how EIS managers overcome them. Finally, we get his opinion on the future of the EIS scheme in the light of the recent changes to the legislation governing the scheme.

Andrew Sherlock talks about the different ways that advisers can diversify an EIS portfolio between growth and capital preservation strategies; between vintages; and between companies and cycles. He also explains how the income tax relief and loss relief puts a limit on losses, and how that works in a portfolio strategy.

Andrew Marris covers fees in EIS and why they are higher than mainstream investments, and harder for advisers to assess. He tells us what advisers can do to dig a little deeper to fully understand the fee structures and why the fees are set up that way. We also cover the advantages and disadvantages of charging investee companies rather than investors.

Matt Taylor discusses the tax advantages of EIS and how they can could be appropriate for a wider range of clients than many people may have realised. We also talk about why EIS is becoming so popular, the approach of HMRC, some of he risks involved in investing in smaller companies and the three questions advisers must ask when considering the suitability of their clients.

Keith Robertson expands on his three-pronged approach to suitability for EIS, discusses why advisers “parrot third party investment information at their peril” and shares his common sense hints for investing in EIS. He also tells us why he doesn’t place any faith in risk profiling tools.

Simon Housden discusses due diligence on EIS investments. He warns us about the issues of limited availability of capital preservation EIS; the increased potential risks and returns that gearing brings; and why providers need to balance fundraising with deployment. We also cover why advisers should manage expectations around investment time horizons, and the timing of tax reliefs.

Andrew Brierley from PwC discusses the changes to the EIS regime that were introduced in the March and July Budgets in 2015. He talks about the reasons for the changes, what advisers need to consider and whether we can now expect a period of stability for the rules governing these schemes.