The Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS) offers tax incentives to private Irish investors who provide qualifying small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) risk capital. This scheme aids these companies in securing the necessary funding to grow their operations and maintain or create job opportunities. EIIS is attractive for individual investors who can claim up to 35% tax relief upfront on their investment.

There are several approaches to participating in the EIIS scheme:

• Directly with the company with no fees and at affordable amounts dealing with the Directors of the Company 
• Via Accounting Firms with 3% commissions and annual fees.
• Through an EIIS fund with initial amounts between €10,000 and €20,000 at a nominal fee of around 3%. Possible 6-9 months waiting period to deploy funds.
• Crowdfunding Platforms have low entry investments from €250 but high fees for the company and are for riskier early stage startups.

An investment to be eligible under the EIIS, it must be a share-based investment in a qualifying company. The funds raised should be utilised to aid job creation and growth of the company. Furthermore, the investment should be anchored on a detailed and well-outlined business plan.

The investor earns up to 35% relief on their income taxes. The investment amount can be deducted from gross income for income tax purposes.

You can claim relief once you’ve obtained a ‘Statement of Qualification’ SQEII-3 from the company which you will receive in January of the following year. You must verify that you’ve satisfied all the pertinent investor prerequisites before claiming relief. To proceed with your claim, you must fill out the relevant sections: Income Tax Return Form 11.

The 35% tax relief is obtained for the year the investment is made, i.e. for an investment made in 2024, the investor will get 35% relief in his/her 2024 tax return usually filed in 2025.

1. Simply confirm the amount you wish to invest via e mail and provide your address details. 
2. We can either email or post out an Investor Memorandum and Application Form for you to complete. 
3. For Anti-Money laundering purposes we will need a certified copy of your ID (passport or driver’s license) as well as proof of address with 2 original utility bills no more than 3 months old.
4. Once the docs are signed, payment can be made by cheque or direct transfer into the Wild Atlantic Health bank account.
5. In January we will provide you with an SQEII3 Statement of Qualification on EIIS from Revenue containing your details and the investment amount to enable you to claim back the 35% tax refund.
6. Your share certificates will also be posted out to you during the first week in February.