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The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants has urged the government to simplify tax support schemes, citing complexity and administrative costs as barriers to business investment.
The HM Treasury consultation, Tax Support for Entrepreneurs, is a call for evidence launched alongside the 2025 Budget’s Entrepreneurship Prospectus.
It seeks to assess the efficacy, accessibility, and generosity of existing tax reliefs, such as the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS).
The government is currently evaluating whether these schemes effectively support its ambition for the UK to be a leading location for starting and scaling high-growth companies.
In a response to the consultation, ACCA argued that the current compliance burden discourages founders and investors from utilising existing reliefs.
While the body welcomed the government’s focus on the start-up sector, it noted that anti-avoidance measures, particularly regarding the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), have increased the necessity and cost of professional advice.
The professional body is advocating for the digitisation of these schemes to reduce administrative pressure on both businesses and HMRC.
ACCA also suggested that regulated professionals could act as gatekeepers to prevent abuse, which would allow for a reduction in the complexity of claiming reliefs.
Furthermore, the organisation proposed that entrepreneurs should be permitted to reinvest proceeds from business asset disposals directly into pensions to provide a retirement parity with salaried professionals.
The consultation follows the publication of the Entrepreneurship Prospectus at Budget 2025, which outlines the government’s strategy to back founders.
ACCA’s submission emphasises that while existing tax breaks are helpful, a wider review of the regulatory framework is required to focus support on high-priority sectors and encourage reinvestment.
Gemma Gathercole, Strategic engagement lead at ACCA UK, said: “Existing tax support can have a significant impact on accessible start-up and scale-up capital. However, we believe more needs to be done not only in removing cost and compliance complexity but in focussing existing schemes on high priority sectors.
“This consultation had a narrow focus but a wider review on tax on entrepreneurs would be welcomed. ACCA believes the government needs to strengthen and simplify the regulatory framework.”
Joe Fitzsimons, regional lead policy and insights at ACCA, added: “The government should allow reinvestment of proceeds from business asset disposals directly into pensions. This would incentivise entrepreneurs providing a payback against the risk they have taken. That way business owners could secure a retirement on a par with salaried professionals.”
