Finance Act 2012

VCT approvals U.K.

2 (1) Section 274 (requirements for the giving of approval) is amended as follows. U.K.

(2) In subsection (2), in the list of conditions, at the end insert—

“The investment limits condition

The company has not made and will not make an investment, in the relevant period, in a company which breaches the permitted investment limits”

(3) In subsection (3), omit the “and” at the end of paragraph (d), and after paragraph (e) insert “, and

(f) the investment limits condition by section 280B.”

3 U.K. After section 280A insert—

“280B The investment limits condition

(1) This section applies for the purposes of the investment limits condition.

(2) Where a company (“the investor”) makes an investment (“the current investment”) in another company (“the relevant company”), that investment breaches the permitted investment limits if the total annual investment in the relevant company exceeds the amount for the time being specified in section 292A(1).

(3) The total annual investment in the relevant company is the sum of—

(a) the amount of the current investment, and

(b) the total amount of other relevant investments made in the relevant company (whether or not by the investor) in the year ending with the day on which the current investment is made.

(4) A “relevant investment” is made in a company if—

(a) an investment (of any kind) in the company is made by a VCT,

(b) the company issues shares (money having been subscribed for them), and (at any time) the company provides—

(i) a compliance statement under section 205 (enterprise investment scheme), or

(ii) a compliance statement under section 257ED (seed enterprise investment scheme),

in respect of the shares, or

(c) any other investment is made in the company which is aid received by it pursuant to a measure approved by the European Commission as compatible with Article 107 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union in accordance with the principles laid down in the Community Guidelines on Risk Capital Investments in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (as those guidelines may be amended or replaced from time to time).

(5) For the purposes of subsections (2) and (3), an investment within subsection (4)(b) is regarded as made when the shares are issued.”