Tech startup accountants for London founders. R&D credits, EMI, the lot.
Pre-revenue building MVP? Seed-funded chasing R&D credit cash to extend runway? Series A scaling with EMI options for the team and a US C-Corp on the horizon? We work across every startup stage — and we know the schemes that actually move the cap table or extend runway. Open Mon-Sat 10am-7pm.
Wherever you are on the journey, we have the right structure.
Tech startups move through four predictable funding stages. Each stage has different priorities — runway preservation pre-seed, R&D claims at seed, EMI and SEIS/EIS at angel/Series A, multi-currency and international from Series A onwards. Identify yours below.
Pre-seed / MVP
Limited company formation with founder share structure. SEIS advance assurance ready for first angel round. Bootstrap-friendly bookkeeping.
Seed-funded
R&D credits become the headline opportunity. SaaS bookkeeping with deferred revenue. EMI scheme setup. EIS for follow-on rounds.
Series A
Tier 3 accounts, multi-currency reporting, MRR/ARR dashboards for investors, possibly statutory audit, US C-Corp coordination.
Scale-up / Series B+
Statutory audit (you cross the audit thresholds), group structure, transfer pricing, R&D-intensive election, founder secondary planning.
Tech tax has its own opportunities. Generalist firms miss them all.
R&D tax credits. SEIS/EIS advance assurance. EMI options. Deferred revenue. SaaS multi-currency. Four problems below show up in every onboarding from a tech founder who has been with a generalist firm.
"My old accountant said R&D credits 'aren't worth it' for us."
If you have engineers building software that solves a non-trivial technical challenge, R&D credits are almost certainly worth claiming. Loss-making startups can convert the credit into cash from HMRC — typical claim returns £40K-£90K for a 6-engineer team. Generalist firms either don't know how to prepare the technical narrative or charge a fixed fee that wipes out the margin. We work success-based at 10% of the credit secured.
"I want to give equity to my first 5 hires but I don't know where to start."
EMI options are HMRC's tax-advantaged share scheme designed for exactly this. Employees get options to buy shares at today's exercise price with no income tax or NIC on grant or exercise — only Capital Gains Tax (often at the lower 14% Business Asset Disposal Relief rate) when shares are eventually sold. Setup involves valuation, scheme rules, option agreements and HMRC notifications. Generic accountants either avoid it or refer out. We set up the scheme for £1,500 one-off.
"My SaaS deferred revenue is being booked as immediate sales."
Annual SaaS subscriptions create a deferred revenue liability — cash received upfront, revenue recognised monthly over the term. Generic bookkeepers record the cash as immediate revenue, inflating current-period sales and creating a tax charge on income not yet earned. We set up Xero or QuickBooks to recognise revenue monthly, integrate Stripe / Chargebee, and produce the MRR/ARR reports your investors expect.
"I'm raising a round and the lead investor wants SEIS/EIS advance assurance — I don't have it."
Sophisticated angel investors and many seed funds will not invest into a company without HMRC SEIS/EIS Advance Assurance because they cannot rely on the tax relief without it. Application takes 4-8 weeks for HMRC to process. Apply BEFORE you start raising. We handle the application and ongoing compliance for £695 one-off — well worth it on any round above £50K.
R&D Tax Credits. Why every tech startup should claim.
If you have engineers solving non-trivial technical problems — building new SaaS features, training ML models, integrating disparate systems, optimising algorithms — your salary spend is almost certainly qualifying R&D expenditure. Loss-making startups get cash from HMRC.
Loss-making startups can convert R&D spend into cash from HMRC.
The R&D credit rewards UK companies investing in technological or scientific innovation. Qualifying spend includes engineer salaries, employer NIC and pension on those salaries, contractor fees for technical work, and a portion of cloud infrastructure consumed during development.
For loss-making startups (the typical pre-Series-A profile), the credit is paid as a cash payment from HMRC — usually within 4-8 weeks of submission. For a typical 6-engineer team with £400K of qualifying spend, the cash payment is often £40,000-£90,000. That's runway extension you don't have to raise for or dilute on.
Our fee is 10% of the credit secured — payable only when HMRC settles. We prepare the technical narrative (the documentation HMRC requires showing technological uncertainty and how it was overcome), the qualifying-spend calculation, and the CT600 amendment that triggers the claim.
Everything a tech founder needs. Specialist, not generalist.
Click any service to read the dedicated page. All services delivered in-house by chartered accountants who specialise in early-stage tech.
Limited Company Formation
Founder share structure, vesting schedules, EIS-ready setup. From £400 one-off.
View service →Annual Accounts & CT600
Tier 1-3 accounts depending on stage. Tier 2 most popular for seed-funded. £1,200-£3,500/year.
View service →Tax Planning Workshop
Founder strategy — salary/dividend, pension, BADR, EMI personal interaction. £1,200 fixed.
View service →SaaS Bookkeeping
Deferred revenue, MRR/ARR, Stripe / Chargebee integration, multi-currency. From £125-£245/month.
View service →SaaS VAT & OSS
UK VAT plus EU One-Stop Shop for B2C SaaS. From £195/quarter.
View service →Business Mentor
Free for every client. Pricing strategy, fundraising prep, board reporting, growth metrics.
View service →Find your stage-appropriate service mix and fee. Five questions, one minute.
Answer five quick questions about your stage, team and structure. We'll show you the right service mix, an estimated annual fee, and flag any R&D, SEIS/EIS or EMI opportunities relevant to your stage.
Your tech startup position
Based on your answers, here's the right setup.
The fees a tech startup actually pays. Standard, transparent.
Below is the typical service mix and standard fee. Quotes are issued in writing within 24 hours of the call — request one to see what discounts and seasonal offers are available in the current period.
Tech startup service fees
All prices exclude VAT. From the master service-fee schedule.
| Service | Description | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| R&D Tax Credit Claim Loss-making startups receive cash from HMRC |
Technical narrative, qualifying-spend calc, CT600 amendment | 10%of credit secured |
| SEIS / EIS Advance Assurance Required by sophisticated angel investors before raising |
HMRC application, qualifying status review, ongoing compliance | £695one-off |
| EMI Share Option Scheme Setup Tax-advantaged share scheme for early-stage UK companies |
Valuation, scheme rules, option agreements, HMRC notifications | £1,500one-off |
| EMI Ongoing Administration Annual scheme reporting + new option grants |
Annual return, new grant valuations, exercise tracking | from £350/year |
| SaaS Bookkeeping Deferred revenue + MRR/ARR + Stripe integration |
Monthly revenue recognition, cohort tracking, multi-currency | from £195/month |
| Limited Company Accounts — Tier 2 Most popular for seed-funded startups |
Annual accounts, CT600, director SA, company secretarial | from £2,200/year |
| Limited Company Accounts — Tier 3 Series A+ with multi-entity / international |
Tier 2 plus consolidation, transfer pricing, international coordination | from £3,500/year |
| Tax Planning Workshop (Founder) Salary/dividend, pension, BADR, exit planning |
Bespoke strategy via secure portal, 2-week amendment window | £1,200fixed |
What our startup clients actually got back. Real numbers.
Three recent examples from a seed-stage SaaS, an angel round prep and a Series A scaler. Names changed, numbers real.
£68K R&D credit cash extended runway by 5 months
A pre-revenue B2B SaaS with 7 engineers and £450K of qualifying R&D spend in the prior year. Their previous accountant had told them R&D credits weren't worth the effort. We prepared the technical narrative covering algorithm work, integration challenges and platform engineering, calculated qualifying spend, and submitted the claim. HMRC paid £68,000 cash within 6 weeks. At their burn rate that was 5 months of additional runway — enough to close a follow-on round at a higher valuation. Our fee was £6,800 (10% of credit), payable on settlement.
SEIS advance assurance unlocked £180K from sophisticated angels
A founder was raising £200K from angel investors but had not applied for SEIS Advance Assurance. Two of the three lead angels (each writing £75K) said they wouldn't commit without it. We applied for SEIS Advance Assurance (£695 one-off), HMRC granted within 5 weeks, and the round closed at £180K SEIS-eligible plus £20K outside the scheme. The investors received 50% income tax relief on their £180K — meaning £90K of effective government co-investment that made the round attractive enough to over-subscribe.
EMI scheme protected £140K of share value for 8 hires
A Series A SaaS with 12 engineers wanted to grant share options to 8 senior hires after a £4M round. Without an EMI scheme, options would be taxed at marginal rates on grant and exercise — typically 47%. We set up the EMI scheme (£1,500 one-off), conducted the valuation, drafted option agreements and filed the HMRC notifications within 8 weeks. The 8 hires received options over £400K of share value at the EMI exercise price. On a future exit, they pay 14% Business Asset Disposal Relief CGT instead of 47% income tax — protecting roughly £140K of value for the team.
Tech-specific quote, in writing within 24 hours.
Tell us your stage, team size, funding and structure. We'll send a written fixed-fee quote covering exactly the services you need — and any current discounts or offers in the period.
Frequently asked questions.
If your question isn't here, message us on WhatsApp or book a free 15-minute call.
Tech startup accountants in King's Cross, London.
Our office sits at 39-41 North Road, London N7 9DP — five minutes from Caledonian Road tube and ten from King's Cross St Pancras (a stone's throw from the King's Cross / Granary Square tech cluster). We work with tech startups across Old Street / Shoreditch, King's Cross, Soho, Whitechapel, the City of London and the wider London tech ecosystem.
Most engagements are delivered remotely via video call, secure portal and our client area — particularly suited to distributed-team startups. For founders who prefer to meet, the King's Cross office is open Monday to Saturday 10am to 7pm.
London N7 9DP
10am to 7pm
Ready for a tech-startup specialist accountant?
Book a free 15-minute call. We'll quote your engagement in writing within 24 hours including any current discounts or seasonal offers. If LOYALS isn't the right fit we'll tell you that too.
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