Is April a good time to raise? What founders get wrong

April feels like a good time to raise. The tax year has just reset, investors have fresh mandates, and the summer slowdown hasn’t hit yet. But most founders who jump in right now will still be waiting for a close in July. Not because April is bad, but because it’s a good month for kicking off conversations.

April is a pipeline month, not a closing month for early-stage founders

Deals started in April typically close in May or June, sometimes later. And investors who were sprinting to deploy capital before the 5 April tax year deadline are now coming up for air. Some are reviewing their portfolio. Some are catching up on due diligence from Q1. A few are already eyeing summer holidays.

That doesn’t mean April is dead. It means you need to understand what it’s actually good for and spend your time wisely.

Why the April window matters for pre-seed and seed startups looking to raise

Here’s what is true about April.

EIS and SEIS allowances have just reset. Investors who back early-stage UK startups through these schemes now have a fresh annual allocation to deploy. And this year, the environment just got materially more generous. From April 2026, annual EIS investment limits rise to £10m (or £20m for knowledge-intensive companies), with lifetime limits increasing to £24m and £40m respectively¹. Read our guide to unlocking the benefits of SEIS and EIS here.

I’ll be honest: EIS schemes are better at getting companies started than helping them scale. But at pre-seed and seed, these schemes are designed for exactly this stage. Increased limits mean investors who were constrained by the old thresholds now have more headroom. That’s a real shift.

Worth noting: VCT income tax relief drops from 30% to 20% under the same legislation. That’s less relevant for most pre-seed and seed founders, whose rounds are more naturally suited to EIS and angel investment than VCT vehicles.

The pre-summer window is also real. April through to late May is one of the most active stretches of the year for initial conversations and pipeline building. After that, activity slows and the next strong window doesn’t open until September.

How to prepare for fundraising in April: a guide for early-stage UK founders

If April is a pipeline month, the question isn’t whether to raise. It’s whether you’re set up to make the most of the conversations you’ll have.

A few things that separate founders who convert April meetings into May/June closes from those who don’t:

Advance Assurance is in place. This is HMRC’s confirmation that your company is likely to qualify for EIS or SEIS, and many UK angels and syndicates won’t progress a deal without it. If you haven’t applied yet, do it now and don’t let it slow you down mid-conversation
Your data room is ready, not in progress. Investors move fast when they want to. Founders who take two weeks to pull together financials lose momentum at the worst time
You know who you’re targeting. Not a spray of 200 cold emails but a focussed list of investors whose thesis, stage, and sector actually fit your round. Irrelevant outreach wastes everyone’s time, and April is too short a window to burn on the wrong people
You understand the process takes time. A first meeting in April rarely leads to a close before June. Build that into your plan and don’t run out of runway waiting for a cheque that’s three months away

Not all investors slow down. Some of the most active angels and syndicates work year-round. April can lead to faster decisions with the right investor, especially where EIS is a factor and they want to get deployment in motion early in the tax year.

Not sure if you’re actually ready to raise? We put together a free Pre-Raise Checklist for UK startup founders to help you pressure-test your readiness before you start conversations: thatround.com/pre-raise-checklist-uk-startup

The right question to ask before you start raising

Before you decide whether April is a good time to raise, ask a different question.

As well as: am I ready to raise? Also ask: am I raising at the right time, in the right way, for the right people?

April gives you a real window. Fresh mandates, active investors, a clear run before summer. But only founders who treat it as a pipeline-building phase, not a closing sprint, will be in the best position when June arrives.

Don’t waste April on cold outreach to the wrong investors. ThatRound shows you who’s actually active, what they back, and which ones are a genuine fit for your round, before you reach out.

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