Advisers need to change the way they use enterprise investment schemes amid a government trend to bring it "back to its roots".
Simon Ruthers, director of business development at Oxford Capital, said an example of this was the removal of solar power assets from EIS in 2014, followed the next year by all types of renewable energy.
The result of this was that the number of companies offering structured EIS products, which gave access to the tax reliefs but dialed back the risk, was dwindling.
Mr Ruthers said the number of companies offering these products could now be "counted on one hand".
He said: "We have seen a move over an extended period of time to return EIS to its roots. With the landscape we are working in at the moment, the only certainty we have is that there will be change.
"What you are having to accept is that the bar is being raised back towards the origins of EIS and as a business we have aligned ourselves to that agenda."
Mr Ruthers said it was possible next week's Budget would see further changes to EIS, particularly given the expected publication of the Patient Capital review.
A HM Treasury paper published in August as part of this review, found “the majority” of EIS funds invest with the aim of capital preservation, which runs contrary to the aims of the tax breaks.
That has prompted fears the rules on the sort of companies that qualify for EIS funding could be tightened.
To address this issue Mr Ruthers said advisers needed to make sure investors were aware of this issue and needed to change some of the ways they interact with EIS.
For example he said it was no longer advisable to get money into these schemes just before the end of the tax year and he said advisers should not be thinking about single investments in isolation.
He said: "One thing you cannot do is you cannot use your frame of reference of two or three years ago.
"One of the characteristics of a more structured EIS was your tax relief emerged pretty soon but a more diversified EIS is characterised by a programme of investments.
"It is characterised by money coming in over a period of 12 to 18 months."
Data released by HM Revenue & Customs earlier this month showed a significant increase in the number of individuals making EIS investments in 2016.
More than 10,000 investors deployed capital into EIS mandates in the year to April 2016, an 18 per cent increase on the previous year, which HMRC attributed to “increasing use of crowdfunding platforms”.
damian.fantato@ft.com
