What are R&D tax incentives?
R&D tax incentives are a government scheme designed to encourage companies to invest in research and development.
R&D incentives allow businesses to claim back a portion of their spend on R&D activities, either as a reduction in their corporation tax or as a cash payment. If your project is looking to improve a product, process or system, even if the work doesn’t succeed, the R&D tax incentives scheme may be appropriate for you.
How do I claim R&D tax incentives?
R&D incentives are realised through Corporation Tax Self Assessment.
This requires detailed evidence on both how your projects meet the R&D definition and how you have identified your R&D claim costs. These incentives are a powerful funding tool, but it is important to evidence how you navigated the rules, and recognising what work and costs qualify is rarely straightforward.
We believe that the best way of delivering a robust R&D incentives claim is through strong tax and technical expertise combined with a client-led approach. Our team and processes are built around truly understanding your business, so we can deliver meaningful results and ongoing support that adds real value.
The Process
1. Kick-Off
Your engagement begins with your dedicated client project manager walking you through the steps of preparing your claim. We will learn how your business works and your preferred communication styles, so our approach fits naturally into your own processes from the outset.
2. Project Assessment
To ensure your claim is accurate, thorough and built to withstand scrutiny, our technical experts will work with you to assess your projects for qualifying R&D activities. They will talk you through the legislation and how the rules are currently being interpreted. By asking the right questions, we can uncover qualifying work that might otherwise be missed.
3. Mapping Eligible Costs
To ensure that your claim reflects the full scope of your activities and stands up to review, our tax professionals will identify and match all your qualifying costs to the relevant R&D projects. We understand your records may not be set up for this exercise, so we provide practical advice to help you track costs more effectively in the future.
4. Building Technical Case Studies
Well-crafted case studies bring credibility to your claim and help to safeguard it in the event of an HMRC enquiry. Our industry experts prepare clear, detailed case studies that align your project work with HMRC’s interpretation of the R&D guidelines. By combining hands-on sector experience with a strong grasp of legislative expectations, we ensure your projects are framed accurately and appropriately.
5. Completing the Claim & Submission
To provide you with complete visibility and confidence in the information provided to HMRC, we prepare all supporting documents required for your R&D incentives claim. This includes a detailed report that outlines our methodology, the qualifying activities, and associated costs. Before submission, we walk through everything with you to ensure what’s being presented represents the work you have done.
6. Ongoing Support
We take a proactive long-term approach to R&D tax incentives, giving you confidence in your claims and clearer visibility around your future incentives. We stay with you after submission to handle any HMRC enquiries and support any future strategic planning around your R&D tax incentives.
Want to discuss your options?
- How long will it take to receive the money?
- Every single case is unique, however if you are committed to preparing the claim quickly, it can be completed and sent to HMRC in as little as 2 – 4 weeks. HMRC aim to process your claim within 40 working days of the submission.
- How much of my time will it take?
- Again each case is unique, however our process is designed to ensure that we minimise your time where possible. In most cases we can look to limit your and your team’s time commitment to under 10 hours.
- How do you structure your fees?
- We don’t believe in standard pricing, every R&D claim is different and our fees reflect the level of support required. We can promise that our fees are always flexible, fair and transparent. What matters most is that you receive value for money and a robust, defendable claim prepared by industry experts.
If you’d like a tailored estimate, book a chat with our team and we’ll happily provide one. - Can HMRC ask further questions?
- Yes. Your R&D incentives claim is submitted on your Corporation Tax return via the self-assessment mechanism. HMRC has the right to ask further questions about the return for 12 months from submission, if they feel they need further information to ensure the claim meets the guidelines.