While HMRC continues its crack down on R&D tax credit claims by significantly increasing compliance checks, additional changes to the R&D Tax Relief Programme were announced in the 2023 Spring Budget..

So, let’s see what the key changes to the programme look like:

• Some SMEs to receive more for their pound (£) for R&D work – The government is committed to provide R&D intensive SMEs further support.. R&D intensive SMEs who are loss-making will receive £27 for every £100 of eligible R&D spend. An R&D intensive SME is one whose R&D spend is greater than 40% of the SME’s total R&D expenditure.
• Delay to restrictions on overseas expenditures on R&D tax relief – the amendment to eliminate R&D costs related to foreign contracts and EPW’s will now come into effect from 1 April 2024 instead of 1 April 2023. This is good news for SME’s who carry out R&D work outside of the UK.
• Additional Online Information Forms required for R&D claims –  as RDP previously reported, companies making R&D tax credit claims will have to complete additional forms online for all R&D claims made on or after 1 August 2023.  The forms will require technical and financial information, as well as information about parties that prepared the R&D claim, senior officers of the company who approved the claim, and administrative information such as VAT registration numbers.

Do you have a client that is undergoing an HMRC compliance check?

Now that HMRC has raised the bar as to what qualifies as R&D, do you now have clients that are unsure if they qualify or need assistance with a HMRC compliance check or have questions regarding the 2023 Spring Budget.

If your answer is yes, please contact us on 0208 214 1341 or email [email protected]. We have considerable experience dealing with tax authorities on R&D tax credit matters for over 30 years.

Here are a few key facts on RDP Associates :

• We have prepared over 10,000 R&D tax credit claims including HSBC, Balfour Beatty, Bombardier, and Barclays, as well as SME’s and start-ups.
• We have 35 experienced technical staff whose backgrounds range from software specialists, engineers, and scientists in physics, chemistry, and life sciences.
• We are part of the HMRC R&D Tax Credit Stakeholders’ Group that meets through the year. This means we are current on all issues and updates as they occur.
• We have developed our flagship R&D tax credit platform called the Innovation Connection Program (“ICP”). The ICP identifies and creates supporting documents for R&D tax credit projects in real-time.
• We are an international firm who specialise in R&D tax credits in countries that include the US, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Germany.