At CooperFaure, we are working with an array of clients to ascertain whether their projects qualify for R&D Tax Relief and, if so, to ensure that all the qualifying costs are being claimed.
This week, we secured out largest single Tax Credit payment for a client of over £270,000 and we continue to have an enviable track record of agreeing with HMRC a 100% recovery of every claim submitted.
Our experience is that HMRC is actively working to support innovation by streamlining their processes to accelerate the payment of R&D Tax Credits.
However, the latest statistics from HMRC make interesting reading. For the 2015-16 tax year, the total value of R&D tax credits claimed was £2.9bn which represented a £470m increase from the previous year.
Total number of submitted claims in that year was 26,255, a 19% increase from the previous year.
Although these are substantial year-on-year increases, the HMRC estimates that less than 10% of companies with eligible R&D spend are making a claim. The stark reality is that companies are missing out on billions of pounds of tax relief that they are entitled to.
This is likely due to a large extent to a perception that the process is time-consuming, cumbersome and disruptive to the business. The truth is the complete opposite.
Another misconception is that R&D is only the domain of the manufacturing, science and technology sectors.
In 2015-16, there were successful claims from a vast array of other sectors including:
– agriculture, forestry and fishing;
– electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning;
– construction;
– transport and storage;
– accommodation and food;
– financial and insurance;
– education;
– health and social work;
– arts, entertainment and recreation;
– and admin and support services.
In other words, R&D Tax Relief is open to all businesses.
Our philosophy is to provide an affordable, personal service that starts with a conversation about your business and an honest appraisal as to whether your activities would qualify.
We have a dedicated team of R&D tax specialists and technologists who work with you and your team to understand the research and development that you have undertaken.
This enables us to ensure that we claim the full R&D Relief that you are entitled to and to present the technical report to HMRC in a meaningful, jargon-free way.
Finally, we manage the process from start to finish to ensure that there is minimal disturbance to your business.
If you would like to arrange an initial consultation that is free and without obligation to discuss your circumstances, please email us at tax@cooperfaure.co.uk.