R&D Tax Credits

First launched in 2000, the R&D Tax Credits scheme incentives investment and technical innovation by providing generous tax relief on qualifying expenditure. Whether your project is successful or not, R&D Tax Credits can reduce your Corporation Tax bill.

For SMEs, the maximum available relief is 230 per cent of qualifying expenditure. Loss-making companies, meanwhile, are entitled to surrender their losses in return for a payable tax credit.

You can claim SME R&D relief if you’re a, SME with:

• Less than 500 staff
• A turnover of under 100 million euros or a balance sheet total under 86 million euros

To get R&D relief, you need to explain how a project:

• Looked for an advance in science and technology
• Had to overcome uncertainty
• Tried to overcome this uncertainty
• Could not be easily worked out by a professional in the field

Your project may research or develop a new process, product or service or improve on an existing one.