When you submit
As of 1 August 2023, companies must submit an additional information form to HMRC to support all claims for R&D tax relief. All claims and their accompanying forms must be submitted digitally (except for companies exempt from the requirement to deliver a CT600 online).
This will apply to both SME & RDEC schemes.
Your form must be submitted in advance of your Corporation Tax return – HMRC will not be able to process your claim without this form.
In addition, companies will need to inform HMRC in advance that they are submitting a claim online within 6 months of the accounting period’s end. This will only be required of companies that haven’t made an R&D claim during the period of 3 years ending with the day before the first day of the claim notification period.
If you have failed to notify HMRC when required even though you submitted your CT600, then HMRC will inform you that they have removed your R&D Tax Credit claim.
What’s required on the form?
Company Details:
Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) that matches the one on your Corporate Tax Return,
Employer PAYE reference number,
VAT registration number,
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) to indicate the type of business.
Contact Details:
For the senior contact within the company responsible for the claim,
Any agent involved in preparing your R&D claim.
Confirmation of which relief is being claimed:
SME, RDEC, or both.
Accounting period start & end date:
This must match the one shown in your Company Tax Return.
Summary of qualifying expenditure:
As an SME for tax relief,
Expenditure credit for large companies or SMEs under RDEC,
Indicate qualifying indirect activities (QIAs) separately.
Project Details
Include the number of projects being claimed for in the accounting period and descriptions (See below for how many descriptions are required per project)
The main field of science or technology the project relates to,
The baseline level of science and technology at the start of the project,
What advance in that scientific or technological knowledge the company aimed to achieve,
The scientific or technological uncertainties faced,
How the project sought to overcome these uncertainties.
How many project descriptions are required for R&D claims from 1 August 2023?
Number of project descriptions required varies based on the number of projects included in the claim:
If the claim includes 1-3 projects, details should be provided for all projects,
If the claim includes 4-10 projects, details should be provided for projects giving at least 50% coverage of qualifying expenditure, with a minimum of 3,
If the claim includes 11 or more projects, details should be provided for projects giving at least 50% coverage of qualifying expenditure, with a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 10.
In the latter case, if the qualifying expenditure is split across multiple smaller projects, the 10 largest should be described.
Who can submit the form?
A representative of the company or an agent acting on its behalf can submit this form to HMRC and you will need Government Gateway user ID and password,
Representative of the company will use same details from when they registered for Corporation Tax,
Agent of the company will use details from when the agent was registered for the agent services account.
How can your business best prepare for these changes?
While the past six months have seen quite a few changes to the R&D Tax Credit Scheme, our Claim Capital team is ready to assist you navigate them to make your claim process as seamless as possible.
If you have any questions regarding what information you need to submit your form to HMRC, arrange a call with one of our R&D Tax Specialists today!