Currently, for every £1 of qualifying R&D expenditure, an SME company registered in Northern Ireland, England or Scotland can save 24.7p of corporation tax. Or if it does not have a corporation tax liability, it can cash losses in and receive a cash payment from HMRC at a rate of 14.5%. Large companies in the UK can also claim R&D tax credits.
Companies subject to corporation tax in the Republic of Ireland can also claim – the benefits are 25% of the qualifying expenditure.
The benefits are there to be claimed, although the rules relating to R&D tax incentives are both complex and subjective and also require specialist advice to ensure the claim is prepared in the correct manner and contains the information that is required.