R&D tax credits for software and technology companies
An honest look at whether your development work qualifies, then the claim prepared and filed properly. Fixed fees, never a percentage of your claim, and we will tell you if there is no claim worth making.
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on qualifying R&D costs, or up to 14.5% as cash under ERIS
What you can claim depends on your company's circumstances and on how much of your work genuinely qualifies.
R&D tax credits: claim what you are owed, and nothing you are not
R&D tax relief is worth real money to a software development company solving genuinely hard technical problems. It has also been the most aggressively mis-sold relief in the UK tax system, and HMRC has spent the last three years tightening the rules and checking claims far more closely. A claim that does not stand up now costs you the credit, the penalties on top, and the time to defend it. We take the opposite approach: work out honestly what qualifies, then document it well enough that it holds.
What we take off your hands
- An honest review of whether you have a claim at all
- Your claim notification, filed inside the six month window
- The technical narrative, written with your developers
- Qualifying costs identified and apportioned defensibly
- The additional information form and CT600, filed in the right order
- HMRC's questions answered directly if they come
Eligibility, and the deadline that ends claims
If this is your first claim, or your last one was more than three years ago, you have to notify HMRC that you intend to claim within six months of the end of your period of account. Miss it and the claim is invalid, no matter how good the R&D was. It is the most common way a genuine claim is lost, and it is why the first thing we check is whether your window is still open. Then we work out honestly whether the work meets the test, before you spend anything on preparing a claim.
What's included
- A check on whether your notification window is still open
- The claim notification form prepared and submitted
- An honest view on whether the work meets the statutory test
- A straight answer if there is no claim worth making
The narrative, the costs and the filing
Most claims fail on the technical narrative, not the numbers. HMRC wants the field of technology, the baseline level of knowledge, the advance you were seeking and the uncertainties you hit, for each project described. That has to be written with the people who did the work, not generated from a template. We sit with your developers, write it properly, apportion the costs so every figure can be explained, and file the additional information form before the Corporation Tax return rather than after, which is a mistake that invalidates the claim on its own.
What's included
- Technical narrative written with your development team
- Staff, contractor, software and cloud costs identified and apportioned
- Overseas and contracted-out positions checked against the 2024 rules
- Additional information form filed before the CT600, not after
Which R&D tax relief route applies
For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024 the old SME and RDEC schemes were replaced. Which of the two routes applies is not a choice you make, it follows from your figures, and the 30% intensity test is the one companies most often get wrong.
| Merged scheme | ERIS | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it applies to | The default for almost every claimant | Loss-making SMEs whose R&D is at least 30% of total expenditure |
| What you get | A 20% expenditure credit, taxable as trading income | 186% total deduction and a payable credit up to 14.5% of the surrenderable loss |
| On £100,000 of qualifying spend | Roughly £15,000 kept | Up to roughly £27,000 in cash |
The detail behind both routes, including what qualifies and the offshore developer rules, is in our guide to R&D tax credits for software companies.
A fixed fee, not a share of your claim
Most R&D claim firms charge a percentage of whatever they recover. That pays them more the bigger the claim, which is exactly the wrong incentive when HMRC is checking whether the claim was overstated in the first place. We quote a fixed fee for the work before anything begins, scoped once we have seen your projects, and it does not move with the size of the claim.
Raising investment as well? See our SEIS and EIS advance assurance service.
- Never a percentage of your claim
- The eligibility conversation is free
- Ongoing accounting: from £145 + VAT per month
We scope the work first, so you know the number up front. Plain fixed fees, no hourly billing, no surprises.
Book a free callR&D tax credit accountants, not a claims factory
We will tell you if there is no claim
A firm paid a percentage of your claim has no reason to talk you out of one. We are not, so we can say plainly when the work does not meet the test, before you spend anything.
Technical narrative written with your developers
The technical narrative decides whether a claim survives an enquiry. It gets written with the people who did the work, not produced from a template that would fit any project.
Your accountant either way
We deal with HMRC's questions directly, and if you want it we carry on as your ongoing accountant, so the claim is built from books we already know.
Common questions
Does our software development qualify for R&D tax credits?
We have never claimed R&D tax relief before. Is it too late?
Can we claim R&D tax credits if our developers are overseas?
Do you charge a percentage of the R&D claim?
What happens if HMRC opens an enquiry into our R&D claim?
Can you act as our ongoing accountant as well?
Trusted by the businesses we look after
“Tyler replied to my enquiry and he was clear, direct and professional from the start, and that has not changed since. Communication and work is on point. Deadlines met, no issue left unresolved. Would defo recommend. Runs a tight ship, which is exactly what I want from someone doing my accountancy.”
“I can't recommend my accountant highly enough. Professional, knowledgeable and incredibly reliable, with a clear ability to explain things in a way that actually makes sense. He takes the stress out of accounting, tax and business finances, and always gives practical, thoughtful advice. A brilliant accountant and someone I'm very grateful to have supporting my business.”
“I've worked with Tyler since the very beginning of my business and he's been exceptional throughout. He consistently goes above and beyond, always making time to help, answer questions and support us. Professional, highly skilled, reliable and incredibly efficient. I genuinely couldn't recommend him more highly.”
Find out if you have a claim. Book a free call.
Only limited companies can claim R&D tax relief. If you’re planning to incorporate, do carry on — that’s exactly what our startup service is for.
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