R&D tax relief claims: Don't make this costly mistake...

 

“My Accountant takes care of that.”

I wish I had £1 for every time I heard that whenever I ask a business owner about their R&D Tax Relief claim – yet every time we have been invited to review a claim compiled by an Accountant, it’s either severely lacking in technical detail, massively underclaiming, or both!

I get it, because this is tax related, the business owner will automatically assume their accountant will deal with it, but there are many specialist areas of tax mitigation that your accountant may not be able to help with.

It reminds me of an old analogy, but a good one…

If you went to your GP with a severe headache and they discovered there was something seriously wrong here, a tumour for example – would you expect them to start operating on you immediately?

No, of course you wouldn’t – they would refer you to a specialist, who has the skills and knowledge to perform such a delicate, lifesaving operation.

 

Certainty vs Uncertainty

Accountants like to deal with certainty, the exact value of an invoice, for example, and they are very good at making sure every penny that can be claimed for is claimed for – some are better than others here.

It’s when there is a degree of uncertainty they struggle with – a valuation, an estimation, subjectivity, and so on…

Here are a few examples of some of the specialist areas of tax mitigation that fall into this category:

1. Research & Development Tax Relief – rewards and incentives for innovation
2. Capital Allowance Surveys – unlocking the hidden tax relief in commercial property
3. Land Remediation Tax Relief – dealing with contamination (asbestos, Japanese knotweed, etc.)

You are probably familiar with this famous quote by Red Adair:

 

“If you think it’s expensive to hire a professional, wait until you hire an amateur.”

 

I’ve seen claims for £50k that should have been closer to £350k – please don’t make the same costly mistake here, you could be missing out on substantial tax savings and rebates.

That said, not all specialist R&D companies are the same either.

 

What to look for in R&D Specialists:

• Do they have a qualified, experienced Technical Team in place?
• Can they demonstrate sufficient knowledge of your industry?
• Do they employ highly qualified Tax Consultants?
• Are there robust processes in place, so you get paid quicker?
• Do they do most of the work, or expect you to write the report?

You will not be surprised to hear that R and D Reclaims tick all these boxes – we are here to work WITH and support your Accountant, not replace them.

It all starts with a conversation…

Reach out to me on here or search for Steve Witkiewicz on LinkedIn – happy to help and answer any of your questions.