R&D Tax Relief

We make it as simple as possible - liaising with HMRC on your behalf, and guiding you seamlessly through the criteria, paperwork, regulations and process.

We know what it takes to submit a successful application. We process well over £100,000 each month in R&D claims and know the guidelines (plus any updates) inside out.

We'll help you to plan out how a successful claim will impact the rest of your business. We can look at resourcing, reporting and spend when it comes to your claim.

We’ve partnered with the Wow Company for several years to manage our R&D claims, and their expertise has truly been a game-changer for us.

The Wow team made it feel straightforward and manageable. Their deep knowledge of the latest legislation and ability to keep us fully compliant with HMRC’s regulations has been a tremendous asset.

What we particularly appreciate is their proactive approach. They stay ahead of changing rules, especially when it comes to international work, and provide us with tailored guidance that ensures we maximise the benefits of our R&D efforts.

Paul Sly | Clarity Consulting

Undertaking some kind of innovation in your field. This could be a new digital system, app, process or solution - either for use internally or something you're looking to build, productise and sell.

Overcoming some kind of technical challenge within your business. Is there a day-to-day challenge you think technology could solve? If you tackle it head on and build it yourself, it's very likely you could be eligible for R&D tax relief.

In need of help and reassurance from R&D experts. You don't have the time to do it yourself, plus you want the validation that your claim is viable. We'll take the hassle of the process away from you and your team.

What is R&D Tax Relief?

R&D (Research & Development) is one of the most generous tax reliefs available to limited companies. In fact, over the past 12 months alone we’ve processed over £2m of claims on behalf of our clients.

R&D tax reliefs support businesses that work on innovative projects. The reliefs are designed to encourage innovation and are a valuable source of cash for businesses to invest in accelerating new developments, hiring new staff and ultimately growing.

Many businesses don’t realise that they qualify for R&D relief, or they are not claiming their full entitlement. It can be claimed by a range of companies that seek to research or develop an advance in their field. It can even be claimed on unsuccessful projects - and it’s not just for tech businesses, either. Our R&D team has helped plenty of non-tech businesses claim R&D tax reliefs. Check out our blog to discover more R&D misconceptions.

The R&D tax relief you can claim is based on the time and costs of your employees, subcontractors and software that was used on the project. Depending when these costs are incurred and the position of your accounts (i.e. profitable or loss making) for every £100 that is spent on R&D, you could claim between £16.34 - £33.35 in additional tax relief.

What type of R&D relief you can claim will largely depend on the size of your business. This could be the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) R&D Relief if you run an SME. Or if you run a large company (or have been subcontracted by a large company, or received a government grant) you might qualify under the the R&D expenditure credit. We will take a look at which scheme best applies to you.

How we can help:

Our R&D team can support you through this process by:

Making the application process as simple as possible, taking the weight off you and your team
Supporting with the necessary paperwork and documentation required to apply for R&D tax reliefs
Liaising with HMRC
Handling the impact on your corporation tax
Processing payments
Ultimately increasing the chance of a successful claim

In terms of a partnership that adds value to us, Wow does every time. They know our landscape, our challenges and more importantly our opportunities. Feels like we always have them nudging us in the right direction.

Louise Wright | Punch Creative

In order to qualify, your company must demonstrate:

Advances in the field
The key is that your company must be undertaking development activities that seek to achieve an advancement in technology or science. If your company is taking a risk by innovating, improving, or developing a process, product, or service, then it could qualify.

Technical challenge
The project must contain a level of technical or scientific uncertainty for a competent professional in that field, so if you faced questions that left you and your team scratching your heads to find a solution, that’s a good indication that qualifying R&D activities were taking place.

A level of uncertainty
A good test to determine if the work undertaken qualifies for R&D tax relief is whether your project team faced technological or scientific uncertainties at the start. If you can show that your project goes beyond applying existing technologies or science and demonstrate that it breaks new ground, you could qualify.

What to expect

Have a chat

A no-obligation conversation to figure out if R&D tax reliefs could be applicable to your business. We’ll ask the initial questions we need to in order to get to know you, your R&D project and your business better.
Collate your financial information

We've got a template to make this really easy for you. It should only take around 15-20 minutes to complete.
Estimate of the tax relief

You'll receive an estimate of the tax relief a successful claim would give you and we'll put together a proposal for the work we will do.
Collate project information

Depending on your preference and size of the claim we'll either come to see you, have a video call or we may just need you to fill out a few more questions to get together the information on the project you're claiming for.
Your R&D report

We'll put together your R&D report based on all the information you've shared with us.
Updating your Corporation Tax return

You'll receive an estimate of the tax relief a successful claim would give you and we'll put together a proposal for the work we will do.
Submit your R&D claim

Once your Corporation Tax return is signed, the return and R&D claim is submitted to HMRC. If you are a Wow client, we will complete your R&D claim in line with your year end accounts.
HMRC process your claim

HMRC quotes 28 days to process R&D claims and repay any tax reliefs, however, we found it often takes longer, typically around three months. We will keep in contact with HMRC throughout the process and keep you updated.
Your payment

If you are due a refund or a tax credit from the claim, the funds will be paid by HMRC into your company account. We will keep an eye on its progress for you, and will liaise with HMRC if needed on your behalf.