Do your clients claim R&D tax credits?
While many accountancy firms work with a handful of clients that regularly claim R&D tax credits, many more will have clients that are eligible to claim but are not aware of this.
Businesses outside of ‘traditional’ R&D sectors, such as life sciences, are often unaware that work they are carrying out may be eligible for credits under the R&D tax scheme – particularly in sectors where technology is booming.
As their accountant, you are in an excellent position to spread awareness of the scheme to clients who may be eligible to make a claim.
Being proactive about this will help you and your client prepare claims well ahead of time and give you plenty of time to assess eligibility and seek advice if needed.
Approaching clients
No one is expecting you to approach every client about claiming R&D tax credits – this would put too much on your plate and likely lead to a spate of ineligible claims!
Instead, take the time to get to know your clients’ work and identify where R&D may be taking place. Look out for:
- Work seeking to advance overall knowledge in a field
- Work that seeks to overcome a technical or scientific problem in the sector
- High-level work in science or technology that relies on experts
Focus on the work itself rather than the sector in which your client is operating as a first port of call, although take care when assessing eligibility in areas such as media, as HMRC may assume that this does not qualify.
Ask clients with potential eligibility whether they want to consider a claim and, at this point, you can go further into their work and determine whether they qualify to submit a claim.
Getting help
We understand that, when you work with lots of clients, assessing and determining eligibility for a claim can be time consuming.
Speaking to an R&D tax adviser for accountants can help you to speed up the process and leave eligibility up to the experts, allowing you to focus on your clients’ core services.
This is another proactive step, putting clients in touch with the experts as soon as they need support – helping them get their claim ready ahead of the deadline.
For advice on helping your clients claim R&D tax credits, please contact our consultancy team.
