You have two years after the end of your accounting period to claim R&D Tax Relief. That is, two years after your research and development work took place.
So, how long do you have to claim R&D? If your accounting period ended on 31 December 2023, the deadline for claiming R&D tax relief would be 31 December 2025.
This deadline is the same for:
✓ SME scheme R&D tax relief
✓ R&D qualifying expenditure credit
✓ The government’s tax relief and RDEC merged scheme
I’ve missed the R&D claim deadline, is there anything I can do?
Yes — you can claim R&D retrospectively in some instances, if HMRC perceives there are ‘exceptional reasons’ or ‘acceptable features’ to your case.
HMRC’s exceptional reasons
- You and your finance team were unaware of the profits you could claim until after the deadline had passed.
- The final profit or loss amount was still being worked out with HMRC as the deadline passed, with this delay being no fault or negligence of your own or that of your representatives.
HMRC’s acceptable features
- Delay was due to illness or absence by the relevant staff at your company, at a critical time when you were due to make your claim.
- There is a good reason why you never claimed before this illness or absence, and there was nobody else who could have claimed before the deadline.
If you believe you meet HMRC’s exceptional reasons or features, then we can help you to claim back up to 9x more with our R&D tax credit claim specialists — our average claim value is £50,000. To maximise your claim, make sure to include all of the qualifying costs that you spent during the year you’re claiming for. The chances are, our experts can help you do this much better than your finance team, so get in touch with us today.
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For all the technical details, HMRC talks about its policy of dealing with late claims in its Statement of Practice 5 (2001) which you can read here.
I’ve already filed my corporate tax return, can I still claim R&D tax relief?
Yes. You will have to do two things, however:
- Amend your company tax return (CT600) for the accounting period.
- Submit an additional information form (AIF).
You will need to provide technical and financial information about the work you are claiming for, to prove eligibility for R&D corporation tax relief.
Read more: How does the Additional Information Form support compliance in R&D tax claims?
What must I do to claim within the R&D claim time limit?
You will need to submit a claim notification form. This is a relatively new form, introduced to make it easier for companies — both large companies and SMEs — to remain compliant when making a claim.
You will need to submit a claim form if your company:
- Is a first-time claimant of R&D expenditure.
- Hasn’t claimed in the last three years.
This form must be submitted six months after the end of the accounting period or 18 months before the R&D claim time limit.
If you submit after the deadline, HMRC’s exceptional circumstances and features still apply.
R&D tax credit deadline — FAQs
- Can I change my accounting period to prolong my R&D claim period?
Yes. You can alter the start and end date, and even lengthen your accounting period to 18 months.
- My business is a new SME, when does my first accounting period begin?
It automatically starts on your business’ registration date. However, this isn’t always operationally convenient, and so lots of new businesses adjust their accounting year-ends — and usually in line with the UK’s financial year-end on 5 April for convenience.
- What if the start date of my R&D project is before the period I can claim?
You can still make a claim. You can also still claim if you are still in the process of resolving a scientific or technological problem. However, if this problem was solved before the previous two accounting periods, you will not be able to make the claim.
Maximise your claim with randdUK, your genuine R&D tax credit specialist team.
Don’t waste time with inexperienced finance teams.
When it comes to R&D activities, most accountants and tax management teams — in-house, external or otherwise — lack the time or specialist knowledge to navigate the complexities of the R&D tax credit scheme.
We couldn’t be more different. We will make sure you never miss an R&D claim deadline and put together a watertight claims process that will minimise the chances of HMRC enquiries.
And in the event that HMRC does challenge a claim, we’ll stick with you and take the lead in dealing with HMRC until the case is resolved.
Claim up to 9x more with randdUK’s tax specialists for an average R&D tax relief claim of £50,000. Start the process today.