Research and Development (R&D) tax relief

Research and Development (R&D) tax relief is a government tax relief for startup investment in the UK. Corporation Tax relief for companies working on projects that seek an advance in science or technology. For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024 it runs as the merged R&D expenditure credit (20%) and, for loss-making R&D-intensive SMEs, enhanced R&D intensive support (a 186% deduction and a payable credit worth up to 14.5% of the surrenderable loss).

What it offers

• “The rate of R&D expenditure credit under the merged RDEC scheme is 20%.” — gov.uk
• “deduct an extra 86% of their qualifying costs in calculating their adjusted trading loss” — gov.uk
• “to make a total of 186% deduction” — gov.uk
• “claim a payable tax credit, which is not liable to tax and is worth up to 14.5% of the surrenderable loss” — gov.uk
• “the credit amount you receive in the accounting period cannot exceed the PAYE cap for that period, unless you're exempt from the cap” — gov.uk
• “The PAYE cap amount is £20,000 plus 300% of the company's relevant PAYE and National Insurance contributions liabilities for the period” — gov.uk
• “HMRC provides a full claim advance assurance service to SMEs claiming R&D relief for the first time.” — gov.uk

Who can apply

• “Only companies chargeable to UK Corporation Tax can qualify for this relief.” — gov.uk
• “To qualify for R&D relief, a project must seek an advance in a field of science or technology.” — gov.uk
• “The merged scheme R&D expenditure credit (RDEC) and enhanced R&D intensive support (ERIS) replace the old RDEC and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) schemes for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024.” — gov.uk
• “relevant R&D expenditure is at least 30% of its total expenditure” — gov.uk
• “Even if you are eligible for ERIS you can choose to claim under the merged RDEC scheme, but you cannot claim under both schemes for the same expenditure.” — gov.uk
• “Profit-making and non- R&D intensive SMEs with qualifying R&D expenditure can claim relief under the merged RDEC scheme instead.” — gov.uk
• “You must submit the form within certain dates known as the 'claim notification period'. If you do not, your R&D tax relief claim will be invalid.” — gov.uk
• “you're claiming for the first time” — gov.uk

How to apply

Apply or read the rules on the official site.

About this listing

TrustList compiled this listing from Research and Development (R&D) tax relief's official pages in September 2026. The quotes above are its own words. Amounts, deadlines and eligibility rules change, so check the official site before you rely on them.