Improved access for SME R & D reliefs

You may recall our January feature on our consultation with HM Treasury and HMRC to improve access for all Companies carrying out bona fide R & D to enhanced tax reliefs and tax credits.
The outcome of the consultation will see an encouraging number of ‘next steps’, including greater publicity, advance assurances and greater certainty for early stage SME projects.
Full details have been published by the HM Treasury today and we are continuing our involvement to bed in these important and useful enhancements to the reliefs.

Full details here…….

HMRC consulted earlier this year on improving small business access to R&D tax relief. We are very grateful that you made a written submission, and I am now writing to update you on our response to the issues discussed in the consultation.

HMRC today publishes ‘Making R&D Easier: HMRC’s plan for small business R&D tax reliefs’ which outlines HMRC’s administrative framework for the next two years and beyond to help streamline and increase awareness of the Research & Development tax reliefs process. This will include improved interactive guidance and a new Advance Assurance scheme for small company first time claimants. Available via GOV.UK, Advance Assurance will provide guidance and certainty to small businesses as successful applicants will have assurance from HMRC that we will accept their first three years of R&D tax relief claims.

In this document, we also discuss the main themes emerging from the consultation responses, and how these have informed our plans.

I hope you can take the time to read the plan, and please do come back to me with comments.

Follow this link to access ‘Making R&D Easier’:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-access-to-research-and-development-tax-credits-for-small-business