HMRC has questions about an R&D claim. We deal with them.

It is HMRC examining an R&D claim to decide whether the relief was correctly claimed. HMRC writes to the company, or its agent, asking questions about the projects, the costs and the evidence behind them. Some checks end quickly with no change, some lead to an adjustment, and some are settled by agreement. A letter does not mean the claim is wrong, but it does need a considered reply.

HMRC's own figures for 2023-24 show 9,700 compliance checks, up from 8,300 in 2022-23, covering 17% of claims compared with 10% the year before. HMRC had more than 500 staff working on R&D compliance, against about 100 in 2020-21. So a check is no longer unusual, and being prepared for one is part of any sensible claim.

HMRC reports that checks completed in 2023-24 took 246 days on average. Individual cases vary a great deal, depending on how complex the claim is, how quickly information is supplied and whether a meeting is needed. A clear, well-organised response at the start tends to shorten the process, which is why we triage every case the same working day.

Typically a set of questions about the projects and the costs: what the technological uncertainty was, who the competent professionals were, how staff time was apportioned and how the figures were built. HMRC may also ask for the technical report and supporting records. We read the letter closely and decide with you what to send, rather than sending everything on request.

You can reply yourselves, but a first reply sets the tone for the whole enquiry and is hard to retract. We recommend letting us review the claim before anything is sent. Once you authorise us as your agent, we correspond with HMRC, you stay informed at each step, and you decide anything that needs a business decision.

Yes. If HMRC has already written, tell us the reply date and send us the letter. We triage the same working day, then review the claim, the correspondence so far and the evidence before we respond. Taking over mid-enquiry is common, particularly where a previous adviser has gone quiet or has stopped responding to HMRC.

Yes. We also defend R&D enquiries on claims prepared by others. We start with an independent review of the projects, the costs and the records, then tell you plainly how strong the claim is. If something needs correcting, we explain the options before there is any contact with HMRC about it.

Sometimes. HMRC may ask to speak to the people who did the work, because they are best placed to explain the uncertainty and how it was resolved. We prepare your competent professionals beforehand, explain what to expect, and attend the meeting with you so the technical story is told clearly and consistently with the written claim.

It is the HMRC team that handles suspected abuse of R&D relief, at both customer and agent level. It works with the Advertising Standards Authority on false claims that a service is HMRC-approved. If your claim is with this unit, you should take advice before replying to anything. We can assess the position and explain what it means for you.

HMRC considers inaccuracy penalties where an error is careless or deliberate, and the level depends on behaviour. Penalties are lower where a company tells HMRC about the error unprompted. That is one reason we review a claim honestly at the start: if something needs correcting, how and when it is raised affects the outcome.

We test the project against the Government's guidelines on the meaning of R&D: whether there was an advance in science or technology, and whether a competent professional could readily have resolved the uncertainty. If the evidence supports the project, we set out the technical case in writing. If it does not, we tell you, and discuss what that means for the rest of the claim.

A closure notice is how HMRC formally concludes an enquiry. It states HMRC's conclusion and any amendment to the return. If it confirms the claim as made, the enquiry is over. If it changes the claim, we explain the effect, check the working behind it and advise on whether to accept it or challenge it.

It can. While HMRC is checking a claim, payment of the credit may be held back until the check is resolved, and the position depends on the facts of your case. We tell you what to expect for your claim at the triage stage so you can plan your cash flow accordingly.

An enquiry on one period does not stop you claiming in later ones, but HMRC will have seen how the company evidences its R&D. We use the enquiry to strengthen your records, so later claims rest on better evidence. Prior-year claims prepared the same way may be worth reviewing too.

We tell you first, in confidence, and explain the options. If a claim has been overstated, the full overclaim must be repaid, even if an adviser took a fee from it. Telling HMRC unprompted generally leads to lower penalties, so we work out the correct figure and the best route for putting it right.

You sign an authorisation so that we can act as your agent on the claim, and we then register with HMRC in the usual way. Agents have to be named on the claim notification and the additional information form, so we are open about who is acting. We guide you through the paperwork on the day we triage the case.

These are letters HMRC sends to many companies at once, suggesting a claim may contain an error and inviting the company to review it. They are not the same as an enquiry, but they should not be ignored. We review the claim against the points raised and help you decide whether a reply or a correction is needed.