Farming is not R&D. Developing how it is done can be.

A farming business can claim if it is a trading company chargeable to UK Corporation Tax and carries out a project that meets the R&D definition. Farming itself is not R&D. A farm company that develops a new technique, crop system or piece of equipment, and faces real scientific or technological uncertainty doing so, can claim for that work.

Work that resolves scientific or technological uncertainty in how food or crops are grown, monitored or processed, such as sensors, imaging, automation, growing systems or biological methods. As in other sectors, the question is whether a competent professional could have readily worked out the answer. Applying established agronomy or buying standard equipment does not qualify.

They can. A trial designed to establish something unknown, with a defined question, a method and results, is the kind of systematic work that can qualify. Comparing two commercial products or following a supplier's recommended practice is not. The records have to show what the uncertainty was, and that the trial was designed to resolve it.

Yes, where developing it involves technological uncertainty, such as getting sensing, data or control systems to work reliably in the field. Adopting a commercial precision farming system as sold is not R&D. Software, data and cloud computing costs used in the development can qualify, along with staff time and consumables used in testing.

Materials used up in R&D can be consumables, and seed, feed and other inputs consumed in a qualifying trial fall into that description. Inputs used in normal production, or in the part of a trial that is only to produce a saleable crop, do not. We separate trial inputs from commercial ones and tie them to the project.

It can, where the project is a systematic investigation of an unresolved scientific question, for example how to restore or manage a soil in a way that is not yet known to work. Routine soil sampling, testing and advice are not R&D. Sampling that forms part of a designed experiment can be.

Yes, where the project is developing a growing system and faces technological uncertainty, for example in lighting, climate control, automation or nutrient delivery. Operating a vertical farm using established methods is production. Equipment you keep is capital expenditure and is excluded from R&D relief, though the staff time and consumables on the development work can qualify.

For periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024, contracted-out R&D and externally provided workers abroad qualify only if the work is necessary because of geographical, environmental or social conditions that are not present in the UK, and it is wholly unreasonable to replicate them here. Cost and availability of workers are disregarded. Each trial site needs to be assessed.

It can be where the work seeks to resolve scientific uncertainty, such as developing a new treatment, diagnostic or management method. Routine veterinary care and herd management are not. If studies are carried out by contractors, the contracted-out rules apply, including the 65% rate for unconnected payments and the overseas exception.

A trial that runs across accounting periods needs its costs split between them with care. Costs must be paid before the claim is made. A claim must be made within two years of the end of the period of account, or 42 months from its start for a long period.

R&D tax relief is a relief for companies. It is for trading companies chargeable to UK Corporation Tax, so a partnership of individuals is outside it. If the partners also run a company that carries out the R&D, that company may be able to claim. Structure matters here, so we look at who is carrying out the work and in what entity.

For periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024, HMRC says there is no restriction on claiming subsidised costs under the merged scheme or ERIS. Earlier periods had grant-related rules, so the position for older claims depends on the grant terms. We check what each grant covers before we finalise the costs.

Yes, if the project involves scientific uncertainty, for example developing and testing a biological control method where it is not known if it will work. Buying and applying a commercial product as directed is routine. The evidence should show the hypothesis, the experiments and the results, including those that did not work.

With a trial plan that states the question, plot or animal records, measurements, weather and treatment logs, results, and notes on what the team concluded. Photographs and dated records help. Because outdoor work is variable, your notes on how you dealt with variation are valuable. We interview the agronomists and engineers who ran it.

It can, where the technology is being developed and its performance was uncertain. Our marine robotics case study involved monitoring seaweed farms with a robot. The environmental benefit does not itself make a project R&D. The claim rests on the technical uncertainty, such as getting a sensing or vision system to work in difficult conditions.