Your first R&D claim deserves more care than most.

Usually, yes. For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2023, a company claiming for the first time must send HMRC a claim notification. The deadline runs from the first day of the period of account to six months after it ends. A late notification makes the claim invalid, so this is the first thing we check. Our notification checker gives a quick answer.

Because HMRC's figures show high error rates in first-time claims. In HMRC's figures for 2021-22, 64% of the value of first-time claims was non-compliant, and 46% of first-time claims were wholly non-compliant. New claimants often misunderstand what qualifies or lack records. A first claim therefore needs to be better evidenced than most, not lighter.

We cannot say without hearing about it. The relief is a percentage of qualifying costs, so a small project gives a small amount, and the cost of preparing a claim properly must be weighed against it. That is what the free scoping call is for. We will tell you honestly if the numbers do not justify a claim.

It is worth considering if you qualify. Full claim advance assurance is for first-time SME claimants with turnover below £2m, fewer than 50 employees and no group company that has claimed before; it covers the first three periods. Targeted advance assurance, a pilot launched on 18 May 2026, can cover up to two specific areas. We help you decide.

A short note at the start of each project saying what technical problem you cannot yet solve and why. Then dated records of what was tried: design notes, test results, code commits, tickets, meeting notes. Time records for the people involved, even rough ones. Invoices for subcontractors, consumables, software and cloud. Records made at the time carry far more weight than a reconstruction.

Possibly. A claim is generally due within two years of the end of the period of account. But if the earlier period began on or after 1 April 2023 and you are a first-time claimant, the notification for that period had to be made within six months of its end, which may have passed. We check each period separately.

It depends on the number of projects, how good the records are and how quickly your people are available. We do not guess a duration at the outset. We agree a timetable on the scoping call, working back from the date the notification and the additional information form must be in, and we tell you if it looks tight.

You need people who did the technical work and can explain it. The Government's guidelines ask whether a competent professional working in the field could readily have resolved the uncertainty, which is a test of the problem, not a job title you must hold. We interview your technical people and write the narrative.

Yes, if the work was R&D and the costs were paid. Qualifying work starts when activity begins to resolve the technological uncertainty, which can be early. Keep records from day one, and note that the notification window starts on the first day of the period of account. Early-stage costs are often small, so we check whether a claim is worthwhile.

Salary, bonus, pension and employer National Insurance for the time a person spends on R&D can qualify, so a founder who does technical work can be included for that time only. A company claiming cash is also subject to the PAYE cap of £20,000 plus 300% of relevant PAYE and NIC, unless an exemption applies. We calculate the effect.

It depends how they are engaged. An agency-supplied worker is an externally provided worker, and for unconnected providers 65% of the payment can qualify. A subcontractor is treated similarly. For periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024, the work must be done in the UK unless it is qualifying overseas expenditure. We check the contract, the provider and the location.

It is focused. It describes a few real projects, each with a clear technical problem, what was tried and why the answer was not obvious. It has costs traced to payroll and invoices, and it leaves out routine work. It is specific, not templated, and it hangs together: report, costs and forms agree. That also makes it easy to defend.

Yes, in three ways. There is a notification requirement. HMRC pays closer attention. And you are setting up the records and habits that later claims will depend on. A later claim can build on a first one that was done properly, which is why we treat a first claim as the foundation for what follows.

Expect questions about the projects, the people and the costs, and be ready to produce records. Do not reply alone; send us the letter, and we triage it the same working day. A first claim built on good evidence is easier to defend. Our Zero Risk package includes full enquiry defence.

It has to be submitted before or on the same day as the Company Tax Return. It asks for company details, intensity figures, a cost breakdown, a senior internal contact, every agent involved, and descriptions of your projects: all of them if you have up to three, and at least three covering half the spend if you have more. We prepare it.