South East: Big jump in R&D tax relief claims

Published by

TBM Team

The South East has seen another significant rise in R&D (research and development) tax credit claims, according to statistics released by HMRC.

The latest 2018-19 figures show South East companies made a total of 8,970 claims, up from 7,440 made this time last year. There were 7,805 successful R&D tax relief claims made by SMEs in the region as well as additional claims secured through the RDEC scheme. This amounted just over £1 billion R&D tax relief being secured by businesses across the region, second only to London.

Overall there were 59,265 R&D tax credit claims made across the UK in the 2018-19 period with South East-based companies securing 19% of the £5.3b of tax relief support that was claimed nationwide. This measure helped stimulate more than £35b of R&D expenditure by British businesses.

South East companies also secured £135m in rebates for Patent Box claims, another tax relief incentive available to help firms develop intellectual property (IP) assets. Overall, companies across the UK secured a total of £992m in Patent Box tax breaks in 2018-19.

This year’s R&D tax credit statistics show manufacturing companies along with those in ‘Professional, Scientific and Technical’, and ‘Information and Communication’ sectors continuing to have the greatest volume of claims. The three categories account for a combined total of 66% of claims and 71% of the total amount claimed in 2018-19.

Commenting on the new figures, Scott Henderson, CEO of ABGI UK, said: “The South East of England has seen a surge in R&D tax relief claims compared to the same period in 2017-18. This further highlights the high level of innovation across the region’s business community, investment which could prove crucial as the UK faces significant economic challenges going forward.

“The R&D tax credit scheme has a proven track record in delivering success, driving forward innovation and helping develop more world-class companies across the UK. Going forward we will continue to work with businesses across the region to ensure they are securing maximum benefit when they invest in research and development.”

Since the launch of R&D tax credit schemes in 2000, over 300,000 claims have been made and £33.3b in tax relief claimed.

TBM Team