December Year-End Innovation Tax Checklist

If your company has a 31 December year end, the months leading up to it are a useful time to review your tax position.

This year, there are two areas in particular to consider: whether there are opportunities from 2024 that still need to be acted on, and whether you are properly capturing the activity and expenditure taking place during 2026.

Use this checklist to review the areas that may apply to your business and identify anything that needs further attention before the end of the year.

1 | Before 31 December 2026: 8 questions to ask

»   R&D Tax Relief
☐  Did we undertake qualifying R&D during 2024 that has never been claimed, such as developing new products, processes, software or materials?
☐  Have we reviewed our 2026 projects and started capturing the technical and financial evidence needed for our next claim?

»   Patent Box
☐   Did we generate qualifying profits from patented products, components or processes during 2024 but never elect into Patent Box?
☐  Are we tracking the IP income and R&D expenditure needed to assess our 2026 Patent Box position?

»   Capital Allowances
☐  Have we reviewed our 2024 investment in property, machinery, equipment, refurbishments or fit-outs for potentially missed allowances?
☐  Have we identified all qualifying 2026 capital expenditure, including any embedded fixtures within property projects?

»   Land Remediation Relief
☐  Did we incur costs in 2024 to remediate contaminated or derelict land that have never been reviewed for relief?
☐  Are we separately identifying qualifying remediation costs within our 2026 development and redevelopment projects?

2 | Your December year-end countdown

»   Now – September 2026  →  Review
Review historic 2024 expenditure and claims. Identify anything potentially missed.

↓

»   October – November 2026  →  Capture
Review 2026 R&D projects, patented IP, capital investment and remediation expenditure. Gather evidence while the relevant teams still have the details.

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»   Before 31 December 2026  →  Deadline

Submit any 2024 R&D claims, Patent Box elections and other amendments that are reaching their statutory deadline.

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»   From January 2027  →  Prepare

Prepare 2026 claims and calculations, check whether R&D claim notification is required and build the relevant reliefs into Corporation Tax planning.

Do you have a question?

Not every deadline or relief will apply to every business. If you are unsure whether you have an opportunity to claim, an upcoming deadline or something you should be reviewing before your year end, get in touch with the ABGi team and we will be happy to help. If you are unsure whether your 2024 projects qualify, the ABGi team can conduct a complimentary pre-screening review before the December deadline closes.