Are you considering changing your R&D tax specialist?
We specialise in helping companies who are already claiming tax incentives but are looking to optimise their claim, experience a better service or pay a more competitive price – or all of the above of course.
It pays to choose a provider with a proven track record – both in the UK and internationally – whose unique combination of highly qualified and experienced technical staff with proven methodologies consistently deliver great results for clients. We welcome the opportunity to work with you because we are confident we can beat your current provider on service and results.
How we can help
If you have an issue, no matter how small, it might be worthwhile finding out how the claim experience feels with ABGI.
FAQs for R&D tax credits
R&D Tax Relief & HMRC
No. This is a Government scheme fully supported by the Treasury and HMRC. In fact HMRC recently announced a number of measures to make the scheme easier to access.
Although the majority of claims will be processed by HMRC without the need for further information, some are not so fortunate.
This process is call and enquiry and can happen because:
HMRC are looking at other tax issues related to your business, and your R&D claim will be included.
- You've claimed before, but this claim is much larger.
- You're technical justification is insufficient, or not compelling.
- Your claim focusses on a technology which HMRC are seeing more often - and they want to ensure a consistent approach.
HMRC might have a simple question, or could ask for emails, spreadsheets, invoices, contracts and other correspondence.
To date, less than 1% of our claims have been subject to an HMRC enquiry. We have successfully defended all of them.
No. This is a Government scheme fully supported by the Treasury and HMRC. It has been in operation since 2000.
R&D tax claims and accountants
Simply choosing an accountant to manage a claim is based on the assumption that it is a tax process. A robust, accurate and successful claim is actually largely focussed on technology. The majority of accountants do not have the resources to employ technical experts (scientists, engineers, chemists, software experts) and will therefore not understand what you do, how you do it, the context of your projects and known industry alternatives. They will therefore generally submit conservative claims for less than your legitimate entitlement.
That may well be the case. However, as R&D Tax Specialists, we can often find genuine eligibility where a non-specialist (most Accountants) cannot. Get in touch with us to talk it through.
Yes – we have worked with many Accountants over the years. Contact us to find out how we can work together.
General questions
Grants and subsidies can move a portion (or all) of an SME’s project from the SME scheme to the RDEC scheme. It is therefore possible – and relatively common – for SMEs to be able to claim under both schemes for one or more projects.
As a rough rule of thumb - If an SME gets a grant or subsidy that is State Aid, that project’s claim may have to go through the RDEC scheme.
If an SME gets a grant or subsidy that is not State Aid, its claim can be split between the SME and RDEC schemes. Large Companies are not affected by grants and subsidies.
Yes. The crucial thing is that companies have to be spending money, and the more they have spent on eligible activities, the greater the benefit and some loss-making companies may be eligible to receive a cash credit.
An R&D claim enquiry defence is included in our fee. Every claim we submit to HMRC goes through our rigorous process and we have the utmost confidence in its accuracy. We will robustly defend any claim submitted on behalf of our clients
Our fee rates are negotiable and always competitive - contact us for a quote.
Yes, you can. Please contact us for more details.
Our International Presence
Most countries have tax benefits in the form of credits or enhanced deductions for R&D expenditure. Governments keen to attract R&D investment to encourage economic growth are constantly changing not just the incentives but also the rules, regulations and interpretations. If you are completing innovative projects internationally contact us today to see how our global reach can help you claim R&D tax credits elsewhere.
The benefits we can bring to you:
We do most of the work – making the whole process painless. We realise you have a business to run, so we’ve perfected a range of approaches that keeps your time commitment to an absolute minimum.
We employ the best people, so you get the best results. Finding and securing the right innovation funding and incentives for your business requires a special blend of technology, tax and financial expertise.
We employ the best. We’re competitive, like you. As a commercially minded business like you, we operate in a highly competitive market. We welcome the opportunity to work with you because we are confident we can beat your current provider on service and results.
We're a pleasure to work with. Everyone at ABGI shares the same core values and these are reflected in everything we do. These include integrity, being supportive, always striving for excellence and challenging ourselves to deliver the best possible outcomes. We take this seriously - so every member of the team receives feedback on living the values twice yearly.
We feel this is important so that, as a client, you can feel confident and secure in your choice of provider, engaged in the process, understood and respected at all times, and completely satisfied with your experience from start to finish. This is why 98% of our clients rate our service as ‘Excellent’.
Accelerating innovation is what we do. Boasting a combined total of more than 70 years’ experience of carrying out claims for innovation incentives, our Innovation Funding Consultants have submitted over 5,700 claims for 2,000 clients in the UK. So, while you might feel that only you know where your costs lie, chances are we’ve worked with a business very similar to yours. We know exactly where to look and how to go about identifying and capturing relevant spend – in areas such as staff (direct and indirect), subcontractors, consumables, prototypes and software.
We'll minimise any potential risk to your business. While they can bring financial reward, applying for funding and securing tax incentives can also expose a business to risk, if not managed properly. Taking tax incentives as an example, HMRC’s every evolving interpretation of what qualifies makes it more important than ever to submit accurate and robust claims. Given our track record, HMRC only spot-check a very small percentage of our claims and we’ve defended each of them successfully.
We take a holistic approach. Making the most of the tax incentives available to your business is about identifying all your eligible activities and capturing all your relevant expenditure, while complying with HMRC’s strict requirements.
As technicians who understand the innovation challenges you face and the technological advances you’re trying to achieve, you can rely on us to find more eligible activity than anyone else. Accountants, for example, only understand finance, while other so-called specialists have, at best, a purely financial background.
We take quality very seriously. We are one of the few tax incentive and innovation management advisers to have ISO9001 accreditation. All our processes are independently audited and verified annually, so you can rest assured they’re robust, proven and do everything they’re meant to do.
We’re flexible too. We’ll tailor our approach to you. ISO9001 provides a useful framework for our internal processes but we’ll fit in around your priorities and preferred way of working.
Have a question?
Contact ABGI and a representative will get back to you to discuss your unique needs and explain how we can assist. Submit an enquiry or call us on
0203 984 0321