As a result of the recent reforms within HMRC, several areas of the R&D Tax Relief schemes changed with effect from the 1^st April 2023. One such change is the requirement to notify HMRC in advance that you intend to make a claim.

Who needs to pre-notify?

You must pre-notify HMRC of your intention to claim in the following instances:

• you’re claiming for the first time.
• you’ve claimed for the previous tax year, but you did not submit that claim until after the last date of the claim notification period (the claim notification period ends 6 months after the end of the period of account).
• your last claim was made more than 3 years before the last date of the claim notification period.

I.e., if a company submitted an R&D claim in 2021 and plans to do so again in 2024, it will not need to make a pre-notification (as the company made a claim within the previous three calendar years). However, if a company last claimed in 2020 and intends to make a claim in 2024, pre-notification will have to be submitted.

When do you need to notify HMRC of your intention to claim?

The earliest point at which a company can notify HMRC is the first day of the accounting period containing qualifying activity. The latest point at which you must notify is 6 months after the end of the accounting period containing qualifying activity.

For clarity, if the accounting period containing qualifying activity is 1^st October 2023 to 30^th September 2024, the notification must be submitted between 1^st October 2023 and 31^st March 2025.

What information is required?

The claim notification form will require the following:

• The company’s Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR).
• The main senior internal R&D contact in the company who is responsible for the R&D claim.
• The contact details of any agent involved in the R&D claim.
• The accounting period start and end date for which you’re claiming the tax relief or expenditure credit.
• The period of account, start and end date.
• A summary of the high-level planned activities, and show how the projects meet the standard definition of R&D.

From the 1^st August 2023 you must submit an additional information form to support all your claims for R&D tax relief or expenditure credit, either before or at the same time as the electronic submission of your CT600.

These changes will affect the way in which a claim is prepared. Therefore, it is of benefit to all companies currently undertaking R&D activities to speak with us to understand the impact of making a future claim to ensure you aren’t missing any important deadlines.