The North East offices of Top 15 accountancy firm Haines Watts have helped businesses reclaim over £8.2m in Research and Development (R&D) tax credits in the first six months of the financial year.
Working with businesses all over the UK, Haines Watts North East has successfully completed 153 claims and in turn identified over £41.2m of enhanced tax deduction for limited companies.
The relief, which is intended to encourage UK spending on innovation, allows companies to claim back up to 130% of their expenditure on qualifying R&D activities and receive a cash repayment from HMRC.
Since 2014, Haines Watts North East has helped clients save over £27m in R&D tax credits, allowing them to reinvest money back into their business.
Jonathan Scott, Tax Partner at Haines Watts, said: “We’ve had a busy start to the first half of this financial year with a number of big clients coming on board, as well as a new appointment to the R&D team to facilitate this extra growth.
“We’re also keen to make more businesses in our region aware of the tax incentive, after recent statistics showed that the North East accounted for just 2% of the claims made in 2016. The money that can be saved under the R&D tax relief regime can open up valuable new cash flows, which in turn can allow for more investment and enable business growth.”
R&D tax relief can be claimed by UK limited companies that have incurred expenditure on projects – within the previous two financial years – which address an area of scientific or technological uncertainty and involve the development of products, services or processes.
With offices in Newcastle and Darlington, Haines Watts North East work with a diverse range of businesses ranging from architects, designers and manufacturers to engineers, vets and breweries.
For more information on how to claim R&D tax credits, get in touch with newcastle@hwca.com