As we pass another milestone, I find myself reflecting on saving our clients over £8million tax from R&D Tax Relief since the end of 2014, and reflect on how the process and the market is evolving. It is clear that the need for the relief and support for our clients will remain, but the delivery and often the timing of advice is changing.
In tax we are in one of the most significant periods of change in a very long time. Brexit continues to provide uncertainty and Making Tax Digital will change the face of accountancy as we know it. On top of that, the current debacle with tax approved share options losing their tax relief due to a “delay” in renewing EU approval (with HMRC giving us two days’ notice!) just demonstrates the significant challenges we must keep pace with.
However, what is clear is that R&D Tax Relief is here to stay for many years and, with the pace of technological change across all business sectors, innovation for businesses is more important than ever if one is not to get left behind.
A real positive is that we are seeing a lot more businesses coming to us earlier in their journey too, illustraing that awareness is much greater now and that means we are also able to give additional relevant advice including:
– suitable business structure
– keeping records of technical projects
– adapting accounting software to capture R&D costs
– structuring owners remuneration to maximise R&D claims later
– projecting future R&D Relief for financial forecasting – this can make the difference between securing investment or bank funding, or missing out
– advising on securing tax relief for angel investors through EIS and SEIS
The bottom line to all this is that it is never too early to start looking at innovation reliefs and it’s clear that this message is getting through to our referral network.
We continue to offer a totally free initial consultation to discuss a business situation and identify the best way forward. To discuss your situation please give me a call or send an email and I will be pleased to chat anything through.
Contact James Geary for more information by emailing james.geary@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.
