Oversight of R&D tax credits requires a rethink

Key points

• There has been widespread confusion over what constitutes research and development.
• The recent cases of Get Onbord and Tills Plus centre on disputes regarding the legitimacy of R&D tax credits.
• Tills Plus can be seen as a cautionary tale for companies as HMRC found that it had not met the requirements for a successful R&D claim.
• Get Onbord shows that the burden of proof can be shifted back on to HMRC for a well-presented claim.
• The judgments serve to underscore the need for companies to approach the claims process with the same diligence they do the R&D itself.

It has been a tumultuous year for research and development (R&D) tax. A notable gap between political rhetoric and reality resulted in widespread confusion over what constitutes R&D as ambitions of making Britain a ‘science superpower’ and the ‘next Silicon Valley’ were undercut by hasty and unclear changes to the funding scheme. ...