How to make a claim (Tree Production Innovation Fund)

Question 1

When to claim and submit reports

Accepted Answer

You must submit claims and progress reports by 11.55pm on the following dates:

Financial year	Submission type	Deadline
2025 to 2026	End of year claim and report	Friday 27 March 2026
2026 to 2027	Interim claim* and report	Wednesday 7 October 2026
2026 to 2027	End of year claim and report	Saturday 27 March 2027
2027 to 2028	Interim claim* and report	Thursday 7 October 2027
2027 to 2028	End of year claim and report	Monday 27 March 2028

*Interim claims are optional. Interim reports are mandatory.

You must submit a claim at the end of the financial year (or end of your project if that is sooner). You can also submit additional claims at the interim deadline and on 2 other dates of your choosing.

We recommend you submit additional claims if you anticipate claiming for lots of invoices and receipts.

You must submit a progress report with each additional claim. Go to How to complete your report for more information.

Unspent budget cannot be moved to the next financial year.

Before you claim

You must have:

received all items you are claiming for
completed all work you are claiming for
paid the total amount (not just deposits) of each cost

Try to claim for multiple items together and include everything purchased to date where possible.

Question 2

How to make a claim

Accepted Answer

Step 1: Gather your documents

Collect all invoices, receipts and records of staff time for items or activities you want to claim. Learn more about what evidence you need to provide.

Step 2: Complete your paperwork

Use the claim form, report template and spending tracker on the how to make a claim page. You need to:

add all costs to your spending tracker
complete and sign your claim form
prepare your report

Learn more about completing the spending tracker, claim form and report.

Step 3: Submit your claim

Email the following documents to TPIF@forestrycommission.gov.uk:

report
claim form
spending tracker (in Excel format), with any internal staff costs detailed in the timesheet tab
all invoices and receipts
bank statements (for purchases not in pounds sterling)
supplier creation form or supplier amendment form (if needed)

We will email to confirm we’ve received your claim and contact you if we have questions.

Do not invoice the Forestry Commission to request payment for your claim. A claim can only be paid following receipt of a claim form and supporting evidence.

Question 3

How to complete your report

Accepted Answer

Use the templates on the how to make a claim page for completing your:

end of year report
end of project report
interim report (template available autumn 2026)

If you submit photos separately from the report, reference the item or activity the photo relates to in the photo file name.

Our technical reviewers cannot give feedback on interim, end of year and end of project reports, but we will contact you if we have any comments or questions.

Progress reports

If you’re making an additional claim, your progress report should include:

a description of progress made to date towards project activities and milestones as set out in your grant agreement
evidence that the work has been carried out as described in the grant agreement and claim form, for example, reports from a desk study, photographs, videos, feedback or attendance lists from workshops

Question 4

Evidence you need to provide

Accepted Answer

You must provide evidence for every item you claim, regardless of cost.

Detail all costs in your spending tracker and link these to the relevant item reference in your finance spreadsheet. Find the item reference in Column B of your finance spreadsheet.

We may reject all or part of your claim if you cannot provide valid evidence.

All invoices, receipts and timesheets must be dated within your funding period and within the financial year in which you are claiming.

Claiming spend between 28 to 31 March

If you expect to incur costs between 28 to 31 March in a given financial year:

include an estimate of these when you submit your end of year claim for that financial year
submit evidence of expenditure to support these costs as soon as possible after the claim deadline
you cannot claim for these costs in the following financial year

Invoice and receipt requirements

Your invoices must show:

invoice date
grant recipient organisation name (as shown in your agreement)
supplier’s name and address
cost and clear description of each item
date(s) when the work was carried out (if invoice is for a service)
VAT amounts (where applicable)
total amount owed

For more information on what should be included on invoices, read Invoicing and taking payment from customers.

Your receipts must show:

payment date
supplier’s name and address
cost and clear description of each item
confirmation of payment
VAT amounts (where applicable)

Pro forma invoices, quotes, purchase orders or purchases made in cash will not be accepted.

If your claim includes invoices in a foreign currency, you must provide evidence of the amount paid in pounds sterling. This can be a bank statement, with confidential details removed.

Name your invoice and receipt documents clearly. For example, ‘001-InvoicingCompany-05July25’.

What to include in your spending tracker

Use the invoices and receipts tab of your spending tracker to detail all your invoices and receipts.

For each cost, provide:

item reference for the relevant item in your finance spreadsheet
name of the document containing the invoice or receipt (include page number if multiple invoices in one document)
a brief description of item purchased (for example, ‘data analysis’)
total cost
amount you’re claiming for
details of VAT claimed
invoice date

If an invoice relates to more than one item reference on your finance spreadsheet, list each item separately.

If an invoice includes items that are not part of your TPIF project, explain which items you’re claiming for.

VAT information

If you can recover VAT on a cost, claim the amount excluding VAT.

If you cannot recover VAT on a cost, claim the amount including VAT.

If you can partly recover VAT on a cost, claim the amount including only the irrecoverable VAT and explain the rate applied in ‘additional details’ on your spending tracker.

Claiming travel and subsistence (T&S)

Ensure any T&S is carried out in the most economical and sustainable way possible.

You must explain how T&S relates to the funded activities in your report.

If partners or contractors incur T&S costs, they should invoice you for these costs.

Internal staff T&S

For internal staff, submit either:

Receipts and details of mileage.
Internal evidence of staff T&S.

1. Receipts and details of mileage

List each receipt and mileage claim in the invoices and receipts tab of your spending tracker.

If you are claiming for mileage, include:

a short explanation of the purpose of the journey in the Item description column
the date of the journey in the Invoice date column
the rate per mile and distance in the Additional details column

2. Internal evidence of staff T&S

If you are providing internal evidence of T&S:

submit a download or screenshot from your organisation’s finance system, instead of individual receipts
ensure any evidence includes the cost, date, a brief description of the item, and a job/account code (or similar) to show costs have been made under your TPIF project
list each piece of internal evidence in the invoices and receipts tab of your spending tracker. For example, if your expense reports are produced monthly, add one line for each monthly report.

We approve internal evidence of T&S on a case-by-case basis so keep copies of receipts.

Internal recharge

Internal recharges are costs that cannot be evidenced through invoices or receipts.

You can submit evidence of an internal recharge if you have been charged by another department within your organisation for an item or service relating to your project.

Provide evidence from an internal system, which details:

the item or service charged for
date of purchase or use
cost and job/account code (or similar) to show costs have been made under your TPIF project

If you cannot show evidence from an internal system, submit an email from the relevant department confirming the same details listed.

Contact us if you’re not sure whether your evidence is acceptable.

We accept internal recharge evidence at our discretion.

Subscription costs

If you have purchased a subscription or licence:

claim for this in the financial year in which the invoice/receipt is dated
include the dates covered by the subscription or licence in the Additional details tab of your spending tracker

If the period of the subscription or license extends beyond the end of your funding agreement you must only claim for the time covered by your funding agreement.

Depreciation costs

You can claim depreciation costs for items in the Equipment Depreciation Costs tab of your finance spreadsheet.

Claims should be:

in arrears
in the financial year that an item was used
for the time period an item was used during your TPIF project
for the percentage of time it was used for your TPIF project (for example, 50% if its use was equally split between your TPIF project and another project)

You cannot claim depreciation costs for equipment purchased before the start of your funding agreement.

How to calculate depreciation costs

1). Divide the total cost of the item by the lifespan (months) given in your finance spreadsheet.

2). Multiply this by the time used (months).

3). Apply the percentage use on the project if applicable. For example, if the item was used 25% of the time for this project, only claim 25% of the depreciation cost.

Example of how to calculate depreciation cost of an item

Equipment cost: £5,000
Lifespan (from your finance spreadsheet): 5 years = 60 months
Monthly depreciation: £5,000 ÷ 60 = £83.33 per month
Time used on project (October 2025 to January 2026): 5 months
Depreciation for time used = £83.33 × 5 = £416.65
Percentage used on the TPIF project: 50%
Eligible claim: 50% of £416.65 = £208.33

You should claim for £208.33.

To claim depreciation costs for each item you should:

provide an invoice or receipt when claiming for that item the first time
add it to the invoices and receipts tab of your spending tracker
add the depreciation cost to the Cost claimed column
add the total cost of the item, claim period of use (for example, ‘October 2025 to January 2025 inclusive’) and the percentage use to the Additional details column

Claiming staff time

Use the timesheet tab in your spending tracker to claim for internal staff time.

Timesheets are for internal staff only. Invoices must be submitted for external contractors’ time.

For each person, provide the:

item reference for the relevant item in your finance spreadsheet
dates when work was carried out
team member’s name and job role
brief description of work carried out (for example, ‘DNA analysis’)
rate of pay (daily or hourly)
number of days or hours worked
total cost
amount you’re claiming for

You should include a separate line for each activity carried out by a member of staff. For example, ‘Project management’, ‘Data analysis’ and ‘Workshop preparation and delivery’.

Question 5

How to complete your claim form

Accepted Answer

Section 1: Claimant details

The claimant must:

be the lead applicant or project representative
sign section 3 of the claim form

Contact us if you would like to add an additional project representative to your project to sign future claims.

The grant recipient organisation must match the:

grant recipient on your agreement
business or individual name on your supplier creation form or supplier record

Only the grant recipient organisation can receive claim payments.

Section 2: Claim details

Check that your claim amount does not exceed the maximum grant amount in your agreement.

If you’ve made claims earlier in the financial year, ensure the total of all claims stays within your budget for that financial year.

Section 3: Declaration

Provide either a digital or handwritten signature. We cannot accept typed names in the signature box.

Question 6

Setting up payment details

Accepted Answer

New suppliers

Complete a supplier creation form if this is your first payment from the Forestry Commission. We will email you a supplier creation form after you’ve signed your grant agreement.

The business or individual name on the form must match:

Existing suppliers

If your bank details or organisation information has changed since your last Forestry Commission payment, email TPIF@forestrycommission.gov.uk for a supplier amendment form.

Payment to a different organisation

If payment needs to go to a different organisation than named in your agreement, contact the TPIF team.

Question 7

After your claim

Accepted Answer

When you’ll receive payment

We aim to make payments within 22 working days of receiving a completed claim.

It may take longer at the end of the financial year. Delays may occur if your claim is incomplete or has errors.

Record keeping

Keep all paperwork (invoices, receipts, accounting records) for 7 years from the end of your funding period.

Question 8

Changes to your project

Accepted Answer

You must inform us as soon as possible if:

you would like to make significant changes to your project
you would like to reallocate budget between spend categories
you no longer plan to proceed with your project

All significant changes need Forestry Commission approval in advance.

If a cost increases slightly, it does not need approval in advance.

Question 9

Contact us

Accepted Answer

Contact the TPIF team if you need help with:

submitting your claim or supporting evidence
correcting a mistake after you’ve submitted a claim
making a change to your project

Email us at TPIF@forestrycommission.gov.uk.

All the forms you need are on the how to make a claim page.

How to make a claim (Tree Production Innovation Fund)

Applies to England

When to claim and submit reports

Before you claim