Apply for full claim advance assurance on your first Research and Development (R&D) tax relief claim
Ask HMRC for assurance on your first Research and Development (R&D) tax relief claim, if you are a small or medium-sized enterprise.
The full claim advance assurance process gives eligible SMEs clarity when they are claiming R&D tax relief for the first time. The assurance can cover up to 3 accounting periods.
Who can apply
You can apply for this advance assurance service if:
- your company is a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
- this will be your first time claiming R&D tax relief
- your company has a turnover below £2 million and fewer than 50 employees
- you are planning to carry out R&D, or you have already carried out R&D but have not yet claimed R&D tax relief
- you are part of a group, and none of the linked companies have claimed R&D tax relief before
If you’ve previously claimed R&D tax relief, you may be able to apply for targeted advance assurance on up to 2 areas of your Research & Development (R&D) tax relief claim instead.
You can complete the application yourself or your agent can apply for you.
What you need to apply
Before you apply, make sure you have:
- your company accounts
- your Companies House registration documents
- any HMRC correspondence relating to your advance assurance application
- your Company Tax Returns (not needed for new companies)
You’ll also need to provide the name of a main contact (for example, a director or research manager) with direct knowledge of the company’s R&D to:
- discuss the application with HMRC
- give basic information about your company
- give detailed information about your R&D activities, including the scientific or technological uncertainties and how you tried to overcome them
- give information about the costs related to your R&D activities
Apply online
You’ll need to sign in with your Government Gateway user ID and password (if you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you first try to sign in).
If you cannot apply online
If you’re unable to apply online you can print the form and post it to HMRC. There’s 2 ways you can do this, you can either:
- fill in the form online and print
- download the form to your computer, complete it and print
You cannot use these forms to make a claim for tax relief or to make changes to an existing tax relief claim.
Fill in the form online and print
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Get all of your information together before you start, as you cannot save your progress.
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Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.
This file may not be suitable if you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader). If you need a more accessible format, email different.format@hmrc.gov.uk and tell us what format you need. It will help if you tell us what assistive technology you use. Read the accessibility statement for HMRC forms.
If the form does not open, contact the online services helpdesk.
Download the form to your computer, complete it and print
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Download and save the form to your computer.
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Open it using the latest free version of Adobe Reader.
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Complete it on-screen.
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Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.
The form may not work if you try to open it in your internet browser. If the form does not open, contact the online services helpdesk.
Email HMRC to ask for this form in Welsh.
After you’ve applied
HMRC will contact you by email to arrange a phone call to discuss your R&D activities in more detail. This is usually a short call. In more complex cases, it may involve a longer discussion or a visit to your business.
We’ll send you a letter to let you know whether your application for advance assurance was successful.
If you’re given advance assurance
If advance assurance is agreed, it will apply to your first 3 accounting periods.
We’ll send you a letter explaining your company’s responsibilities and what happens if your R&D activities change.
We may contact you after you’ve submitted your first claim to check it matches the details in your advance assurance application.
If you’re not given advance assurance
We’ll send you a letter explaining why we’ve made this decision. You cannot appeal it or apply for advance assurance again.
If you still think you’re due R&D tax relief you can submit a claim in your Company Tax Return. We strongly advise you to think about your claim.
What your company needs to do next
Asking for advance assurance is not the same as making a claim for R&D tax relief.
Read about the steps you need to take to claim R&D tax relief.
These steps apply even if you, or the company have been granted advance assurance.