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Claim Feedback FAQs

FAQs for claim feedback, including common troubleshooting issues, examples of feedback and how you can resolve them.

Having issues resolving your feedback? Here, you will find frequently asked questions for claim feedback, including common troubleshooting issues as well as examples of feedback and how you can resolve them.

Why do I need to decrease an R&D time percentage?

Our tax team can request that you decrease an R&D time percentage due to the percentage being too high for the cost added. This can be applied to the following scenarios:

  • R&D time percentage is too high for the job role: This type of feedback occurs when the R&D time % is considered too high by HMRC. For example, this could be a supporting role where the R&D time percentage has been entered as 90%; this would raise a flag with HMRC, as they wouldn’t expect supporting staff members or contractors to spend 90% of their time on R&D. Consequently, the R&D time percentage would need to be reduced to reflect the actual time spent on qualifying R&D activities only.

  • R&D time percentage is too high for the item: Similarly to the above, some costs may have a higher R&D time percentage than HMRC would typically expect for the item. For example, a high R&D time percentage might have been applied to a software item like Slack, but a high R&D time % (>50%) would most likely raise questions from HMRC. They would not expect Slack to be used for R&D the majority of the time. Therefore, you would need to reflect on the actual amount of time Slack was used for R&D and apply an appropriate apportionment.

Here are some examples to illustrate the above scenarios…

“Flower Ltd has added a staff role for ‘Head of Product Design’. For the R&D time percentage, they entered ‘90%’. They have received red feedback, requesting for them to reduce the R&D time percentage to reflect the amount of time spent on R&D only.”


The above example has received this feedback because, generally, HMRC wouldn’t expect a product or design role to spend 90% of their time on R&D. This is largely due to the nature of the role, as these roles typically spend time on activities that do not qualify.

For example, these roles may have spent time on UX / UI design, which does not qualify under HMRC rules. Therefore, you would need to ‘strip out’ these activities from your R&D time percentage consideration. For instance, if this role spent about half their time on UX / UI activities, this would need to be reflected in the R&D time percentage that you enter.

"Pizza Limited has added a software cost for Microsoft 365, with a total of £100. They entered an R&D time percentage of 100%, stating that this software was used during the entire duration of the R&D project. They have received red feedback, requesting for them to reduce the R&D time percentage as it is currently too high".


While it is understandable that Microsoft 365 was used throughout the entire project, HMRC is unlikely to accept that 100% of that time was used for R&D purposes. For example, a proportion of that time is likely to have been spent on BAU activities, such as business meetings, strategy and planning. Therefore, HMRC would expect them to 'strip out' any ineligible activities and then apply an appropriate apportionment to the overall percentage.

Someone on my team definitely spent 100% of their time on R&D; why do I need to reduce it?

While some roles, such as 'CTO', might be R&D-intensive and, therefore, have a high R&D percentage, this does not necessarily mean you can add their R&D time percentage as 100%. HMRC is likely to question such a high percentage, as every role usually entails 'BAU' activities and unfortunately, these aren't eligible under R&D tax relief. 

When it comes to R&D-intensive roles and how much to add, keep in mind that setting any role at 100% isn't advisable. When calculating the actual percentage, you should reflect on the actual time spent on R&D qualifying activities, excluding any 'BAU' activities, testing, customer research or UI / UX design. 

What will happen if I do not want to reduce an R&D time percentage?

While it is understandable that you want to include as many costs as possible to maximise your claim benefit, it isn't always worth the risk. If an R&D time percentage is too high, you run the risk of HMRC asking for additional information or even opening an enquiry. An enquiry can be time-consuming and could possibly delay your payment by several months.

While you may think that reducing an R&D time percentage could significantly lower your overall claim benefit, in many cases, the impact is minimal and often far 'outweighs' the risk of submitting with a higher percentage. As we want to maximise your claim while minimising the risk, we would always recommend considering these factors when actioning the claim feedback.


Why do I need to remove costs?

A cost usually needs to be removed because it is ineligible. While you may have hired a person or purchased an item for the purpose of your R&D project/s, this does not necessarily mean it is eligible. For example, having a 'Billing Manager' may be beneficial for you when managing the project, but it is not a role that is actually working on R&D. Therefore, you cannot claim for it.

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