R&D Tax Credit Estimator
The 2024 merged R&D scheme gives a 20% above-the-line credit on qualifying expenditure. Loss-making R&D-intensive companies, where qualifying spend is 30% or more of total expenditure, can instead claim enhanced support (ERIS) worth roughly 27p per £1 of qualifying spend. Enter your spend categories and see your indicative credit and net benefit.
R&D Tax Credit Estimator
The 2024 merged R&D scheme gives a 20% above-the-line credit on qualifying expenditure. Loss-making R&D-intensive companies, where qualifying spend is 30% or more of total expenditure, can instead claim enhanced support (ERIS) worth roughly 27p per £1 of qualifying spend. Enter your spend categories and see your indicative credit and net benefit.
All expenditure for the year. Used to test whether you meet the R&D intensive threshold.
Gross salary + employer NI + pension of staff doing qualifying R&D, apportioned by time.
UK subcontractor invoices for R&D work. HMRC caps your claim at 65% of this.
Materials, prototypes, items consumed in the R&D process.
SaaS licences and cloud compute (AWS, GCP, GPU rental) used specifically for R&D.
Directional estimate only. Actual claims involve scoping, PAYE/NI cap, staff time apportionment, and specific qualifying-activity tests. Book a free call for a tailored assessment.
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Calculators give you a solid starting point, but the final number depends on timing, reliefs you may not have considered, and how different taxes interact. A quick conversation with one of our accountants puts a firm figure on it, with no obligation.
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How the merged R&D scheme works
Since 1 April 2024 most UK companies use the merged scheme, which replaced both the old RDEC and the SME scheme. You claim a 20% above-the-line credit on qualifying expenditure. Because it's above-the-line, it reduces your taxable profit first — the net cash benefit after 25% corporation tax is typically around 15p per qualifying pound.
Loss-making R&D-intensive companies (where qualifying R&D spend is 30% or more of total expenditure) can instead use enhanced R&D intensive support (ERIS): an 86% enhanced deduction surrendered for a 14.5% payable credit, worth roughly 27p per qualifying pound — and because the credit is payable rather than taxable, there is no corporation tax haircut. The calculator tests the intensity ratio automatically.
Worked example: a software company spends £120,000 on staff time allocated to qualifying R&D, £40,000 on UK subcontractors (65% claimable = £26,000), £15,000 on consumables, and £25,000 on cloud compute, against total business expenditure of £800,000. Qualifying expenditure is £186,000. The R&D intensity ratio is 23.3% (£186,000 divided by £800,000), which is below the 30% ERIS threshold, so the standard merged-scheme rate of 20% applies. The gross above-the-line credit is £37,200. After the 25% corporation tax charge on the credit, the net benefit is £27,900, equivalent to approximately 15p for every qualifying pound spent.
Frequently asked questions
- What counts as qualifying expenditure?
- Staff costs (salary, employer NI, pension) apportioned to qualifying R&D time; 65% of subcontractor costs for UK-based contractors; consumables used in R&D; software and cloud compute directly used in R&D. Overheads, capital items, and costs for overseas contractors generally fall outside (with limited exceptions).
- Is this the ERIS scheme for loss-making SMEs?
- No. The merged scheme described here applies to all companies from April 2024. The separate Enhanced R&D Intensive Support (ERIS) scheme applies to loss-making SMEs with an R&D intensity of 30% or more and offers a payable credit. If you are loss-making, speak to us about whether ERIS applies.
- What is the PAYE/NI cap?
- Your R&D credit cannot exceed three times your total PAYE and NI liability for the period, plus £20,000. For companies with significant R&D but a small payroll, this cap can reduce the claim. This calculator does not model the cap — book a call for a full assessment.
Numbers are one thing. Getting the timing right is another.
Every figure here is modelled on standard 2026/27 thresholds. Your actual position depends on prior-year usage, pension carry-forward, other income sources, and how your decisions interact with each other. We build those models as part of our advisory work.
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