DHCO
 

Untapped Research & Development Opportunities in the Agriculture Industry

Untapped Research & Development Opportunities in the Agriculture Industry

Many companies in the agriculture sector are currently missing out on significant tax relief, simply because they don’t realise how varied Research and Development (R&D) projects can be.

R&D is often seen as something solely done in the scientific industry, however it actually occurs across a wide range of sectors. Douglas Home & Co’s team of R&D specialists has gained tax relief for a wide variety of rural businesses that didn’t even know they were undertaking R&D work.

To qualify for R&D tax credits you must be a limited company, however, beyond that there are several projects spanning many agricultural areas that are classed as R&D. Common projects include:

  • Developing disease-resistant crops
  • Developing ways to increase milk production in dairy farming
  • Attempting to develop or implement new cultivation and harvesting techniques
  • Improving animal welfare conditions
  • Introducing techniques to improve milk yield
  • Artificial insemination
  • Reducing the use of antibiotics
  • Experimenting with new or different fertilisers (e.g. organic ones).

Even what is considered by you as simple problem solving in these areas may be eligible for tax credits, and there are many more examples than we’ve listed here. Your business may already be conducting activities that qualify as R&D.

Furthermore, since the outbreak of Coronavirus, HMRC have been fast-tracking these tax claims. That means that your business could receive a repayment within just two weeks, however this varies from case to case. Particularly large credits have been processed in 6-8 weeks since the advent of Covid-19.

Depending on when your year end is, you may be able to claim repayments as far back as two years. For example, we recently met with a client and discovered that they could be eligible for R&D tax credits. We managed to turn around their claim from start to finish within 4 days, just before the amendment window for their 2018 tax return closed.

If you’d like to learn more about whether your business might be eligible for R&D tax credits, or how we can help you apply for them, then please get in touch at mail@dhco.co.uk or 01573 225082.



×
Contact Us