R&D Tax Credits · North West
R&D tax credit claims in Knutsford
If your Knutsford company has spent money trying to resolve a technical problem that competent professionals could not readily solve, you may have an R&D claim worth up to 16.2% of the spend under the merged scheme, or more as a loss-making R&D-intensive company. We review eligibility free, then prepare and file for a fixed fee.
from £999 · fixed, per claim
Next deadlines
- R&D claim deadline: 2 years after the end of the accounting period (and the pre-notification window of 6 months after the period for first-time claimants)
- Company tax return (CT600) due 12 months after your year end (a 31 December year end files by 31 December)
- Corporation Tax payment, 9 months and 1 day after your year end (a 31 December year end pays by 1 October)
- R&D claim deadline: 2 years after the end of the accounting period (and the pre-notification window of 6 months after the period for first-time claimants)
Who this is for
R&D Tax Credits for Knutsford
Limited companies in Knutsford that have tried to achieve an advance in science or technology and faced genuine uncertainty doing it: software firms building something that did not exist, manufacturers developing new processes or materials, engineering businesses solving problems off the standard path, and food, biotech and clean-tech companies with development spend to recover.
What is included
Everything inside the fixed fee
- Eligibility review against the statutory definition of R&D for tax purposes, with a written yes or no
- Advance notification to HMRC within six months of the period end for first-time and lapsed claimants
- Technical narrative for each project: the scientific or technological uncertainty, the advance sought and how it was resolved
- Qualifying expenditure computed: staff costs, subcontractors, externally provided workers, software, consumables and data
- The Additional Information Form completed and submitted before the CT600 is filed
- Claim entered on the CT600 and the relief or payable credit tracked through to HMRC's payment
How it works
R&D Tax Credits from Knutsford, step by step
Tell us your situation
A short message or call about what you do and what needs filing. We ask the questions that determine the right package and nothing more.
Fixed fee in writing
You receive one price for the work, confirmed by email before anything starts. It does not change if the job takes longer than we expected.
Send records, review the draft
Records come by WhatsApp or email. We prepare the draft, explain the figures in plain English and answer your questions.
We file, you get the receipts
Once you approve and the fee is settled, we submit electronically and forward the HMRC or Companies House acknowledgement the same day.
Why IGI
What you get in Knutsford
One fixed fee for r&d tax credits in Knutsford, agreed in writing before any work starts and never changed part-way through the job, however long it takes us.
Nothing for Knutsford is left to the last week. Each deadline relevant to r&d tax credits is tracked from the day you join, with the next four shown on every page we send you.
No appointments, no travel across North West, no parking. Everything for r&d tax credits in Knutsford happens online, with a real person on the other end during UK working hours.
You get one contact for r&d tax credits, not a queue. Knutsford clients message the same person throughout and get an answer in working hours, usually within a few hours.
We explain r&d tax credits in the words Knutsford business owners use, not in accountant's shorthand, and we show our working so you can check it.
Nothing is filed for Knutsford until you have reviewed and approved it. You see the draft, you ask questions, you sign off, then we submit and send you the receipt.
Local facts
About Knutsford
Knutsford is in North West, in the WA16 postcode district, England. Income tax in England follows the UK rates: 20% basic to £50,270, 40% higher to £125,140 and 45% additional, with the personal allowance of £12,570 tapered away above £100,000. National Insurance, VAT and Corporation Tax are UK-wide, and Stamp Duty Land Tax applies to property purchases.
| Place | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Cross Town, North West | 0.3 mi | E |
| Manor Park, Cheshire East | 0.4 mi | E |
| Knutsford, Over | 0.6 mi | SE |
| Over Knutsford | 0.6 mi | SE |
| Shaw Heath | 0.7 mi | NE |
| Booths, North West | 0.8 mi | SE |
| Sudlow | 1 mi | W |
| Tabley Hill | 1 mi | W |
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
Switching accountants
The main reasons people switch accountant are surprise invoices, missed deadlines and not understanding what they are being told. Switching involves a clearance letter between the firms, a transfer of records and agent authorisations, and a short handover of the current position. It takes about two weeks and should cost nothing extra.
Closing a company
Striking off a company is cheap but must be done in order: stop trading, file the final accounts and CT600, pay the tax, close VAT and PAYE, distribute the remaining assets, close the bank account, then apply. Anything left in the company at dissolution passes to the Crown. Distributions up to £25,000 are taxed as capital gains; above that a formal liquidation is usually needed to keep capital treatment.
Crypto records and reporting
HMRC treats cryptoassets as property. Swapping one token for another, spending crypto or gifting it are all disposals for Capital Gains Tax, and staking and lending rewards are income. Gains are computed under pooling rules with same-day and 30-day matching. From 2026 HMRC receives data from exchanges worldwide under the Cryptoasset Reporting Framework, so unreported activity is increasingly visible.
The 60-day property CGT return
The 60-day Capital Gains Tax return on residential property is the deadline landlords most often miss, because it falls outside the Self Assessment cycle and runs from completion, not exchange. Private residence relief for periods you lived in the property, plus the final nine months, reduces the gain. Penalties for a late return mirror Self Assessment, starting at £100.
Record keeping
Record keeping is a legal obligation with a penalty of up to £3,000 for failure, but its real value is in making every other filing cheaper and more defensible. Keep invoices, receipts, bank statements, mileage logs and any HMRC correspondence, digitally if you like, for five years after the relevant filing deadline for individuals and six years for companies and VAT.
Allowable expenses
An expense is allowable against trading profit if it is incurred wholly and exclusively for the business. Materials, business travel other than ordinary commuting, a proportion of home running costs, software, insurance, professional fees, bank charges and protective clothing qualify. Client entertainment, ordinary clothing, fines and the private share of mixed-use costs do not.
Employer National Insurance
The cost of an employee is more than the salary. Employer National Insurance at 15% above £5,000 a year, the 3% minimum pension contribution, holiday pay, equipment and management time all come on top. The Employment Allowance of £10,500 reduces the National Insurance for most employers with more than one person on the payroll.
Questions
R&D Tax Credits questions from Knutsford
What if HMRC opens an enquiry into an existing claim?
We review the claim, the narrative and the cost basis, tell you how robust it is, and quote a fixed fee for handling the enquiry before any work starts. Where a claim was overstated by a previous adviser, the best outcome is often an agreed reduction, and we say so rather than fight a losing position at your expense.
Can I claim for subcontracted work?
Under the merged scheme the company that decides to undertake the R&D and bears the risk generally claims, even if it subcontracts the work. Subcontractor costs are included at 65%. Overseas subcontractor and worker costs are largely excluded unless the conditions cannot be met in the UK. We apply the rules to your contracts.
How long does a claim take to pay out?
HMRC aims to process 85% of claims within 40 days but the compliance campaign has lengthened this for many. Relief reducing a Corporation Tax bill takes effect when the return is processed; payable credits are paid to the company's bank account. We track the claim and chase HMRC if it stalls.
Why do you charge a fixed fee rather than a percentage?
Percentage fees reward inflating the claim, which is exactly what HMRC's campaign targets. A fixed fee means our only interest is a claim that is right. For most small company claims £999 is also considerably cheaper than the 15% to 30% of benefit that contingent advisers charge.
What is the advance notification requirement?
Companies that have not claimed in the previous three accounting periods must notify HMRC of their intention to claim within six months of the end of the period. Miss it and the claim for that period is lost entirely. We check your position at the eligibility stage and file the notification as part of the service.
What is the Additional Information Form?
Since August 2023 every R&D claim must be accompanied by a form submitted to HMRC before the CT600, giving project descriptions, cost breakdowns, the named senior officer responsible and any agent involved. Claims without it are removed from the return. We complete and submit it as part of the £999 fee.
Do you have an office in Knutsford?
No. IGI Accounting is an online-only firm. We serve Knutsford and every other UK postcode remotely, with records sent by WhatsApp or email and everything filed electronically. The absence of local premises is why the fee for r&d tax credits is the same in Knutsford as anywhere else in the country, and why there is nothing to visit and nothing to print.
Is r&d tax credits in Knutsford really the same price as elsewhere?
Yes. The fee published on this page is what a client in Knutsford pays and what a client in any other part of England pays. It is confirmed in writing before work starts and the invoice matches the quote. Where a higher package applies because your situation is more complex, we say so at the quote stage, never afterwards.
Let us take the deadlines off your plate in Knutsford
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.