R&D Tax Credits · South West
R&D tax credit claims in Sherborne
R&D tax credit claims for companies in Sherborne, starting with a free eligibility review that tells you honestly whether you have a claim. If you do, the full claim is £999 fixed: technical narrative, computation, the Additional Information Form and filing. The fee is published and the same in Sherborne as in every part of England.
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 Sherborne
Limited companies in Sherborne 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 Sherborne, 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 Sherborne
No hourly rate and no surprise invoice. Sherborne clients know the fee for r&d tax credits before they send a single document, and it stays fixed.
We work to the HMRC and Companies House calendar, not an appointment diary. Clients in Sherborne get reminders at 60, 30 and 7 days before each date that applies to r&d tax credits.
Online only, UK based. There is no office in Sherborne to pay for, which is why the fee is the same here as anywhere in England; the work is done by people in the UK who answer the same day.
Continuity matters in r&d tax credits: the person who prepared last year's work for your Sherborne business prepares this year's, and remembers what was agreed.
We explain r&d tax credits in the words Sherborne business owners use, not in accountant's shorthand, and we show our working so you can check it.
Nothing is filed for Sherborne 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 Sherborne
Sherborne is in South West, in the DT9 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Priestlands | 0.2 mi | NW |
| Westbury, Dorset | 0.4 mi | S |
| Nether Coombe | 0.5 mi | NW |
| Nether Coombe Lane | 0.5 mi | NW |
| Horsecastles Lane | 0.5 mi | SW |
| Lenthay Common | 1 mi | SW |
| Oborne | 1 mi | NE |
| Clatcombe, Higher | 2 mi | N |
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
Confirmation statements and identity verification
Companies House has tightened its requirements under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act: every company needs a registered email address and an appropriate registered office, every statement includes a lawful-purpose declaration, and every director and PSC must verify their identity. The confirmation statement, due annually with a £50 fee, is where most of this is confirmed.
CIS deductions
CIS turns construction subcontractors into advance taxpayers: a fifth of every labour payment goes to HMRC before they see it. Registering keeps the rate at 20% rather than 30%; gross payment status, for established businesses with a clean record, removes deductions altogether. The annual return is where the overpayment comes back, and filing it early brings the refund sooner.
The Self Assessment calendar
The tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April. Anyone new to Self Assessment must register by 5 October after the end of the tax year in which their untaxed income began. The online return and the balancing payment are due by 31 January, with a second payment on account on 31 July where they apply. Paper returns have an earlier deadline of 31 October and are rarely sensible.
Payments on account
A common surprise in Self Assessment is the January payment that is far larger than expected. That is the balancing payment for the year just ended plus the first payment on account for the year ahead, which HMRC sets at half of the bill just calculated. We put the figure in your hands months ahead and tell you how to adjust it legitimately when circumstances change.
Late filing penalties
Lateness is expensive in a way that compounds. For individuals, £100 immediately, then daily penalties, then percentage-based ones at six and twelve months, with interest running on unpaid tax throughout. For companies, Companies House penalties scale with delay and double on repeat, and HMRC adds its own for a late CT600. Filing on time is the cheapest tax planning there is.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax began in April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000, extends to those over £30,000 in April 2027 and is planned for £20,000 in April 2028. It requires digital records in compatible software and four quarterly updates to HMRC each year, with a final declaration replacing the traditional return. Payment dates are unchanged.
The VAT registration threshold
Watching the rolling twelve-month turnover figure is one of the quiet jobs of monthly bookkeeping, because the £90,000 VAT threshold arrives silently. Crossing it brings quarterly returns, Making Tax Digital software and a decision about schemes. Crossing it late brings a bill for VAT you could not recover from customers and a penalty for failing to notify.
Questions
R&D Tax Credits questions from Sherborne
Does claiming R&D relief increase my chance of an enquiry?
HMRC now checks a far higher proportion of claims than before 2023, so any claim carries some risk of questions. A claim with a clear technical narrative, costs that reconcile to the accounts and payroll, and a named competent professional behind it is answered quickly. We write claims to that standard.
How far back can I claim?
A claim can be made up to two years after the end of the accounting period, by amending the CT600. If you have two open periods both can be claimed. The notification rule applies to the later periods if you have not claimed recently, so the two-year window and the six-month window interact; we check both.
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.
Why is the eligibility review free?
Because a large share of enquiries do not qualify, and we would rather tell you that for nothing than charge £999 for a claim HMRC rejects. The review takes a short call and some questions about the projects. You get a written view: qualifies, does not qualify, or borderline with the reasons. There is no obligation afterwards.
What counts as R&D for tax purposes?
A project seeking an advance in overall knowledge or capability in a field of science or technology, through the resolution of scientific or technological uncertainty that a competent professional in the field could not readily resolve. Commercial novelty is not enough; routine development with known methods is not enough. The test is about the technology, not the product.
Which deadlines matter most for r&d tax credits?
The next four dates that apply to r&d tax credits are shown at the top of this page, calculated from today. For Sherborne clients we diarise every one of them from the day you join and send reminders before each, so the work is done in good time rather than in the last week before a penalty.
How do I get started from Sherborne?
Message us on WhatsApp or email with a sentence about your business and what you need. We reply in working hours with any questions and a fixed fee for r&d tax credits. Once you confirm, we tell you exactly which records to send and the work begins. Most Sherborne clients are set up within a day.
Ready to fix your fee in Sherborne?
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.