R&D tax credits made simple

Unlock cash to grow your business

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Estimate your claim

If you know your annual R&D spend, select the figure below to see how much you could receive using Nova

Select annual spend

What can you claim for?

If you’re unsure what qualifies for R&D tax credits or for a guided sector-specific estimate, select ‘Find out more'

Find out more

IT

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design/ Research Staff
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Technical research
  • Technical design/ analysis
  • Project management
  • Project initiation
  • Programme specification
  • Requirements definition
£

Development Staff
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Complex development
  • Easy (routine) development
  • Integrations
  • Security
  • Graphics GUI
  • Database
£

Testing, Admin or Equipment
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Testing complex development
  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Technical documentation
  • User manuals & marketing
  • Dedicated R&D servers & software
  • Normal PCs & laptops
£

Subcontractors & Freelancers
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • Agency workers
  • Software developers
  • Testing companies
  • Project management
  • IT & network support
  • Production servers & website hosting
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.

Engineering

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design & Research Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Define concepts & project initiation
  • Component design
  • Requirements analysis
  • Systems design
  • Material research; identification & substitution
  • Prototyping & tooling
£

Development Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • New/ modified components & parts
  • Integration of systems/ parts
  • Reverse engineering
  • Testing components, materials or integration
  • New machining algorithms & test protocols
  • Project management
£

Material, Equipment or Staff costs
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Consumed/ destroyed materials, equipment or software
  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Inspection & measurement
  • Process & production trials
  • Technical documentation
  • Production
£

R&D Subcontractors & other invoiced charges
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • Agency workers
  • External testing; e.g. materials & components
  • Project management
  • Carriage & shipping costs
  • Any rented items
  • Testing for certification
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.

Manufacturing

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design & Research Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Define concepts & project initiation
  • Component design
  • Requirements analysis
  • Systems design
  • Material research; identification & substitution
  • Prototyping & tooling
£

Development Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • New/ modified components & parts
  • Integration of systems/ parts
  • Reverse engineering
  • Testing components, materials or integration
  • New machining algorithms & test protocols
  • Project management
£

Material, Equipment or Staff costs
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Consumed/ destroyed materials, equipment or software
  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Inspection & measurement
  • Process & production trials
  • Technical documentation
  • Production
£

R&D Subcontractors & other invoiced charges
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • Agency Workers
  • External testing eg. materials & components
  • Project management
  • Carriage & shipping costs
  • Any rented items, testing for certification
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.

Life Sciences

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design & Research Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Concept definition & project initiation
  • Analytical protocol design
  • Requirements analysis
  • Systems design
  • Material research; identification & substitution
  • New scientific knowledge
£

Development Staff costs
?

Estimated payroll spend on R&D projects.

  • New materials, recipes or formulations
  • New knowledge of chemical interactions
  • Pre-clinical analytical methods, protocols & procedure
  • Test analyse cell culture, materials or integration
  • Production
£

Material, Equipment or Staff costs
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects

  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Consumed/ destroyed materials, equipment or software
  • Inspection measurement
  • Process & production trials
  • Technical documentation
  • Production, user manuals or marketing
£

R&D Subcontractors & other invoiced charges
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • External/ agency workers
  • Software developers
  • External testing, materials & components
  • Project management
  • Testing for certification
  • Production
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.

FinTech

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design & Research Staff
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Technical research
  • Technical design/ analysis
  • Project management
  • Project initiation
  • Programme specification
  • Requirements definition
£

Development Staff
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Complex development
  • Easy (routine) development
  • Integrations
  • Security
  • Graphics GUI
  • Database
£

Testing, Admin or Equipment
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Testing complex development
  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Technical documentation
  • User manuals & marketing
  • Dedicated R&D servers & software
  • Normal PCs & laptops
£

Subcontractors & Freelancers
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • Agency workers
  • Software developers
  • Testing companies
  • Project management
  • IT & network support
  • Production servers & website hosting
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.

Other

The key to understanding what eligible R&D is lies in knowing that the activity cannot be simple and routine. You must spend weeks or months on multiple attempts to develop, test and solve technical problems. You do not have to succeed! Most of your eligible R&D costs will be in people's time (internal and/or external) or in servers or software dedicated to the R&D process; normal laptops and PCs used for general business are not eligible.

The diagram below demonstrates different stages of an R&D project and identifies which areas are most likely to contain elements eligible for R&D tax relief.

  • Eligible
  • Maybe eligible
  • Not eligible

Design & Research Staff costs
?

Estimated payroll spend on R&D projects.

  • Technical research
  • Requirements analysis & definition
  • Product and systems design
  • Concept definition
  • Project initiation
  • Graphic design
£

Development Staff costs
?

Estimated staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • New components & parts
  • Integration of systems/ parts
  • Reverse engineering
  • Technical testing
  • New algorithms & test protocols
  • Prototyping & tooling
£

Material, Equipment or Staff costs
?

Estimated dedicated equipment spend and staff PAYE costs spent on R&D projects.

  • Budgeting, project meetings & management
  • Technical documentation
  • User manuals & marketing
  • Consumed/ destroyed materials, equipment or software
  • Production
  • Normal PCs & laptops
£

R&D Subcontractors & other invoiced charges
?

Only 65% of these costs are allowed - this will be automatically calculated by Nova. Enter the annual net total (£) value of invoices received by you from external companies for eligible R&D projects.

  • Agency workers
  • Software developers
  • External testing companies
  • Project management
  • IT & network support
  • Production servers & website hosting
£

Total eligible spend £0

Don't worry, Nova will refine this figure as you complete your claim.