Why We Include HMRC Enquiry Defence in Our Standard R&D Service

Preparing an R&D claim properly is one thing. Defending it when HMRC starts asking detailed questions is another.

Enquiry defence can involve months of technical analysis, evidence review, correspondence and challenge. It requires someone who understands both the R&D rules and the underlying technical case well enough to explain and defend the decisions that were made.

That's a specialist service in its own right. And it's precisely why we choose to include it within our standard R&D offering.

A Claim Doesn't Stop Mattering Once It's Submitted

When we advise that a project qualifies for R&D relief, we're putting our professional judgement behind that conclusion.

We assess the technological or scientific advance being sought, the uncertainties encountered, the work undertaken to resolve them and the expenditure attributable to that activity. We then build the claim around that assessment.

If HMRC subsequently asks questions, we don't think the client or their accountant should suddenly be left to defend that work without us.

Our standard service therefore doesn't end at submission. If HMRC opens an enquiry into a claim we've prepared, our enquiry defence is already included.

That Protection Has Real Value

Including enquiry defence doesn't mean the work involved has no value. Quite the opposite.

A detailed HMRC enquiry can require substantial technical and financial work. Questions may need to be put back to competent professionals, evidence revisited, technical positions explained in considerably more detail and multiple rounds of correspondence managed before matters are resolved.

For businesses without enquiry protection, obtaining specialist support once an enquiry has already started can therefore become a significant additional cost.

By including that protection within our standard service, we're effectively giving the client certainty from the outset: if HMRC challenges the claim, they already know who is going to deal with it and they aren't suddenly facing another professional fee simply because their claim has been selected for review.

Why Being the Original Adviser Matters

There is another practical advantage.

If we prepared the claim, we already understand the projects, the competent professionals involved, the technical reasoning, the expenditure and the evidence on which the claim was based.

We're not starting an enquiry by trying to reverse-engineer somebody else's work.

That continuity matters. It allows us to understand quickly what HMRC is actually challenging and respond from the same technical and financial foundation on which the original claim was prepared.

Not Every Service Has to Be Structured the Same Way

There are circumstances where a business may prefer a lower-cost, preparation-only service without ongoing enquiry protection. Where that's the agreed scope, any subsequent enquiry defence would be a separate professional service.

But our standard PSS proposition deliberately includes that protection.

We think it provides greater certainty for the client, greater reassurance for the accountant making the referral and, importantly, ensures we're prepared to stand behind the work we've advised on if HMRC ever decides to test it.

The Real Question Isn't Just Who Prepares the Claim

When choosing an R&D adviser, it's worth asking what happens after submission.

If HMRC opens an enquiry six months or a year later, who responds? Who deals with the technical questions? Who works with the competent professionals? And what will that additional support cost?

With our standard service, those questions have already been answered.

We prepare the claim. We stand behind the work. And if HMRC asks us to substantiate it, we're still there.

Get in touchif you'd like to know exactly what's included, and what isn't, before you refer.