Nearly 6,000 Yorkshire businesses received tax credits last year

Companies in Yorkshire and the Humber have seen another rise in R&D tax credits according to tax incentive specialists AGBI.

The latest 2019-20 HMRC figures show companies in the region made a total of 6,405 claims, up from 5,445 made this time last year. There were 5,730 successful R&D tax relief claims made by SMEs in the region as well as additional claims secured through the RDEC scheme.

Overall, there were 85,900 R&D tax credit claims made across the UK in the 2019-20 period, an increase of 16 per cent from the previous year with Yorkshire and Humber-based companies securing 4 per cent of the £7.4bn of tax relief support that was claimed nationwide.

AGBI claims this measure helped stimulate more than £47.5 bn of R&D expenditure by British businesses, 15 per cent higher than the previous year.

Yorkshire and Humber companies also secured £36m in rebates for Patent Box claims, another tax relief incentive available to help firms develop intellectual property (IP) assets.

Commenting on the new figures, Scott Henderson, CEO of ABGI UK, said: “The popularity of the R&D tax credit schemes shows no signs of slowing down, although it’s important to note that these figures pre-date the pandemic.

“Manufacturing, information and communication, and professional, scientific and technical sectors once again dominate claims, accounting for 69 per cent of the total amount claimed. All regions enjoyed increases in both number and value of claims.

“We are confident that the consultation will recognise the value of the schemes, take on board input from stakeholders like ourselves and propose changes which will improve access, address unprofessional agents and simplify the rules.”

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