Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.75 of the Spring Budget 2023, HC1183, published on 15 March 2023, what criteria small and medium enterprises will be required to meet to be considered R&D intensive.

The Government is introducing additional tax relief for loss-making R&D intensive SMEs. A company is considered R&D intensive where its qualifying R&D expenditure is worth 40% or more of its total expenditure. This rate will apply to expenditure incurred from 1 April 2023.

The Government has published a technical note outlining the eligibility criteria of this new scheme in more detail, which is available at: