Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff working on Research and Development tax relief schemes in HMRC have (a) prior experience in and (b) qualifications relevant to the technological sector.

HMRC does not expect staff working on Research and Development (R&D tax relief schemes to be experts in the field of technology. That is not required because it is HMRC’s responsibility to ask questions to establish that the claimant understands and has correctly applied the definition of qualifying R&D. HMRC are seeking to gather information to test against the requirements for eligibility.

HMRC staff work with customers to understand the commercial context of their activities and whether they qualify for R&D relief and as part of the checking process. Where HMRC deal with complex matters HMRC staff can seek technical support or specialist advice.