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HMRC Patent Box statistics 2021 – our commentary

HMRC has provided information on the number of companies claiming corporation tax relief within the Patent Box scheme. There is still time to make a claim, if you think you might qualify contact one of our specialist advisors.

Key points to show the value of Patent Box to innovative business in the UK

Source HMRC Patent Box 2021

Patent Box claims since the scheme began

£6bn in tax relief claimed since the scheme began

Projected Patent Box claims 2019-20 – compared to previous year

2.5% decrease from the previous year
0.5% increase from previous year
4% increase from previous year

Projected claims in the tax year 2019-20

Large companies accounted for most of the relief claimed (92%)
Over half (52%) of the companies were in the Manufacturing sector
The number of Companies claiming relief varies significantly across UK regions

26% were classified as ‘Large’, but these companies accounted for most of the relief claimed (92%).

Over half (52%) of the companies were in the Manufacturing sector (including Pharmaceuticals).

The number of companies claiming relief varies significantly across UK regions, with the highest number in the South East (17%) and the lowest in the North East (2%). There is also significant regional variation in the value of relief claimed, companies in London claimed the largest amount of relief (50%).

*defined as micro, small and medium by HMRC

The statistics published here for 2019-20 will be updated based on a complete set of data in the next annual release (Autumn 2022). The projections have been made based on the amount of claims that have been made so far, and the previous’ years data of the amount of claims that are usually made later on.

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Comments from our CEO, Luke Hamm

SMEs are receiving a tiny percentage of the value of the Patent Box scheme. The stand out statistic is that 92% of tax relief is claimed by large companies.

R&D is a good indicator of a company’s potential for a Patent Box claim – it’s a conversation that every R&D tax relief claimant should be having.

We are not seeing enough new patent applications in this country. This is a huge source of untapped funding for UK SMEs and could hold the key to building back better after Covid-19.

See other years’ HMRC statistics

HMRC Patent Box statistics 2020
HMRC Patent Box statistics 2019

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