Platform Guides: Everything you should know

📖 Estimated reading time: 3–4 minutes

Welcome to EmpowerRD’s R&D tax credit platform guide. This guide will walk you through each stage of the claim process, from your first questionnaire submission through to your HMRC payout.

We’ve designed our platform to make claiming R&D tax relief clear, compliant, and efficient. You won’t need to write long reports or interpret complex HMRC legislation. Our platform guides you step by step, and our expert team prepares your final submission.

🧭 What to expect

The EmpowerRD process is structured into seven core stages:

1. Business Questionnaire
   This is where we gather key company and project details to understand your eligibility and prepare your claim structure.

2. Compliance Check
   This short section confirms whether you need to submit a Claim Notification Form and checks for any risk flags in your claim period.

3. Finance Section
   Here, your finance team (or accountant) will upload your financial documents, input your R&D costs, and allocate time spent on R&D. You’ll also link these costs to your selected R&D projects.

4. Technical Section
   Your technical lead will identify the R&D projects you’re claiming for and provide bullet-point answers that describe what work was done. Our experts will then write the technical narrative for HMRC.

5. Claim Review and Feedback
   Once your claim is complete, our team will review it and provide feedback. You’ll be able to make changes directly in the platform or through your claim manager.

6. Submission to HMRC
   When everything is approved, we’ll submit the Additional Information Form (AIF) on your behalf and help you finalise the CT600 submission.

7. Payout
   After submission, HMRC will process your claim. We’ll guide you through what to expect and how long it usually takes to receive your payment.

🧩 What you’ll need to complete your claim

Throughout the process, you or your team will be asked to:

• Upload your financial documents and R&D cost breakdown

• Provide percentages of time spent on R&D

• Select and briefly describe your R&D projects

• Review and respond to any feedback from our team

If you ever feel stuck, your claim manager and our support team are available via live chat or email.

🔗 Ready to get started?

Begin by completing the Business Questionnaire Section, which will help us set up your claim properly and ensure you are capturing all eligible activity from the start.