Question 1

What are R&D tax credits and business grants, and who actually qualifies?

Accepted Answer

Two very different forms of public support: **tax relief claimed retrospectively** for qualifying innovation spending, and **grants awarded competitively in advance** for specific projects. They are confused constantly, and the qualifying tests are stricter than the marketing around them suggests.

**R&D tax relief.** A reduction in corporation tax — or a payable credit for loss-making companies — for spending on qualifying research and development.

**What actually qualifies**, and this is where most rejected claims fail: the project must seek an **advance in science or technology** by resolving **scientific or technological uncertainty** that a **competent professional in the field could not readily resolve**. All three elements matter.

**What does not qualify**, despite being routinely claimed: building a website using established techniques, ordinary software development, commercial or market uncertainty, cosmetic or aesthetic improvement, and work in the social sciences or arts.

**Qualifying costs** typically include staff, subcontractors within limits, consumables, software and certain data and cloud costs.

**Why claims have tightened considerably.** Widespread poor-quality and fraudulent claims, promoted aggressively by contingent-fee advisers, prompted substantial reform — additional information requirements, pre-notification for new claimants, and far more enquiries. **Directors remain responsible** for claims made on their behalf, which matters when choosing an adviser.

**Grants.** Competitive funding for defined projects, usually requiring:

**Match funding**, since grants rarely cover the full cost.

**A defined project** with milestones, not general working capital.

**Application before starting**, since retrospective grants are rare — this catches people out constantly.

**Reporting and audit** of how money was spent.

**Where they come from:** innovation agencies, local growth bodies, sector schemes, and local authorities.

**The interaction matters.** Receiving a grant can change which R&D scheme you may claim under and reduce the relief available, so the sequencing has real financial consequences and is worth checking before applying.

General information, not tax advice.

Question 2

What is the difference between a trade mark, a patent, a design right and copyright?

Accepted Answer

Four separate rights protecting different things, with different registration requirements and durations. Businesses routinely rely on the wrong one. Copyright. Protects original creative expression

Question 3

What tax deductions can freelancers take advantage of?

Accepted Answer

Freelancers can reduce taxable income through various deductions, including home office expenses, business supplies, travel costs, and more. Understanding these can significantly lower tax burdens.

Question 4

What is an earn-out, and why do acquisitions use them?

Accepted Answer

A structure where part of the purchase price is paid later, conditional on the business hitting agreed targets. It exists to bridge a disagreement about value: the seller believes the business will

Question 5

What is a minimum viable product, really?

Accepted Answer

The smallest thing you can build that tests your riskiest assumption — which is not the same as a cheap, cut-down version of your product, and the confusion between those two causes most MVP

Question 6

How does bidding for public sector contracts actually work?

Accepted Answer

Through a regulated procurement process designed to be transparent and non-discriminatory — which means the rules constrain the buyer as much as the bidder, and understanding that is what separates

Question 7

Are non-compete clauses actually enforceable?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes — but they start from a position of being void as a restraint of trade, and are enforceable only where the employer can show they go no further than reasonably necessary to protect a

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