Corporation Tax Act 2009 section 1042

Relevant research and development

Section 1042 defines what counts as "relevant research and development" for the purposes of the R&D tax relief rules in this Part of the Act.

• Relevant R&D must be connected to a trade the company currently carries on, or to a trade the company intends to carry on in the future
• R&D that could lead to an extension or expansion of the company's existing trade qualifies as related to that trade
• Medical research with a special connection to the welfare of the company's workforce also qualifies as trade-related R&D
• This definition is central to all R&D reliefs in this Part, as every claim requires the expenditure to be on "relevant research and development" in relation to the company