What's the difference between an R&D grant and R&D tax credits?

A grant is awarded up front for a specific project and is competitive — you apply, you're assessed, and you're paid a share of eligible costs as you spend them. R&D tax relief isn't competitive: you claim it after your accounting period ends, through your corporation tax return, on qualifying R&D expenditure you've already incurred. Many companies use both.

Are R&D grants taxable?

Usually, yes. A grant received to cover revenue costs (salaries, consumables, subcontractors) is normally brought into your taxable profits for corporation tax, while a grant towards a capital asset is typically set against the cost of that asset instead. Grants are not usually consideration for a supply, so VAT generally doesn't apply — but confirm the treatment with your accountant. This is not tax advice.

Does taking a grant reduce my R&D tax relief claim?

It can, and the rules changed. For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024 the SME and RDEC schemes were merged, and the old restriction that pushed grant-funded projects out of SME relief no longer works the way it used to; enhanced support for loss-making R&D-intensive SMEs has its own conditions. The answer depends on your accounting period and scheme, so get advice before assuming a grant costs you relief.

Can a startup or pre-revenue company apply for R&D grants?

Yes. Most Innovate UK competitions are open to any UK-registered business regardless of age or turnover, and pre-revenue companies win them regularly — the assessment is about the project, not your trading history. The practical constraint is cash flow: grants are normally paid quarterly in arrears against costs you've already incurred, so you need to be able to fund the work first and claim it back.

Can you hold more than one R&D grant at the same time?

Yes — nothing stops a company running several funded projects at once, and many do. What you can't do is claim the same costs twice: funders ask you to declare other public funding, and subsidy-control rules cap the total low-value assistance one business can receive (currently £315,000 over three financial years under the Minimal Financial Assistance allowance). Larger awards are made under other subsidy routes with their own limits.

How much do R&D grants cover?

A share of eligible project costs, set by the type of research and your company size. On Innovate UK competitions the typical maximum is around 70% for a micro or small business on feasibility studies and industrial research, falling for medium and large firms and lower again for experimental development. Every competition publishes its own intervention rates — check the scope document before you build a budget.

Do I need match funding?

In effect, yes. Because grants fund a percentage of eligible costs rather than the whole project, you have to cover the balance from your own resources or other private finance. Assessors look at whether you can genuinely afford your share, so be ready to evidence it.

Do I need a university partner?

Not usually. Some collaborative competitions require or favour partners — academic or commercial — while plenty of others fund a single company. Knowledge Transfer Partnerships are the main route built specifically around a university relationship. Subvention flags the requirement and links to the detail.

What counts as R&D for a grant application?

Funders look for genuine technical uncertainty — work where a competent professional couldn't simply tell you the answer — combined with a credible route to commercial impact. That's a different test from the HMRC definition used for tax relief, which is about seeking an advance in science or technology. A project can qualify for one and not the other.

Can I apply for a grant for a project I've already started?

Generally no. Grants fund future work: costs incurred before the funding agreement is signed are usually ineligible, and starting early can undermine the incentive-effect test that public funding depends on. Apply before you commit to the spend.

How long does an R&D grant application take?

Competitions typically stay open for several weeks, with decisions issued some weeks after close and projects starting later again — so plan for months, not days, between spotting a competition and receiving money. Each competition publishes its own timetable; Subvention links straight to it so you can check the real dates.

Do I have to be a UK-registered company?

For UK grants, almost always — funders normally require a UK-registered organisation carrying out the work in the UK. Horizon Europe is the exception worth knowing: UK organisations participate as associated members, so European collaborative funding is open to you too.

Are there R&D grants for software and AI projects?

Yes. Software, data and AI projects are funded across Innovate UK's portfolio and through AI-specific competitions and compute-access programmes. The test is the same as any other sector: real technical uncertainty and a route to market.

Are R&D grants repayable?

A grant isn't repayable if you deliver the project and meet the terms, though funders can claw back money for ineligible costs or breaches. Innovation Loans are different — they're finance, repayable with interest, aimed at later-stage projects that are too close to market for grant funding.

How current is the R&D grant list?

It's refreshed daily across 49 sources, and every match shows the source and last-checked date so you don't act on a closed competition. Research-council fellowships and academic personal awards are filtered out, so what you see is business-facing funding.

R&D Grants UK 2026: 99 Live Innovation Grants, Matched to Your Company

99 live grants, deadlines from 28 Jul 2026 to 1 Apr 2028. Updated daily.

Research and development grants reward UK businesses for taking technical risks — developing new products, processes and technologies. They're among the most valuable funding available, but they're competitive and time-sensitive, with competitions across Innovate UK, the UKRI research councils and Europe. Subvention tracks them in one place and matches the live ones to your company, traceable to the official source.

Written and reviewed by Simon Bumford, Founder, Subvention · last reviewed 26 Jul 2026

Grants change frequently — always confirm eligibility, amounts and deadlines with the funder via the linked source. Subvention does not guarantee funding.

Open grants right now

Search all 99 →

DRIVE35: Scale Up Fund
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will work with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC) · £2.5m–£20.0m
Closes in 10 days
Lawtech Grant Competition Phase III
Ministry of Justice · £3.6m–£3.6m
Closes in 31 days
Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund (CKAF) autumn
Innovate UK · £50k
Closes in 37 days
Innovation Loans Expression of Interest
UKRI
Ongoing
Knowledge Transfer Partnership
UKRI
Ongoing
Support for manufacturers
· £32.9m
Ongoing
Innovating to Net Zero 2026: Scaling flexibility to meet the five peaks challenge
Ongoing
Innovate UK - grant funding, innovation loans and expert support
· £25k–£10.0m
Ongoing
Innovate UK Knowledge Transfer Partnership scheme
Innovate UK and Invest NI
Ongoing
Consumer Led Flexibility for the Clean Energy Superpower Mission
Innovate UK · up to £25.0m
Closes in 31 days

What R&D grants fund

R&D grants support work where the outcome is genuinely uncertain — new technology, significant product or process innovation, or applied research, often delivered with academic or commercial partners. They typically cover a percentage of eligible project costs (commonly up to around 70% for SMEs on earlier-stage work) rather than the whole bill, and are distinct from R&D tax relief, which you claim after the fact. Many companies use both.

Key sources of UK R&D funding

Innovate UK runs the best-known competitions — from feasibility studies of around £25,000 to collaborative R&D worth several million — across themes including AI, net zero, health, manufacturing and the creative industries, plus Innovation Loans for later-stage projects. The UKRI research councils fund longer research and business–academic partnerships such as Knowledge Transfer Partnerships. Horizon Europe, including the EIC Accelerator, provides large European grants and blended finance for deep-tech innovation.

What Subvention covers

One search runs across Innovate UK, UKRI, GOV.UK Find a Grant, the devolved innovation agencies and European portals — 49 sources, refreshed daily and colour-coded by region. Each match links to the competition's own page with the date we last checked it, so you can confirm scope and deadline before you commit time.

How the matching works

Enter your company name, confirm your sector and the project you want to fund, and we return a ranked, explained shortlist: a score, the reason for the match, eligibility ticks for sector, region and size, and any risk flags. You can then start an optional draft application, with AI preparing answer drafts from your profile for you to review, edit and approve — nothing is submitted without you.

R&D grants vs R&D tax relief

These are two different things and it's the most common mix-up. A grant is competitive and decided in advance: you apply to a specific competition, you're assessed against published criteria, and if you win you're paid a share of the project's eligible costs, normally in arrears against what you've actually spent. R&D tax relief is not competitive and not applied for in advance — you claim it through your corporation tax return after the accounting period ends, based on qualifying R&D expenditure you've already incurred.

Most R&D-active companies end up using both, and the interaction rules changed for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024, when the SME and RDEC schemes were merged. Whether a grant affects a claim now depends on your accounting period and which scheme you fall under, so take advice on your own numbers — this page is not tax advice.

Named schemes worth knowing

The programmes that come up most often are Innovate UK's competition portfolio (feasibility studies, collaborative R&D and Contracts for Innovation), Innovation Loans for later-stage projects that are too commercial for grant funding, Knowledge Transfer Partnerships for embedding academic expertise in a business, sector programmes such as the Aerospace Technology Institute and the Advanced Propulsion Centre, the Defence and Security Accelerator for dual-use technology, and Horizon Europe with the EIC Accelerator for European-scale deep tech.

Which of these are actually open on any given day is the part a static guide can't tell you — that's what the live list above is for.

Free to search

Search and matching are free. One-off passes add deadline reminders, saved grants, a pipeline to track each application's stage, and an application planning checklist.

Frequently asked questions

What R&D grants can UK businesses apply for?: Mainly Innovate UK competitions and Innovation Loans, UKRI research-council funding and partnerships, sector programmes such as the Aerospace Technology Institute and DASA, and Horizon Europe / EIC for European projects. Subvention matches the live ones to your company and links to each source.
What's the difference between an R&D grant and R&D tax credits?: A grant is awarded up front for a specific project and is competitive — you apply, you're assessed, and you're paid a share of eligible costs as you spend them. R&D tax relief isn't competitive: you claim it after your accounting period ends, through your corporation tax return, on qualifying R&D expenditure you've already incurred. Many companies use both.
Are R&D grants taxable?: Usually, yes. A grant received to cover revenue costs (salaries, consumables, subcontractors) is normally brought into your taxable profits for corporation tax, while a grant towards a capital asset is typically set against the cost of that asset instead. Grants are not usually consideration for a supply, so VAT generally doesn't apply — but confirm the treatment with your accountant. This is not tax advice.
Does taking a grant reduce my R&D tax relief claim?: It can, and the rules changed. For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024 the SME and RDEC schemes were merged, and the old restriction that pushed grant-funded projects out of SME relief no longer works the way it used to; enhanced support for loss-making R&D-intensive SMEs has its own conditions. The answer depends on your accounting period and scheme, so get advice before assuming a grant costs you relief.
Can a startup or pre-revenue company apply for R&D grants?: Yes. Most Innovate UK competitions are open to any UK-registered business regardless of age or turnover, and pre-revenue companies win them regularly — the assessment is about the project, not your trading history. The practical constraint is cash flow: grants are normally paid quarterly in arrears against costs you've already incurred, so you need to be able to fund the work first and claim it back.
Can you hold more than one R&D grant at the same time?: Yes — nothing stops a company running several funded projects at once, and many do. What you can't do is claim the same costs twice: funders ask you to declare other public funding, and subsidy-control rules cap the total low-value assistance one business can receive (currently £315,000 over three financial years under the Minimal Financial Assistance allowance). Larger awards are made under other subsidy routes with their own limits.
How much do R&D grants cover?: A share of eligible project costs, set by the type of research and your company size. On Innovate UK competitions the typical maximum is around 70% for a micro or small business on feasibility studies and industrial research, falling for medium and large firms and lower again for experimental development. Every competition publishes its own intervention rates — check the scope document before you build a budget.
Do I need match funding?: In effect, yes. Because grants fund a percentage of eligible costs rather than the whole project, you have to cover the balance from your own resources or other private finance. Assessors look at whether you can genuinely afford your share, so be ready to evidence it.
Do I need a university partner?: Not usually. Some collaborative competitions require or favour partners — academic or commercial — while plenty of others fund a single company. Knowledge Transfer Partnerships are the main route built specifically around a university relationship. Subvention flags the requirement and links to the detail.
What counts as R&D for a grant application?: Funders look for genuine technical uncertainty — work where a competent professional couldn't simply tell you the answer — combined with a credible route to commercial impact. That's a different test from the HMRC definition used for tax relief, which is about seeking an advance in science or technology. A project can qualify for one and not the other.
Can I apply for a grant for a project I've already started?: Generally no. Grants fund future work: costs incurred before the funding agreement is signed are usually ineligible, and starting early can undermine the incentive-effect test that public funding depends on. Apply before you commit to the spend.
How long does an R&D grant application take?: Competitions typically stay open for several weeks, with decisions issued some weeks after close and projects starting later again — so plan for months, not days, between spotting a competition and receiving money. Each competition publishes its own timetable; Subvention links straight to it so you can check the real dates.
Do I have to be a UK-registered company?: For UK grants, almost always — funders normally require a UK-registered organisation carrying out the work in the UK. Horizon Europe is the exception worth knowing: UK organisations participate as associated members, so European collaborative funding is open to you too.
Are there R&D grants for software and AI projects?: Yes. Software, data and AI projects are funded across Innovate UK's portfolio and through AI-specific competitions and compute-access programmes. The test is the same as any other sector: real technical uncertainty and a route to market.
Are R&D grants repayable?: A grant isn't repayable if you deliver the project and meet the terms, though funders can claw back money for ineligible costs or breaches. Innovation Loans are different — they're finance, repayable with interest, aimed at later-stage projects that are too close to market for grant funding.
How current is the R&D grant list?: It's refreshed daily across 49 sources, and every match shows the source and last-checked date so you don't act on a closed competition. Research-council fellowships and academic personal awards are filtered out, so what you see is business-facing funding.

About the author

Simon Bumford — Founder, Subvention. Simon built Subvention's grant index and matching engine, and reviews this page against the live feed each time it is rebuilt.

Grant data refreshed daily · page last reviewed 26 Jul 2026. Always confirm details with the funder. Nothing here is financial, legal or tax advice.

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