Quick answer: Routine improvement is work that extends or enhances an existing product, service or process using techniques already known, or readily deducible, by a competent professional in the field. The BIS Guidelines exclude it from qualifying R&D, which is reserved for work seeking an advance in overall scientific or technological knowledge.
What is routine improvement?
Routine improvement is work that extends or enhances an existing product, service or process using techniques that are already known or readily deducible by a competent professional in the field. The BIS Guidelines exclude routine improvement from the definition of research and development for tax purposes, reserving the relief for work that seeks an advance in overall scientific or technological knowledge or capability. The distinction is a frequent area of HMRC enquiry.
How does HMRC define routine improvement?
HMRC sets out its position on routine improvement at CIRD81300 and CIRD81700 of the CIRD Manual, drawing on paragraphs 12 to 18 of the 2023 BIS Guidelines. Worked examples of routine versus non-routine work are provided in HMRC's Guidelines for Compliance GfC3, Help to see if your work qualifies as R&D for tax purposes.
What does routine improvement look like in practice?
A manufacturing company redesigns a gearbox using standard CAD tools and well-established design rules to reduce weight by 5%. No new scientific or technological knowledge is sought and a competent mechanical engineer could have reached the same outcome using published methods. The work is routine improvement and does not qualify as R&D for tax purposes. If you are unsure whether your own work is routine improvement or qualifying R&D, the free eligibility calculator gives an indicative view.
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Routine improvement is work that extends or enhances an existing product, service or process using techniques that are already known or readily deducible by a competent professional. It does not qualify as R&D for tax purposes.
The BIS Guidelines reserve R&D tax relief for work that seeks an advance in the overall scientific or technological knowledge or capability of a field, not just a company's own knowledge. Routine improvement does not meet this bar because a competent professional could achieve the same result using established methods.
HMRC looks at whether a competent professional in the field could have reached the same outcome using published methods and standard techniques. If so, the work is routine improvement rather than R&D, even if it required skill or effort to carry out.