Every Corporation Tax Relief Available to UK Companies (2025/26)

Most small companies only claim the basics — trading expenses and capital allowances. But there are dozens of corporation tax reliefs available, and many companies miss out simply because they don't know they exist.

Here's the complete list of reliefs available for the 2025/26 tax year, organised by type.

Capital Allowances

Capital allowances let you deduct the cost of business assets from your taxable profits. They replace accounting depreciation (which isn't tax-deductible).

Annual Investment Allowance (AIA)

100% deduction on qualifying plant and machinery
£1 million annual limit
Covers most business equipment: machinery, tools, computers, furniture, vehicles (not cars)
Claimed on CT600 boxes 660/680

Full Expensing (from April 2023, permanent)

100% first-year allowance on qualifying plant and machinery
No annual limit (unlike AIA)
Only for companies (not sole traders)
Must be new and unused assets
Main rate assets: 100% deduction
Special rate assets (e.g., long-life assets): 50% first-year allowance

Writing Down Allowances (WDA)

For assets not covered by AIA or full expensing:

Main rate pool: 18% per year (reducing balance)
Special rate pool: 6% per year (long-life assets, thermal insulation, cars with CO2 >50g/km)

Enhanced Capital Allowances

Electric vehicle charging points: 100% first-year allowance (until March 2025)
Energy-saving equipment: Enhanced rates on qualifying technologies
Water-saving equipment: Enhanced rates

Structures and Buildings Allowance (SBA)

3% per year on qualifying construction costs
Covers commercial buildings, structures, and renovations
33⅓ year straight-line write-off

Research & Development (R&D) Relief

Merged R&D Scheme (from April 2024)

20% above-the-line tax credit (RDEC) for most companies
Applied before corporation tax is calculated
Net benefit: approximately 15% of qualifying expenditure (after tax on the credit)

Enhanced R&D-Intensive Scheme

For SMEs where R&D expenditure exceeds 30% of total costs
27% payable tax credit on qualifying losses
Particularly valuable for loss-making startups

What qualifies?

Projects seeking to achieve an advance in science or technology
Overcoming scientific or technological uncertainty
Staff costs, consumables, software, subcontracted R&D, clinical trial volunteers
Does NOT include: market research, social science, aesthetic changes

Creative Industry Reliefs

Film Tax Relief

25.5% payable credit on qualifying UK core expenditure
Minimum 10% UK expenditure requirement
Applies to theatrical, television, and online films

Animation Tax Relief

Same rates as Film Tax Relief
Must be at least 51% animated

High-End Television Tax Relief

25.5% payable credit on qualifying expenditure
Programme must be intended for broadcast
Minimum £1 million cost per hour (or be a documentary, animation, or children's programme)

Children's Television Tax Relief

Same rates as HETV
No minimum cost per hour requirement

Video Games Tax Relief

25.5% payable credit on qualifying development expenditure
Game must be intended for sale to the public
Must pass a cultural test

Theatre Tax Relief

45% payable credit (touring) or 30% (non-touring)
Qualifying theatrical productions
Must be intended for live performance

Orchestra Tax Relief

45% (touring) or 30% (non-touring) payable credit
Qualifying orchestral performances

Museums and Galleries Exhibition Tax Relief

45% (touring) or 30% (non-touring) payable credit
Charitable museums and galleries

Patent Box

10% effective corporation tax rate on profits from patented inventions
Must hold a qualifying patent (UK or European Patent Office)
Must have made a significant contribution to the invention
Elected into on the CT600
Can reduce tax significantly for companies with patent-protected products or processes

Trading Losses

Carry forward

Losses can be carried forward indefinitely against future trading profits — see our complete guide to carrying forward corporation tax losses for the CT600 boxes and practical examples
From April 2017: can offset against total profits (not just trading) — subject to £5 million + 50% restriction

Carry back

Current-year trading losses can be carried back 12 months against total profits
Terminal losses (final 12 months of trading): carry back up to 3 years

Group relief

Trading losses can be surrendered to other companies in the same 75% group
Only current-year losses (with extended rules for carried-forward losses since 2017)

Property Business Reliefs

Property income offset

Company property business losses can be offset against total profits in the same period, or carried forward against future property income.

Rent-a-Room relief

Not applicable to companies — this is a personal tax relief only.

Land remediation relief

150% deduction for cleaning up contaminated or derelict land
The extra 50% is an additional tax deduction beyond the actual cost
Qualifying expenditure: removing asbestos, treating contamination, demolishing derelict buildings

Specific Industry Reliefs

Community Investment Tax Relief (CITR)

5% annual tax reduction over 5 years on qualifying investments
Total relief: 25% of the investment
Must invest through a Community Development Finance Institution (CDFI)

Social Investment Tax Relief (SITR)

30% income tax relief (for individuals — companies use other mechanisms)
Charities and social enterprises

Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) / Seed EIS

Primarily for individual investors, not the investee company
But receiving EIS/SEIS investment can signal the company qualifies for other reliefs

Disincorporation Relief (expired)

Was available 2013-2018 for businesses transferring from company to sole trader
No longer available but sometimes asked about

International Reliefs

Double Taxation Relief

Credit against UK tax for overseas taxes paid on the same profits
Claimed on CT600 box 100
Based on treaties between the UK and other countries (or unilateral relief)

Controlled Foreign Company (CFC) exemptions

Various exemptions if your overseas subsidiaries are in low-tax jurisdictions
Complex rules — specialist advice usually needed

Employer-Related Reliefs

Employment Allowance

£10,500 reduction in employer's Class 1 NI (2024/25)
Not directly on the CT600, but reduces the NI expense (increasing profit before corp tax)
Not available to companies with a single director-employee

Employer pension contributions

100% deductible as a business expense
No employer NI on pension contributions
One of the most tax-efficient ways to extract profits

Apprenticeship Levy

0.5% of pay bill over £3 million
Not a relief per se, but the apprenticeship fund can be used for training

Charitable Giving

Gift Aid (for companies)

100% deduction for qualifying donations to charity
Deducted from total profits (not just trading profits)
No upper limit for companies (unlike individuals)
Claimed on CT600 box 200

Gifts of equipment/assets to charity

Market value deduction for qualifying gifts
No capital gains on the disposal

Less Common but Valuable Reliefs

Substantial Shareholdings Exemption (SSE)

Complete exemption from corporation tax on gains from selling shares in a trading subsidiary
Must have held at least 10% for 12+ months
Enormously valuable for M&A transactions

Intangible Fixed Assets relief

Tax deduction for amortisation of goodwill and other intangibles acquired since 2002
Aligns tax deductions with accounting amortisation

Rollover Relief

Defer capital gains by reinvesting proceeds in new qualifying assets
Must reinvest within 1 year before to 3 years after disposal

Investor's Relief

10% CGT rate on qualifying shares (for individuals, but affects company valuations)

How to Claim Reliefs on Your CT600

Most reliefs are claimed directly on the CT600:

Relief	Where to Claim
Capital allowances	Boxes 660-690 (capital allowances section)
R&D relief	CT600B supplementary page
Trading losses carried back	Box 120
Group relief	Box 140 + CT600C
Gift Aid donations	Box 200
Double taxation relief	Box 100
Patent Box	Special computation required

With Taxpipe: Our guided wizard asks the right questions to identify which reliefs apply to your company. We include the relevant boxes and supplementary pages automatically. File your CT600 — just £59.

Reliefs Checklist: Are You Missing Any?

Ask yourself:

☐ Have I claimed AIA / full expensing on all qualifying assets?
☐ Does any of our work qualify as R&D?
☐ Do we hold any UK or European patents? (Patent Box)
☐ Have we made charitable donations? (Gift Aid)
☐ Have we made losses that could be carried back?
☐ Are we in a group where losses could be surrendered?
☐ Have we paid foreign tax on overseas income? (DTR)
☐ Have we cleaned up contaminated land? (Land remediation)
☐ Are we in a creative industry? (Film, TV, games, theatre)
☐ Have we invested in community development? (CITR)

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I claim multiple reliefs at once?

Yes. There's no limit on the number of different reliefs you can claim, as long as you qualify for each one.

Is there a minimum company size for reliefs?

Most reliefs are available to companies of all sizes. Some (like the R&D-intensive scheme) have specific eligibility criteria.

Do I need an accountant to claim reliefs?

For straightforward claims (AIA, loss carry-back, Gift Aid), filing software like Taxpipe can handle it. For complex claims (R&D, Patent Box, creative industry), specialist advice is usually worthwhile.

What if I missed a relief in a previous year?

You can amend your CT600 within 12 months of the filing deadline to add a missed relief claim.

Don't leave money on the table. File your CT600 with Taxpipe — our guided wizard helps identify the reliefs your company qualifies for. Just £59.