Will HMRC offset my business’s payable R&D tax credits against other liabilities?

It certainly is possible that HMRC will “net” any payable Research and Development (R&D) tax credit against another liability owed by the company to HMRC – for example, a PAYE liability that was outstanding at the time. In fact, under Research and Development Expenditure Credit (RDEC), this process is even laid out in legislation.