An R&D tax credit loan is finance that lets a UK company borrow against the value of its R&D tax credit claim before HMRC pays it. Rather than waiting months for the claim to be processed, you receive the cash now and repay the loan when the credit lands.
At SPRK Capital this product is our R&D Advance Loan. You draw up to 80% of your estimated claim, with no cash paid upfront, and the loan is repaid from your HMRC payment — so it works alongside your other funding solutions rather than competing with them.
Most R&D claims take several months to clear, and tighter HMRC compliance checks have made timelines less predictable. An R&D tax credit loan closes that gap: you turn a future receivable into working capital today, keeping R&D, hiring and growth on schedule instead of paused while you wait. The funding works for claims under the merged RDEC scheme and for loss-making R&D-intensive SMEs claiming under ERIS.
We advance up to 80% of your estimated R&D tax credit. The exact figure depends on the size and stage of your claim, your company’s circumstances and the strength of the underlying R&D. Keeping the loan-to-value conservative leaves built-in headroom between what you borrow and what HMRC is expected to pay. When HMRC pays, you retain the balance between the loan amount and the tax credit receipt.
The application is online and our credit and R&D technical teams assess submissions quickly. Once approved, funds are released the same day you sign under one set of standardised documents.
The loan is made to your company and secured by a first-ranking debenture, so you remain responsible for repayment if HMRC reduces or delays the credit. Our conservative advance rate is designed to absorb a reasonable shortfall, and because there are no early repayment fees you can settle from other sources at no extra cost. We’ll always work the position through with you.
Access your refund up to 12 months earlier
Boost cashflow by drawing up to 80% of your estimated tax credit
No cash
Establishment fee built in to loan
Interest rate of only 1.33% per month
Zero early repayment fees
Online
Fast approval and funding times
Zero repayments during term of Advance
Repaid
One set of standardised documents (first ranking debenture) for all Advances
SPRK are specialists in R&D finance, and we’re here to help you get the most from every pound spent on R&D.