Authors
London, 4th February 2026: Ayming has reaffirmed its position as a market leader in R&D tax consultancy, achieving a 100% enquiry success rate and securing 99.4% of qualifying expenditure value for its clients, even in the face of heightened HMRC scrutiny.
As HMRC continues to intensify its scrutiny on R&D tax relief claims, enquiry defence has become a critical consideration for businesses. Ayming’s latest results demonstrate that robust enquiry defence remains both achievable and highly effective when built into the claim process from the outset.
Ayming’s enquiry rate stands at just 6% of claims submitted, reflecting the technical strength and compliance rigour of the claims it submits. Where enquiries do arise, clients can retain confidence in the outcome.
When enquiries do arise, clients can retain confidence.
In 2025, Ayming’s enquiry defence success rate was 100%, demonstrating its premium end-to-end approach, which combines deep technical expertise, robust documentation, and proactive risk management.
Across all claims entering enquiry, Ayming successfully recovered over 99% of qualifying expenditure value, ensuring clients experienced no material reduction in their benefit.
Supporting businesses through enquiry resolution
In addition to defending claims prepared by Ayming, the firm also provides specialist enquiry resolution support for businesses facing HMRC enquiries into claims prepared in-house or by other advisors.
For these enquiry resolution cases, Ayming again achieved a 100% success rate, with a QE recovery rate of 71.9%. While lower than for Ayming-prepared claims, this reflects the additional risk introduced when claims are submitted without sufficient technical or compliance rigour, underlining the importance of getting it right first time.
Raising standards in a more complex R&D landscape
Over the past year, Ayming successfully closed more enquiry cases than were opened, including a significant number inherited from other advisors. This not only demonstrates Ayming’s ability to defend claims effectively, but also its growing role in helping businesses stabilise and resolve legacy risk across the market.
As HMRC expectations continue to evolve, Ayming remains committed to raising standards across the R&D tax relief market, giving businesses a greater degree of certainty, protection, and confidence in an increasingly complex landscape.
ENDS
total benefit received by our clients from HMRC
UK client retention rate
HMRC enquiry rate, vs an industry average of 20%
About Ayming
As a professional services company, Ayming partners with businesses and institutions around the world to unlock lasting value, year after year. Translating complex policy into opportunities, while managing the transformation that comes with growth.
Our team is over 1,600 experts in Innovation, HR, and Taxes. We have specialised knowledge and decades of experience in international and local policy across 14 countries. Our premium services create new possibilities for investment. And our approach goes beyond consulting, collaborating in the field with clients of all sizes and sectors. So we can deliver tangible results driven by trust – now and for years to come.
For all media enquiries:
Annabel Riviero
Annabel.Rivero@aspectusgroup.com
+44 7500 321 480
