Six programs cover the same ground from different seats: the person new to R&D incentives, the finance team that runs the claim, the board that signs it, the engineers whose work it describes, the founder deciding whether to claim at all, and the advisor who prepares claims for clients. This page puts them side by side so you can pick one. Every program is register interest only; tell us where you claim and we will let you know when it opens for your country.
The six programs side by side
| Program | Who it is for | Modules | Country tracks |
|---|---|---|---|
| R&D Tax Fundamentals | Anyone new to R&D incentives | 5: what R&D incentives are; what counts as R&D; eligible costs; the claim lifecycle; documentation basics | No |
| In-House Finance Team Program | Finance managers, tax leads, accountants | 9: scheme mechanics; cost capture; staff time apportionment; contractors and overseas costs; grants and subsidised expenditure; calculations; working with technical teams; filing and deadlines; reviews and audits | Yes, all seven |
| Leadership Briefing | CFOs, founders, directors | 3: the commercial case; risk and governance; choosing an advisor | No |
| Technical Teams Program | Engineers, scientists, project leads | 5: why your input matters; identifying uncertainty; recording as you go; writing the narrative; industry examples | No |
| Startups and Scale-ups | Founders and early finance hires | 4: is it worth claiming; setting up from day one; funding interactions; your first claim | Yes, all seven |
| Advisor and Practitioner Program | Accountants and advisors preparing claims | 7: legislation and guidance; eligibility analysis; advanced calculations; technical interviews; reports and narratives; disputes and audits; ethics, integrity and fee arrangements | Yes, all seven |
Each module is a full page of lesson content with a table, an illustrative example, a section on how the topic plays out across the seven countries and self-check questions. A country track adds that country's forms, deadlines and a worked example, and links to the matching pages of the country guides.
By audience
| Your seat | Start with | Then | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| New to the subject, any role | R&D Tax Fundamentals | The program for your role below | The five modules give the vocabulary and the shape of a claim that every other program assumes. |
| Finance or tax team running the claim | In-House Finance Team Program | Your country track | Cost capture, apportionment, calculations and filing are the finance team's work; the track applies them to your forms and deadlines. |
| CFO, founder or director who signs the claim | Leadership Briefing | Module 3 of the briefing before choosing an advisor | Three short modules cover what the benefit is worth, what can go wrong and how to buy advice well. |
| Engineer, scientist or project lead | Technical Teams Program | The industry examples module for your sector | The claim rests on a technical description that only the people who did the work can write. |
| Founder of a startup or scale-up | Startups and Scale-ups | Your country track | Decides whether to claim at your stage and sets up records before the first claim. |
| Accountant or advisor preparing claims for clients | Advisor and Practitioner Program | The country tracks you practise in | Practitioner depth on legislation, calculations, interviews, narratives, reviews and professional conduct. |
If you are not sure which seat you are in, Start here asks three questions and points you to one program, your country guide and two or three guides.
By country track
Three programs have a track for each of the seven countries. A track is read after the program's modules, not instead of them.
| Country | In-House Finance Team | Startups and Scale-ups | Advisor and Practitioner | Country guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | US track | US track | US track | United States |
| United Kingdom | UK track | UK track | UK track | United Kingdom |
| Ireland | Ireland track | Ireland track | Ireland track | Ireland |
| Canada | Canada track | Canada track | Canada track | Canada |
| Australia | Australia track | Australia track | Australia track | Australia |
| New Zealand | New Zealand track | New Zealand track | New Zealand track | New Zealand |
| Singapore | Singapore track | Singapore track | Singapore track | Singapore |
A track that is not yet published appears as plain text rather than a link. The programs without tracks (Fundamentals, Leadership Briefing, Technical Teams) keep their country detail to a short section in each module and link to the country guides instead.
What every program has in common
- Facts are checked against official sources, as on the country guides and the seven-country comparison, and each country page shows when it was last reviewed.
- Global modules use neutral terms; country tracks use that country's own terminology.
- Every module ends with self-check questions you answer and then open to compare.
- Programs are educational material, not advice, and nothing on this site replaces advice on your own position.
Register interest
Choose a program and use the Register interest button on its overview page, or tell us which program and country you are interested in. Training for a whole team is arranged through the team training page.
Educational content only, not tax advice. See the disclaimer.