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Templates

Four downloadable templates for the records every claim rests on: the project narrative, the project identification workshop, the timesheet and the documentation checklist. Country-neutral and free of tax facts.

Last reviewed 2 October 2026
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The records that support an R&D claim are the same in every country: a dated statement of the technical unknown, a record of the work done to resolve it, time captured by project, and costs that reconcile to the ledger. These templates give those records a shape. Each is a plain Word or Excel file you can edit, rename and adopt as your own; none contains a rate, a deadline or any other tax fact, so they do not go out of date when a scheme changes.

Templates

TemplateFormatWho fills it inWhen
Project narrative templateDOCXThe technical lead, edited by finance or an advisorDrafted from the project note at year end, confirmed before filing
Workshop agendaDOCXThe facilitator and scribe of a project identification workshopEach quarter, or at least once before the claim is prepared
Timesheet templateXLSXEveryone who works on a candidate project; totalled by financeWeekly entries, confirmed monthly
Documentation checklistDOCXThe technical owner and finance owner of each projectAt project start, during the work, at milestones and at year end

How to use them

  1. Download the file, save it under your own project name and remove the notes in brackets as you fill it in.
  2. Use the same project name and code in every template, in the time system and in the ledger, so the narrative, the time record and the cost schedule tell one story.
  3. Keep completed files with the project evidence, dated, and do not overwrite earlier versions; a record made at the time is worth more than a polished one made later.
  4. Check your country's documentation page for any form or specific record the scheme asks for in addition. The templates do not replace a scheme's own forms.

The guide to what reviewers look for explains why these four records settle most questions, and the Technical Teams Program shows how to produce them from the tools engineers already use.

Educational material, not advice. Each scheme has its own documentation requirements; see the country pages.

Documentation checklistA per-project checklist of the records to create at project start, during the work, at milestones and at year end, with a review-readiness test at the end.Project narrative templateA one to two page structure for describing an R&D project: the uncertainty, why existing knowledge did not resolve it, the work done, the outcome, the boundary, the people and the evidence. Works in every country.Timesheet templateA four-sheet workbook for capturing time by project and activity: instructions, a project list, weekly entries marked R&D or routine, and a monthly summary that computes each person's R&D share.Workshop agendaA ninety-minute agenda and capture sheet for a project identification workshop with technical leads: framing, candidate round, challenge round, boundaries, owners and next steps.

Educational content only, not tax advice. See the disclaimer.