Tax Assistant Manager - Innovation Reliefs and Incentives

Job description

At KPMG, our values define who we are and the way we do business. As a leading professional services firm, we know that our strength and capability come from our people – their different perspectives, experiences and backgrounds. From our inclusive leadership strategy to our diversity and inclusion targets – we’re making bold changes to who we are and what we do. Be part of it.

KPMG’s Innovation Reliefs and Incentives team is made up of tax, engineering, science and technology specialists delivering expert advice to a broad range of clients across almost every industry sector. As one of the largest teams in the industry, our continued investment in innovation advisory means that we seek engineers, scientists and tax professionals to join us on the next exciting phase of our growth.

Our team works with clients from owner managed business, to large multinational organisations, and we are looking for an Assistant Manager with a strong financial, accounting and tax background to assist clients across a suite of innovation advisory services including R&D tax Credits, Patent Box, R&D Allowances, Grants and Innovation Advisory services. This is an excellent opportunity for someone with an Honour/ Post Graduate Degree in finance, accounting and tax or other related discipline that either has industry financial experience or working knowledge of the R&D tax legislation. 

Role and Responsibilities:

• Working with project teams to develop the claim methodologies including costing approach and deliver R&D tax relief and Patent Box claims for submission to HMRC. This will include taking some responsibility and accountability with respect of managing the delivery of the claims.
• Lead/Co-Lead meetings with the financial client stakeholders; and provide expert advice in relation to innovation advisory services (R&D, Patent Box, Grant Applications). Support the technical specialists in meetings with senior technical client stakeholders.
• Write accurate and substantive claim documents to support R&D tax claims for our clients in terms of the methodology and process. This will include reviewing claim documents written by junior colleagues.
• Prepare (and/or manage the process for preparing) both the technical and financial elements of our client deliverables. This will include ensuring correct quantification of R&D/Patent Box claims and supporting the KPMG technical team documenting the work being undertaken by our clients within technically complex projects for submission to HMRC/ Funding Organisations
• Assist in managing client projects across both tax and technical work streams; and manage conflicting resourcing requirements between projects.
• Assist in leading projects; and solving problems by advising our clients in the application of complex legislation to real life situations.
• Assist with liaising with HMRC specialists to facilitate the agreement of R&D & Patent Box claims.
• Help to establish and maintain strong client relationships with both existing and new clients.
• Look to build an internal network within the wider tax practice of the firm.
• Taking responsibility and accountability for your own work. You will be responsible for the delivery of high-quality advice; and ensuring the management of risk and reputation is at the forefront of everything you do. This will include coaching and developing junior staff.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Honours/ Post Graduate Degree in finance, accounting & tax or other related technical discipline.
• You will either have significant industry experience in finance and in particular taxation; or have a detailed working knowledge of the R&D and/or Patent Box tax legislation, and its application to ensuring correct quantification of claims.
• Must have excellent problem-solving skills and critical thinking to assist our clients in applying complex legislation to real life situations.
• Excellent communication skills are a must. For example, you must be able to lead/co-lead finance discussions and explain complex legislative concepts to finance and scientists/engineers in industry who have no prior experience of the tax definition of R&D.
• Must be capable of producing high quality, professional documentation and reports for C-suite stakeholders within our clients.
• Must be able to demonstrate project management skills and an ability to manage own workload well, as well as delegating to staff members.
• Tax and accounting qualifications are not essential for this role but would be welcome (e.g. CTA / ACA / ACCA qualified (or equivalent)).

KPMG Overview

KPMG is part of a global network of firms that offers Audit, Tax & Legal, Consulting, Deal Advisory and Technology services. Through the talent of over 16,000 colleagues, we bring our creativity and insight to our clients’ most critical challenges.

With offices across the UK, we work with everyone from small start-ups and individuals to major multinationals, in virtually every industry imaginable. Our work is often complex, yet our vision is simple: to be the clear choice for our clients, for our people and for the communities we work in.

Service Line Information

The Claims and Incentives team are part of our wider Corporate Tax department. They help our clients to secure cash tax savings through government sponsored tax reliefs and incentives. The team is made up of Fixed Asset Tax Services (“FATS”) and Innovation Reliefs & Incentives (“IRI”) and supports clients who incur expenditure on fixed assets and carry out innovative activities. The FATS team is made up of tax advisers, accountants and surveyors and reviews fixed asset costs such as expenditure incurred on the construction of property to enhance and accelerate the available tax relief wherever possible. They also help clients on their processes to capture data in relation to fixed assets and have developed technology tools to assist with this process.

Within IRI, staff work with clients to help them claim tax incentives for innovation. The IRI team works with companies of all sizes from almost every sector of the economy to identify their qualifying R&D activity, quantify it and help them obtain their R&D incentives, as well as working with clients to best leverage the Patent Box regime. The team consists of staff with a wide variety of skill sets all working together, from technical specialist including scientists, engineers and IT experts to fully qualified accountants and tax advisers. The teams are spread over the UK to best meet our clients’ needs and the national team all work together as one unit.