HMRC has recently published its annual Patent Box relief statistics. The report shows the number of companies taking advantage of the Patent Box scheme and the amount of relief they gained, with provisional statistics taking us up to the 2024-25 tax year.
According to the provisional statistics:
- 1,735 companies elected into Patent Box in 2024-25, up just 2.36% year-on-year.
- The amount of relief claimed rose by 22.94% to £2.283 billion.
- Large companies received 95% of the total relief.
- The amount of relief claimed by small companies rose by 71% year-on-year, from £21 million to £36 million.
Patent Box is still heavily skewed towards large companies, but small businesses are gaining ground
Patent Box is a valuable form of tax relief (especially when combined with R&D Tax Credits) but growth in the number of companies electing into the scheme is painfully slow. The most recent figures show that the number of companies electing into Patent Box grew by just 2.36% to 1,735. Interestingly, this growth came from smaller businesses, with the number of small and micro companies each rising by 7% and relief claimed by small companies increasing by 71%.
Admittedly, the scheme is still heavily skewed towards large companies. They make up 28% of the companies that elected into Patent Box for 2024-25 yet benefit from 95% of the total relief.
Below, we explore the latest statistics, including the growth from smaller companies.
Note: HMRC state that the amounts of the relief have been rounded to the nearest £1m and the number of companies has been rounded to the nearest 5, which means that figures might not add up to totals.
Patent Box claims by year, 2013-14 to 2024-25
| Year | Number of companies | Amount of relief (£ million) | Profits eligible for relief (£ million) | % Growth in Companies | % Growth in Relief | % Growth in Profits Eligible |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | 835 | 376 | 4,747 | |||
| 2014–15 | 1,175 | 658 | 8,482 | 40.72% | 75.00% | 78.68% |
| 2015–16 | 1,295 | 770 | 9,683 | 10.21% | 17.02% | 14.16% |
| 2016–17 | 1,425 | 1,047 | 11,964 | 10.04% | 35.97% | 23.56% |
| 2017–18 | 1,545 | 1,142 | 12,665 | 8.42% | 9.07% | 5.86% |
| 2018–19 | 1,575 | 1,164 | 12,930 | 1.94% | 1.93% | 2.09% |
| 2019–20 | 1,600 | 1,240 | 13,781 | 1.59% | 6.53% | 6.58% |
| 2020–21 | 1,610 | 1,198 | 13,306 | 0.63% | -3.39% | -3.45% |
| 2021–22 | 1,635 | 1,317 | 14,632 | 1.55% | 9.93% | 9.97% |
| 2022–23 | 1,645 | 1,428 | 15,872 | 0.61% | 8.43% | 8.47% |
| 2023–24 | 1,695 | 1,857 | 13,761 | 3.04% | 30.04% | -13.30% |
| 2024–25 | 1,735 | 2,283 | 15,223 | 2.36% | 22.94% | 10.62% |
Patent Box elections rose by 2.36% for 2024-2025, equating to just 40 extra companies. As it’s a projected figure, more companies may be added as returns continue to be filed and processed. However, it suggests that growth in overall awareness and take-up of the scheme is still progressing at far too slow a rate.
Growth in the amount of relief claimed was lower than in the previous tax year, but was still notable at 22.94%, taking the total to £2.283 billion. HMRC suggest the main cause is the continuation of the main rate of Corporation Tax rising from 19% to 25% from April 2023, as for many businesses it was the first full year of their profits experiencing this higher rate.
Our chart below highlights the impact of the Corporation Tax rise, as the amount of relief paid rises steeply in comparison to Patent Box election growth:
Patent Box data by company size 2024-25
| Company size | Number of companies | Number of companies as a percentage of total | Amount of relief (£ million) | Amount of relief as a % of the total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Large | 480 | 28% | 2,159 | 95% |
| Medium-sized | 480 | 28% | 80 | 3% |
| Small | 450 | 26% | 36 | 2% |
| Micro | 300 | 17% | 8 | <1% |
| Unknown | 20 | 1% | 1 | <1% |
| Total | 1,735 | 100% | 2,283 | 100% |
Of the companies electing into Patent Box, 28% of companies are classed as large, 28% as medium, and 26% as small (the rest are either micro businesses or their size is unknown).
Large companies are overwhelmingly the biggest beneficiaries of the scheme, receiving 95% of the total relief. SMEs receive just 5% (3% medium-sized & 2% small).
The relief is also highly concentrated among a relatively small number of businesses. HMRC estimates that the top 145 companies (by value of the relief they receive) make up 92% of the relief.
Patent Box data by company size 2023-24 to 2024-25
| Company size | Number of companies 2023-24 | Number of companies 2024-25 | Number of companies Y-o-Y growth | Amount of relief (£ million) 2023-24 | Amount of relief (£ million) 2024-25 | Amount of relief Y-o-Y growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Large | 500 | 480 | -4% | 1,724 | 2,159 | 25% |
| Medium-sized | 480 | 480 | 0% | 84 | 80 | -5% |
| Small | 420 | 450 | 7% | 21 | 36 | 71% |
| Micro | 280 | 300 | 7% | 8 | ||
| Unknown | 15 | 20 | 33% | 1 | ||
| Total | 1,695 | 1,735 | 2% | 1,857 | 2,283 | 23% |
When comparing the figures from 2023-24 to 2024-25, the data shows that the growth in the number of companies actually came from smaller businesses, in terms of the number of small and micro companies electing into Patent Box (both rising by 7% year-on-year), but more significantly in terms of the amount of relief claimed, which rose from £21 million to £36 million (71%). While the amount of relief received is small in comparison to large companies, this growth is very welcome.
In contrast, the number of large companies electing into the scheme actually fell by 4%, from 500 to 480, although the relief they benefited from rose by 25% (again, the numbers are provisional so we may yet see growth in large company elections).
Get help with Patent Box through Leyton
The Patent Box scheme lets companies pay a lower Corporation Tax rate of 10% on profits from patented inventions. It’s a valuable government incentive, helping companies claim tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands and even millions of pounds in tax relief, depending on their eligible IP.
If you think you’re missing out, we’d be happy to help you review your company’s IP strategy and check to make sure that you’re making the most of this generous government benefit.
Our team can identify the patents that meet HMRC’s criteria for relief. We also work with patent attorneys to secure the patents you need, so you can claim the maximum relief available.
If you enjoyed this article, you might also like:
- An examination of 2026’s R&D Tax Credit Statistics
- R&D Tax Credits rates explained