R&D tax credits for construction.
Dubai builds like nowhere else, and much of that work involves genuine technical uncertainty — new methods, materials and systems. That development often qualifies for the R&D Tax Credit, and it is widely overlooked. The discipline is proving precisely which part.
How qualifying R&D shows up in the built environment.
The UAE regime tests every project against the five OECD Frascati criteria. Here is what each looks like on site, in a material, or in a building system.
Novel
A method, material or system not already available in practice.
Creative
Original engineering, not textbook design-to-code.
Uncertain
Whether it performs on site is genuinely uncertain.
Systematic
Planned prototyping, mock-ups and testing, documented.
Transferable
Results reproducible across projects and conditions.
The kind of work that qualifies.
Illustrative projects across upstream, downstream and the energy transition. Eligibility is always confirmed project by project.
Modern methods of construction
Modular or offsite methods that must meet tolerances on site for the first time
Low-carbon materials
Low-carbon concrete or materials engineered for Gulf climate and loading.
Digital twins & BMS
Digital twins and building-management systems integrating data no existing platform handles.
Complex structural engineering
Structural solutions for geometries or conditions with no established design approach.
Advanced building systems
MEP, cooling or facade systems engineered to a performance no standard design achieves.
PropTech platforms
Platforms managing building or portfolio data in ways existing software cannot support.
Genuine R&D, not routine engineering.
The value we add is drawing this line correctly — claiming what qualifies, and defending it, while leaving out what does not.
- Developing methods, materials or systems where site performance is uncertain.
- Prototyping and mock-up testing to resolve a technical unknown.
- Engineering beyond established design approaches or codes.
- Systematic testing and iteration to prove the outcome.
- Standard design-and-build to established codes.
- Routine BIM modelling of a known design.
- Applying proven materials and methods to specification.
- Cost planning and project management with no technical uncertainty.
£50M+
claimed across 450+ UK companies with a 100% audit success record — including complex, engineering-heavy claims in energy and industrials. The same chartered method now applies to the UAE.
“They are very competent, act swiftly and oversee the whole process. Their customer services are really helpful!”
Quantopticon — deep-tech client
A UAE construction case study will feature here as claims complete under the new regime.
Isn’t construction just applying known engineering?
Much of it is — and that does not qualify. But genuine development of new methods, materials or systems, where site performance is uncertain and must be proven through prototyping and testing, frequently does. Construction R&D is widely under-claimed.
Does BIM or digital-twin work count?
Routine BIM modelling does not. But building a digital twin or integration that solves a data problem with no existing platform can qualify.
We are a contractor, not a designer. Can we claim?
Yes, potentially — the question is who bore the technical risk and cost of the uncertain development, not job title. Contractors often carry exactly that risk on site.
What evidence will we need?
Contemporaneous records: the technical uncertainty, the work done to resolve it, and project-level cost and staff-time allocation. We build this as the work happens — and pre-approval is mandatory before claiming.
Growing in the desert? Let’s find what qualifies.
We assess your projects against the five criteria, handle pre-approval, and build the evidence — before a single figure is claimed.
