Research bonus
We support companies throughout the entire
application process for the research bonus
Research bonus
We support companies throughout the entire
application process for the research bonus
Research bonus
Our goal is for you to successfully obtain your research bonus.
In Austria, companies can receive a subsidy of 14% of their total research and development costs. For expenses already incurred in the context of industrial research and experimental development, they can retroactively claim the research premium from the tax office in accordance with Section 108c of the Income Tax Act (EStG).
Every innovative company subject to tax in Austria is entitled to the research premium by law. This is a two-stage procedure. The research premium is credited to the tax account (legal entitlement!) in the event of a positive assessment by the FFG and recognition by the tax office. The research premium is also due in the event of failed research and development. Even in the event of a negative annual result (loss), it is credited to the tax account and paid out on request.
There is a legal entitlement for the following activities:
- Basic research, applied research (industrial research) and experimental development
- Pilot projects & prototypes
- Failed R&D projects
- Projects already subsidized elsewhere (directly subsidized projects are also eligible for the research premium)
- Contract research
As funding specialists for research subsidies, we are your reliable partner. Our team of highly qualified technicians and experienced project managers will guide you through the entire application process and support you in successfully applying for R&D subsidies.
- Identification of your eligible R&D projects
- Joint creation of technical documentation
- Review & finalization of the application documents
- Support in determining the assessment basis
Together we say: ITS possible
The term “research” is defined in accordance with Section 108c EStG and the corresponding ordinance. In addition, the Frascati Manual (2015), the OECD manual for research statistics, is also used to define the term. This includes:
New developments such as prototypes or pilot plants
New and further developments of products
New and further developments of processes
Experimental development
Also failed research and development
The research activity can be carried out in-house or as a contract to another company. The funding criteria vary depending on this:
In-house research: is carried out in a domestic company with its own staff. The research premium amounts to 14% of the expenditure for research and experimental development.
Contract research: a client awards a research and development contract to a domestic or EU/EEA-based third party (e.g. a company or university).
The client can apply for 14% of the contract volume as a research premium, up to a maximum of EUR 1,000,000, for contract research.
Caution: contract research within a group of companies or a tax group within the meaning of Section 9 KStG is not eligible for funding.
We will be happy to inform you personally about the other framework conditions for funding contract research.
The research bonus can be applied for retroactively by
– any taxable company in Austria that meets the legal requirements for the research bonus
– which carries out research and development services in Austria or awards research contracts to third parties based in the EEA,
– regardless of the company’s sector.
The process for claiming the research premium for in-house research and experimental development is as follows:
To claim the research premium, a company must submit an application to the relevant tax office at the end of a financial year. The application is usually submitted together with the tax return for the previous financial year.
In addition, an expert opinion from the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) must be applied for. The application consists of a description of a maximum of 20 projects or priority topics. Each of these projects/focus areas may be described in a maximum of 3000 characters without graphics or images. The expert opinion of the FFG determines whether the in-house research activities of companies for which a research premium is applied for are subsidized research and experimental development within the meaning of the Income Tax Act and the associated ordinance.
The tax office determines whether the submitted expenses for research and development (the assessment basis) have been calculated in accordance with the legal requirements. The FFG assesses whether the substantive requirements for claiming a research premium are met.
The FFG does not assess whether the assessment basis for the research premium has been calculated correctly.
The FFG does not make a decision on the award of the research premium. This decision is made by the competent tax office. As a rule, the tax office follows the FFG’s assessment.
The FFG prepares the assessment free of charge for the company.
The request for an expert opinion is made via “FinanzOnline”, the electronic access to the tax authorities and is subject to strictly regulated formal requirements. The FFG’s assessment is then automatically sent to the tax office and the applicant via “FinanzOnline”.
Annual report
In order to claim the research premium, an annual report from the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) is normally required. (Exception: no report is required for contract research). The FFG checks whether the content requirements are met in accordance with the provisions of the “Frascati” Manual. The correctness of the assessment basis is checked by the tax office.
The opinion of the FFG is not binding for the tax office. Even if the FFG report (which was assessed on the basis of a description of a maximum of 3000 characters per focus) is negative, the tax office can still pay the research premium to the company after submission of further and more comprehensive documentation.
Project report
Instead of the annual report, a project report can also be submitted to the FFG for an individual project.
Project reports serve as the basis for an official research confirmation from the tax office that the requirements for in-house research have been met. It therefore leads to increased legal certainty. An administrative fee of 1,000 euros is prescribed for each project report. It can be applied for the current year and for a maximum of three years into the future.
Optional: Confirmation by an auditor
If you want to obtain legal certainty about the amount of the assessment basis or the way in which it was determined, you must also submit confirmation from an auditor to the tax office. Together with the annual report or the project report and on the basis of this confirmation, the tax office will then issue an assessment notice on the amount of the premium.
