You are probably already doing the R&D.
The federal Research & Development credit is worth roughly 10 cents on every qualified dollar you spend developing or improving products, processes, software, and formulas. It is a dollar-for-dollar credit — not a deduction — and most of the companies that qualify never claim it, because they do not think of what they do as research.
Schedule a call →A credit for building and improving things.
The R&D credit is a permanent federal incentive designed to reward companies that invest in technical improvement. It does not require lab coats, patents, or a research department. It requires that you are working to develop something new or better, that the outcome was technically uncertain when you started, that you tried more than one approach to get there, and that the work relies on hard science — engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, or computer science.
That four-part test covers a lot more ground than most business owners assume. Designing a new manufacturing process. Writing custom software. Reformulating a product to meet a spec. Building a prototype that failed. Failed work still qualifies — the credit rewards the attempt, not the outcome. Qualifying spend generally includes the wages of the people doing and directly supervising the work, the supplies consumed in it, and a portion of what you pay outside contractors.
Worth a look if your team solves technical problems.
- Manufacturers refining processes, tooling, or product design
- Software and technology companies building or improving code
- Engineering, architecture, and design firms
- Food, beverage, and chemical companies developing formulations
- Contractors solving design-build technical challenges
- Any company with engineers, developers, or technical staff on payroll
Two things worth knowing. First, the credit can generally be claimed for open prior tax years, not just the current one. Second, qualified small businesses can elect to apply a portion of the credit against payroll taxes — which means a company that is not yet profitable can still turn the credit into cash.
A credit is worth more than a deduction.
Dollar-for-dollar
A deduction reduces taxable income. A credit reduces tax owed. That makes every qualified dollar work substantially harder for you.
Look-back claims
Open prior years can typically be captured as well, which often makes the first study considerably larger than the annual benefit that follows.
Payroll tax offset
Qualified small businesses can apply the credit against payroll tax liability — real cash flow even with no income tax bill.
We bring it to the table and manage it end to end.
Assess
We look at what your team actually does and confirm there is a credit worth pursuing before you spend anything.
Document
Engineers and tax specialists identify qualifying activities and build the contemporaneous documentation the IRS expects.
Quantify
Qualified wages, supplies, and contract research are calculated and the credit is computed under the appropriate method.
Claim
The credit is filed and coordinated with your CPA — current year, prior years, or against payroll tax.
Documented, or don’t bother.
The R&D credit is a well-known IRS examination target, and the reason is almost always the same: claims filed without the technical documentation to support them. A credit you cannot substantiate is a credit you will eventually give back, with interest. That is why the work is done by engineers and tax specialists who build the record as they go, and why we coordinate with your CPA rather than around them. Same standard we bring to everything: optimize aggressively, but never past the line.
Find out what your technical work is worth.
A short call is enough to tell whether your activities are likely to qualify and roughly what the credit could be — before you commit to anything.
Schedule a call →