The federal research credit under Section 41 is not just for laboratories. Software development, process engineering, prototyping and product iteration routinely qualify. It is claimed less often than it should be because it requires documentation nobody was keeping.
Fixed fees, quoted in writing. Florida licensed CPA.
Rarely because they looked into it and did not qualify.
The statutory test is a four-part test: a permitted purpose, technological in nature, elimination of uncertainty, and a process of experimentation. Writing software to solve a problem with no known solution can meet it.
The credit is substantiated with contemporaneous records tying qualified wages, supplies and contract research to specific projects and activities. Reconstructing that after the fact is harder and weaker than capturing it as you go.
Qualified small businesses can elect to apply a portion of the credit against payroll taxes rather than income tax. A pre-revenue company with no income tax liability can still convert the credit into cash.
A defined process with a defensible file at the end of it.
Before any fee for a full study, we look at what you actually do and whether the four-part test is realistically met. If it is not, we tell you and we stop.
Mapping what your team worked on to qualifying activities, at the level of granularity the regulations expect rather than a company-wide percentage.
Qualified wages, supplies, cloud computing costs and contract research, with the correct treatment and limitation for each category.
The technical narrative and support that has to exist if the credit is ever examined. This is the deliverable that matters, and the part cheap studies skimp on.
Where you are a qualified small business, electing to apply the credit against the employer portion of payroll taxes so a loss year still produces cash.
The credit claimed on the return by the same CPA who built the file, and support if the position is ever questioned.
Connected properly, so your books close on live data instead of month-old statements. Where we hold a certification, we say so.
General information, not advice for your situation. Outcomes depend on facts we would need to review with you.
“As a startup founder, I need people who move quickly and understand the bigger picture. Philip has completely taken the accounting and tax side off my plate.”
The honest answer is that it depends on what your team actually spends its time doing. Companies that build software, engineer or improve a manufacturing process, design and test prototypes, or develop formulations frequently qualify. Companies doing routine implementation, cosmetic changes, market research or work funded entirely by a customer generally do not. We assess it before quoting a study.
Generally the statute of limitations allows amended returns for the prior three tax years, though the specifics depend on your filing dates and any extensions. Amended refund claims for this credit carry heightened information requirements, so a look-back claim needs to be built properly rather than filed thin.
Potentially yes. A qualified small business meeting the gross receipts and age tests can elect to apply a portion of the credit against employer payroll taxes. That converts the credit into real cash for a company that is not yet profitable, which is exactly when the cash is most useful.
Many states have their own research credit with separate rules, caps and in some cases an application process with a deadline. Florida has a corporate research credit with an allocation process. We look at both.
A fixed fee based on scope, quoted in writing before we begin. We do not take a percentage of the credit, because that arrangement gives the provider an incentive to be aggressive with a position you are the one who has to defend.
Most firms make you book a call before they will name a price. Answer a few questions and get a real starting number in about two minutes.
