Funding & Financing

Federal Tax Research Incentive

Since January 2020, all taxable companies in Germany that carry out research and development can benefit from the tax incentives for research since 2020..

  • All types of research and development projects in principle eligible
    Whether basic research, industrial research or experimental development, research and development projects in all these categories are in principle eligible. The scheme does not restrict the aid to specific sectors or activities.
  • All taxable enterprises are entitled to receive this benefit: However, small and medium-sized enterprises benefit in particular
    Funding is now also possible for the award of a research contract with the client (contract research)! This is particularly advantageous for smaller companies, as they are often dependent on contract research due to a lack of their own research capacities..

The research allowance is credited against the income tax liability of the beneficiary. If the research bonus is higher than the tax assessed in the next assessment, this amount is paid out as a tax refund. This means that research and development activities of companies that are in a loss-making phase and therefore pay little or no tax can also be supported. This is particularly important for companies in the growth phase (e.g. start-ups).

In the case of contract research, 60 percent of the remuneration paid by the client to the contractor is regarded as eligible expenditure. The eligible basis of assessment is limited to a maximum of EUR 2 million per company/group per marketing year. This leads to a maximum possible research allowance of 500,000 euros per fiscal year.

Further information FEDERAL MINISTRY OF FINANCE 

 

Contact

Sebastian Kiss
+49 30 2093 70764