Securing and maintaining NRC IRAP (National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program) funding can be daunting for Canadian businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The government of Canada announced their annual statistics on the SR&ED tax incentives program. The SR&ED tax incentive claim has grown from $3.4 Billion to $4.4 Billion in the last three years, funding innovation in the following industries.

Canadian companies have a significant opportunity to profit from bilateral cooperation with the EU in science and technology, by fostering cross-border partnerships.

The various government entities across Canada offer more than a thousand different grants and subsidies for businesses operating across the country. They offer substantial financial benefits, but often the ecosystem is opaque and challenging to navigate.

2023 Federal Budget highlighted the transformational new big five clean investment tax credits, which will help produce, manufacture, or transition to clean energy in Canada. These Clean Investment Tax Credits, which total over $60 billion over the coming ten years, will support green innovation in the private sector, grow our economy, and create or secure thousands of good middle-class jobs.

Canada is home to many digital innovation giants and fast growing SMBs and start-ups. Canada’s federal and provincial governments offer some of the most generous incentives in the world to support this rapid growth and encourage investments in the country. The refundable tax credit for interactive digital media is available in various provinces across Canada. In each province, the rates and conditions for claiming the credit differ from one province to another, particularly concerning the wage expense per individual and the total eligible expenses that are not capped.

If you are reading this, a well-trained SR&ED consulting firm can tell right from the title that a business project does not qualify for the SR&ED Tax Credit. Many companies ask what the difference is or if there is any difference between a business project and an SR&ED project. The easy answer is yes there is a definite difference, but let’s dig into this further.

I think the place to start is to be clear about what the SR&ED tax credit is supposed to encourage.

We are proud to announce that Braithwaite, a leading player in the Canadian innovation financing industry, is joining ABGi (a member of the Visiativ group)! Braithwaite’s R&D, tax and financial experts will bring over 30 years of SR&ED expertise and a 99% success rate with the CRA, and strengthen ABGi Canada’s coverage in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia…

The Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Incentives are complex and require in-depth knowledge of the SR&ED tax system. To meet Canadian Revenue Agencies (CRA) guidelines, a company must understand all forms needed for submission, SR&ED eligibility (the proper documentation), how to submit correctly, etc. This can be cumbersome for many companies, as finding the quick and easiest way to file is always top of mind.

The Quebec government has announced its new strategy for research and investment in innovation. Called SQRI², this action plan, estimated at $7.5 billion, will run from 2022-2027. The goals of this measure are to improve business productivity and reduce the gap in GDP per capita with Ontario in order to ultimately increase the prosperity and wealth of Quebec citizens.

SR&ED, CDAE and Multimedia tax credit systems can seem complex, because they combine legal, financial and scientific notions. They are thus at the intersection of skills and professions that are rarely supported by the same interlocutors within a company.

In an article penned to newswire on April 6th, 2022, by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), CRA has unfortunately seen an increase in fraudulent/false information provided with the SR&ED Tax Credit. CRA wants to assure everyone that many Canadian companies are filing correctly but it is something that they are closely monitoring. With that in mind, how does this effect your companies next SR&ED Claim?