Compliance & Evidence
Scientific Uncertainty in a Clinical R&D Tax Claim
How to write the AusIndustry uncertainty fields for clinical R&D under s 355-25: phrasing that survives review and the wording that gets challenged.
Read articleGeorge Walch is an Australian accountant and the founder of Rand Advisory. He works with software and health-tech companies on their R&D Tax Incentive claims, and reviews every claim Rand prepares as its Expert Reviewer: Division 355 eligibility, contemporaneous evidence, and claims that hold up when AusIndustry or the ATO looks at them.
Articles by George Walch
Eligibility
The R&D Tax Offset: Rates, Rules and How to Claim
What the Australian R&D tax offset is worth: the refundable offset (commonly 43.5%), the two-tier intensity premium above $20M turnover, and how to claim.
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Can I Claim My Own Salary Under the R&D Tax Incentive?
Founder salaries are claimable R&D expenditure when paid through payroll and apportioned to registered R&D activities. Drawings and dividends are not.
Read articleProcess
When Do You Get Your R&D Tax Incentive Refund in Australia?
How long the R&D tax offset takes to land: registration, lodgement, ATO processing timeframes, what delays payment, and a worked 30 June year-end timeline.
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The R&D Tax Incentive Portal: Access and Lodgement
How the AusIndustry R&D Tax Incentive portal works: myID and RAM access, registration form fields, the 10-month deadline, variations and the ATO side.
Read articleEligibility
R&D Tax Incentive Eligibility: The Complete Test
Who qualifies for the R&D Tax Incentive: company eligibility, the $20,000 minimum spend, the s 355-25 core activity test, exclusions and offset rates.
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Research and Development Tax Incentive: How It Works
What the R&D Tax Incentive is, who can claim, current offset rates, which activities and costs qualify, and how to register before the 30 April deadline.
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R&D Tax Incentive Registration Form: What AusIndustry Asks
Field-by-field map of the AusIndustry R&D registration: projects, core activity questions, character minimums, supporting activities and sign-off.
Read articleProcess
AusIndustry Review Process for R&D Tax Claims
How AusIndustry reviews R&D Tax Incentive registrations: check types, triggers, evidence requested, timeframes, findings, and ART appeal rights.
Read articleCompliance & Evidence
What Evidence AusIndustry Accepts for R&D Tax Claims
The records AusIndustry accepts as proof of registered R&D activities, mapped to each s 355-25 criterion, plus what contemporaneous means in practice.
Read articleCompliance & Evidence
R&D Tax Incentive Record Keeping: Contemporaneous Evidence
What records the ATO and AusIndustry expect for an R&D claim, what contemporaneous really means, how long to keep them, and a checklist by claim stage.
Read articleEligibility
What R&D Expenditure Can You Claim in Australia?
Salaries, contractors, associates, overheads and depreciation: which costs qualify under Division 355, how to apportion them, and what is excluded.
Read articleCompliance & Evidence
How to Write an R&D Tax Incentive Technical Narrative
A field-by-field guide to AusIndustry activity descriptions: hypothesis, sources investigated, experiment, evaluation and new knowledge, with worked examples.
Read articleBudget & Policy
R&D Tax Incentive changes in the 2025 Budget
What the 2025 Budget did and did not change for the R&DTI: rates, the gambling and tobacco exclusion, the $50M threshold and the new AusIndustry form.
Read articleProcess
R&D Advisory Services: What They Do and How to Choose
What Australian R&D advisory services actually deliver, how they price the work, the questions to ask before signing, and when self-preparing is enough.
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How to Calculate Your R&D Tax Incentive Rebate in Australia
Work out your R&D tax offset in five steps: notional deductions, the $20M turnover test, the 43.5% refundable rate and two worked examples.
Read articleEligibility
Clinical Trial R&D Tax Incentive Eligibility Rules
How clinical trials qualify under Division 355: the deemed-core determination, clinical vs technical uncertainty, overseas findings and required evidence.
Read articleCompliance & Evidence
Using GitHub Commits as R&D Tax Incentive Evidence
Can GitHub commit history support an R&D Tax Incentive claim? What AusIndustry and the ATO accept, what commits can't prove, and how to make it defensible.
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R&D Tax Incentive Eligibility Criteria: Software Companies
How Division 355 eligibility works for Australian software companies: the core activity test, technical uncertainty, exclusions, evidence and offset rates.
Read articleProcess
R&D Tax Incentive deadlines: every date that matters
Miss the registration deadline and the claim is gone, no matter how eligible the work was. Here is every date in the R&D Tax Incentive calendar: registration, findings, lodgement, and record retention, plus what to do if a deadline is at risk.
Read articleBudget & Policy
The 2026-27 Budget R&D Tax Incentive overhaul explained
The 2026-27 Federal Budget announced the biggest redesign of the R&D Tax Incentive in years, including the end of supporting activity claims from 1 July 2028. Here is what changes, and the moves software founders should make before it lands.
Read articleEligibility
Is AI and machine learning development eligible for the R&DTI?
AI and machine learning work is a rich source of genuine R&D, and a fast-growing target for ATO scrutiny. Here is how the eligibility test actually applies to AI development, with examples of what qualifies and what does not.
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Core vs supporting R&D activities, and why it now matters more
The distinction between core and supporting R&D activities has always mattered. From 1 July 2028 it becomes decisive, because supporting activities lose eligibility. Here is how to tell them apart and classify your work correctly.
Read articleComparisons
R&D tax consultant vs software: a cost comparison for startups
Most R&D Tax Incentive consultants charge a percentage of your benefit. Software charges differently. Here is an honest breakdown of the fee models, the trade-offs, and which one suits an early-stage software company.
Read articleCompliance & Evidence
ATO R&D Tax Incentive reviews: what triggers them, how to be ready
A review is not a disaster if your claim is well-evidenced. Here is what tends to trigger an ATO or AusIndustry review of an R&D Tax Incentive claim, what they ask for, and how to be ready before one lands.
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