R&D tax specialists for Gold Coast businesses.
R&D tax incentive advisors for Gold Coast companies: we assess which activities are eligible, prepare the AusIndustry registration and R&D tax schedule, and connect the claim to your records.
Get in touchCurrent rules, checked September 2026
- Eligible smaller companies: company tax rate plus 18.5 percentage points, subject to the refundable-offset conditions
- Register with AusIndustry within 10 months of year end — 30 April for June balancers
- Eligible activities require genuine technical uncertainty and systematic experimentation
- The additional premium does not apply to eligible expenditure above $150 million
Who this suits
Gold Coast and Queensland companies doing real development work — software, manufacturing, engineering, agtech, food science — that have either never claimed, or want their claims prepared conservatively enough to sleep at night. If the work does not qualify, we say so; a defensible no is worth more than an indefensible refund.
Related: grants advisory · taxation
R&D tax incentive consultants for Gold Coast industries
Eligible R&D work on the Gold Coast often sits in industries such as software and technology firms around Varsity Lakes, Robina and the Southport CBD; marine and advanced manufacturing in the Coomera and Yatala precincts; food, beverage and agtech producers; construction and engineering businesses trialling new methods; and health and medical technology work around the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct. The test is the same in every sector: was there a technical outcome you could not know in advance, and did you work it out through systematic experimentation?
As your R&D tax specialist, we start with a conversation about the work itself rather than the spreadsheet. We identify the core and supporting activities, check that the records show the hypothesis, experiment and result, and separate R&D expenditure from ordinary operating costs. The registration and the tax schedule then follow from the same records.
Clients in Varsity Lakes, Robina and Southport can meet us at 7 Cloyne Road, Southport, or by video. See also our page for Gold Coast tech businesses and consultants.
Keep proposed reforms separate from your current claim
The Government announced changes intended to start on 1 July 2028, including a higher refundable-offset turnover threshold and changes to support for core and supporting activities. Those future settings should not be applied to a current-year claim. Check the official programme updates before planning later expenditure.
What to bring to the first discussion
Bring your company structure and turnover, financial year end, project descriptions, technical records and an expenditure breakdown. Separate routine delivery work from experiments where the technical outcome could not be determined in advance. Registration and the tax calculation are distinct steps; both need consistent records.
For example, configuring a standard software integration does not become eligible just because it is new to your business. A documented experiment addressing an unresolved technical problem needs an assessment of its activities and evidence. This is an illustration, not a client case study or an eligibility decision.
Meet the accounting team or discuss your project and the scope of a quote.
FAQ
R&D tax incentive questions, answered
How much is the R&D tax incentive worth?
For eligible companies with aggregated turnover below $20 million, the refundable offset is the company tax rate plus 18.5 percentage points: 43.5% if the company tax rate is 25%. Companies controlled by income-tax-exempt entities cannot use this refundable component. Other eligible companies use a non-refundable offset with intensity-based premiums. Expenditure above $150 million receives the company tax rate without the additional premium.
What is the R&D registration deadline?
You must register your R&D activities with AusIndustry within 10 months of your year end — for a standard 30 June year, that means 30 April the following year. Miss it and the year’s claim is generally lost, so if you think last year’s work might qualify, check well before April.
Is my software development eligible for the R&D tax incentive?
Sometimes — and this is the area with the most grey. Routine development, configuration and bug-fixing are not eligible; work that involved genuine technical uncertainty resolved through systematic experimentation can be. The test is about how you worked and what records show it, not how innovative the product feels. We assess honestly — including telling you when a claim is not supportable.
What records do I need for an R&D claim?
Keep records as the work happens: the technical question, hypotheses, experiments, observations and conclusions, alongside staff time and expenditure records. The records should connect claimed activities to eligible costs and explain what was known before the experiment. A project description written only at tax time may not provide enough support for the claim.
Can I claim both a government grant and the R&D tax incentive for the same project?
Often both can apply to one project, but not doubled on the same dollar — grant-funded expenditure generally triggers clawback adjustments to the R&D benefit. The interaction is calculable, and it is exactly the kind of question to settle before accepting a grant, not at tax time.
Why use a Gold Coast R&D tax specialist rather than a national R&D firm?
The R&D claim has to reconcile with your financial statements and company tax return, and we prepare those too. One Southport team handles the eligibility review, the AusIndustry registration and the R&D tax schedule, so expenditure, payroll records and the offset all agree. Gold Coast clients can meet us in person while the work is happening, not only at year end.
Do I need a consultant, and what do you charge?
You can prepare your own registration and claim. If you want assistance, ask us for a written scope covering activity eligibility, registration, the tax schedule and record review. The quote should identify whether follow-up questions or an audit response are included. Using a consultant does not remove the company’s responsibility for an accurate, supported claim.