Concepts and Strategy for an SR&ED Practitioner A Primer to the Canada Revenue Agency's Scientific Research and Experimental Development Program

This book has been written and designed to help individuals gain a better understanding of the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) program and its filing requirements. In my work as a professional SR&ED consultant, the author often encounters individuals who are working in the field and/or are involved with SR&ED claim preparation who need to develop a more detailed knowledge of the program and its requirements. Misunderstandings related to the program’s ever-evolving requirements and the state of the art in a specific field of science or technology can lead to lengthy, stressful, and uncomfortable meetings with technical and financial reviewers. The SR&ED program is not a simple tax schedule; it is a complex dance among intellectual property, engineering, and accounting that should not be taken lightly. Several large and fundamental evolutions to the policy and procedures related to this program have become effective in the last few years. Also during this time, the number of annual claimants has risen dramatically. Together, the new claimants and requirements have spawned a requirement for the CRA to hire more dedicated staff to support the program. The CRA is tackling the issues related to program compliance through impressive education and continuing-education campaigns. However, the CRA staff faces several restrictions relating to the numbers of people that they can reach when compounded with their normal workload. It is the goal of this book to further the education of the CRA through targeting streams of new graduates and professionals looking to learn more about the program. It is the authors sincere hope that this knowledge will increase the average quality of an SR&ED claim with respect to technology, finance, and legal matters. This increase in knowledge will result in fewer questionable SR&ED claims and thus fewer uncomfortable situations with the CRA. This work is intended to save Canadians time, money, and frustration with respect to our premier federal innovation-incentive program. The book details topics related to program eligibility, sufficient documentation, technical writing, financial aspects, how to file a claim, and how to survive a review.