Tax incentives for research offer small and medium-sized companies in particular incentives to invest in research and development.
The web event on this topic highlighted these and other funding opportunities that companies can take advantage of.
What characterizes the German mechanical and plant engineering industry is its high innovative strength. However, medium-sized companies in particular quickly reach the limits of their research and development activities, both in terms of personnel and finances.
Against this background, speaker Dr.-Ing. Beate Stahl explained why it is worthwhile for mechanical engineering companies to participate in research funding. Research funding offers exchange with project partners (universities, companies), access to national and international networks and partial funding. Industrial Collective Research (IGF), collaborative research and tax incentives for R&D were presented as the three basic funding instruments.
The IGF pursues a bottom-up approach, is industry-driven, pre-competitive and open to all topics. However, the IGF does not provide direct support for companies in terms of sectors and through processing by research institutions, but serves to train young engineers (doctoral theses, etc.). Collaborative research is state-funded, topic-oriented and serves to network industry and science. Donors here can be the federal government or the EU.
Speaker Ulrich Meißner then turned his attention specifically to tax incentives for R&D. According to a VDMA survey, tax incentives for research, which were introduced in 2020, are now the number one funding instrument used by member companies. This can be summarized as follows:
1. What is funded? Personnel costs for basic research, industrial research, experimental development Material costs: Limited to certain
fixed assets Contract research (only 70% of the fee)
2. Who is supported? Income taxpayers of all sizes in Germany (tax concessions)
3. How much is funded? Funding rate 25% of the assessment basis; 35% for SMEs
4. Maximum funding: EUR 2.5 million per group of companies/year
5. How is funding provided? Step 1: Application for R&D certification at the Research Grant Certification Office ( BSFZ ) (https://www.bescheinigung-forschungszulage.de) + Step 2: Application for research grant at the tax office
Further information
– https://www.vdma.org/forschungsfoerderung
Organizer
The event was offered by ProduktionNRW. ProduktionNRW is the cluster for mechanical engineering and production technology in North Rhine-Westphalia and is organized by VDMA NRW. ProduktionNRW sees itself as a platform for networking, informing and marketing companies, institutions and networks with each other and along the value chain. Significant parts of the services provided by ProduktionNRW are funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.