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What You’ve Been Working On

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This helps us tailor the questions to your type of R&D.
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Unlock Your R&D Tax Credits in 2026

Innovative work in software, manufacturing, and beyond may qualify for one of the largest permanent incentives in the tax code. Here is how the federal R&D credit works in 2026.

  • Who Qualifies: Any U.S. business developing or improving products, processes, formulas, or software may qualify
  • Direct Savings: Dollar-for-dollar credit against federal income taxes typically worth 7% to 10% of qualified research expenditures
  • Long-Term Value: Unused credits can generally carry forward up to 20 years
  • Startup Benefits: Startups and qualified small businesses can also offset up to $500,000 per year in payroll taxes, providing vital, non-dilutive funding

The 2026 Landscape and Filing on Your Timeline

Navigating tax incentives and changing regulations can be overwhelming. However, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) has officially rolled back Section 174 capitalization rules. Businesses can once again benefit from full, immediate expensing of domestic research costs, reversing the restrictive amortization requirements of previous years.

Furthermore, R&D credits may generally be claimed on originally filed or amended returns under the standard statute of limitations. Certain retroactive elections created by the 2025 law carried their own separate deadlines; a qualified review can confirm which options remain open to your business.

The 2026 Landscape and Filing on Your Timeline

How We Work

Step 1

Calculate Expenses.

  • What You Will Do: Provide your W-2 Box 1 wages for U.S.-based employees or company owners, 65% of payments made to U.S.-based contractors, and costs for non-depreciable materials, tools, or web services used in development.
  • What We Will Handle: We will categorize expenses and create the nexus.
Step 2

Qualify Your Work.

  • What You Will Do: Work with us to confirm your activities involve developing or improving a product, process, formula, or software.
  • What We Will Handle: We will categorize expenses and create the nexus.
Step 3

Document the Claim

  • What You Will Do: Continue focusing on growing your business while we handle the heavy lifting.
  • What We Will Handle: We will generate IRS-compliant documentation and Form 6765. Every Occams study is built on TaxVantage.ai, our substantiation engine, producing audit-ready documentation to the expanded Form 6765 standard, with Section 280C credit-versus-deduction modeling included in every engagement.
Step 4

Monetize the Credits.

  • What You Will Do: Review the completed filings and prepare to offset your future income tax.
  • What We Will Handle: We coordinate directly with your CPA and payroll provider from start to finish to file returns.

Got a Questions?

Quick answers to your most common questions

Qualified Research Expenses (QREs) fall into three main categories: W-2 Box 1 wages for employees involved in technical work, 65% of payments made to U.S.-based contractors, and supplies or cloud computing services directly tied to development.

Not necessarily. Qualified small businesses and startups can elect to offset up to $500,000 annually against the employer portion of payroll taxes. For profitable companies, unused credits carry forward for up to 20 years to offset future tax obligations.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) rolled back Section 174 capitalization rules. Businesses can once again take advantage of full, immediate expensing for domestic research expenses rather than being forced into 5-year amortization schedules.

Yes. In most cases, R&D credits can be claimed retroactively on amended returns within the standard 3-year statute of limitations. A qualified review can determine which tax years remain open for your business.

To qualify, your development activity must meet four distinct requirements: a permitted purpose (improving functionality or performance), technological nature (grounded in computer, physical, or engineering sciences), elimination of technical uncertainty, and a structured process of experimentation.

There is no cost and no obligation for an initial evaluation. You will receive an estimated credit range and a feasibility review with an R&D tax specialist, with fees applying only if a formal study moves forward.