Key Takeaways:
1) Look for technical, financial and compliance experience relevant to your business
2) Ask how the advisor assesses activities and allocates expenditure
3) Find out what records you should keep and when to create them
4) Confirm who handles each stage of the claim and what review support is included
5) Understand the fee structure and the scope of the engagement before signing
Choosing an R&D Tax Incentive advisor involves more than comparing fees. The advisor needs to understand your technical work, assess your expenditure and help you prepare a claim that is supported by appropriate records.
The right questions can help you compare firms and understand what support they provide. Here are eight capabilities to look for.
1. Technical understanding of your work
Your advisor should be able to understand the technical work your team performed and ask questions about what was uncertain, what you tested and what you learned.
Industry experience can help. Software development, biotechnology and advanced manufacturing each involve different technical processes and terminology. But experience in your sector should support a careful assessment of your activities, not replace it.
Ask who will speak with your technical team and how they decide which activities may meet the R&D Tax Incentive requirements. Rimon’s overview of how the R&D Tax Incentive works explains the main stages of the program.
2. Careful financial analysis
Your advisor should explain how they identify eligible expenditure and separate it from costs relating to other business activities. Depending on your circumstances, this may involve reviewing employee time, contractor costs, software and cloud costs, materials and other expenses.
Ask how expenditure is linked to the activities registered with AusIndustry, how shared costs are allocated and what records support the calculations. The ATO’s record-keeping guidance explains the records businesses need to support their expenditure and apportionment methods. Rimon also explains its approach to calculating R&D benefits.
3. A clear review process
Ask whether the firm reviews the technical and financial material before lodgement, who performs that review and how any issues are resolved.
An internal review is a useful quality check, but it does not guarantee that a claim will be accepted or prevent a review by a regulator. You can also check that the advisor understands the roles of the ATO and AusIndustry.
4. Help with record keeping
Ask what records your business should keep and how the advisor will help you identify gaps. Depending on the work, useful records may include experiment plans, technical reports, test results, timesheets, project records, emails, invoices and payroll information.
The ATO says businesses must create contemporaneous records of their R&D activities. Your usual business records may help, but you may need more detail to show what work was done and how the expenditure relates to it. Establishing a record-keeping process during the year can make it easier to support the claim later.
5. Support through each stage of the claim
Clarify what the engagement covers. The process may include assessing eligibility, preparing the AusIndustry activity registration, reviewing expenditure and preparing the R&D Tax Incentive Schedule for the company tax return.
Ask who is responsible for each stage and what information your team will need to provide. Rimon outlines its R&D claim process from initial assessment through to preparing the claim.
6. Support if your claim is reviewed
Ask what assistance is available if the ATO or AusIndustry asks questions about your claim, and whether that support is included in the engagement fee.
A well-prepared claim should be supported by records and a clear explanation of the activities and expenditure. However, no advisor can guarantee that a claim will not be reviewed or promise a particular review outcome. Confirm what the firm will do if a review occurs, including who will prepare responses and communicate with the regulator.
7. Transparent fees and scope
Ask how the advisor charges and exactly what services the fee covers. Find out whether technical preparation, financial analysis, lodgement and review support are included or charged separately. Get the scope and fee basis in writing.
8. Ongoing support as your business changes
Your activities, systems and costs may change from year to year. Ask how the advisor keeps you informed about relevant changes to the program and whether they can support you across multiple income years.
If you are considering proposed changes to the program, check whether they are law or still under consideration. Rimon’s article on proposed R&D Tax Incentive reforms discusses the September 2026 exposure draft.
How Rimon Advisory supports R&D claims
Rimon Advisory has dedicated Technical, Financial and Compliance Teams focused on government funding claims. The firm has completed more than 2,000 submissions and has more than 50 years of combined team experience.
Read more about why businesses choose Rimon Advisory for R&D Tax Incentive consulting. If you would like to discuss your business and its activities, you can contact Rimon Advisory or use the R&D eligibility checker.
FAQs about choosing an R&D Tax Incentive advisor
How does technical expertise affect a claim?
Technical understanding helps an advisor ask informed questions about the work, the uncertainty being investigated and the experiments performed. The activities still need to be assessed against the program requirements and supported by evidence.
What records should my business keep?
Keep records that help show what R&D activities were conducted, what was spent and how the expenditure relates to those activities. Depending on the work, this may include technical reports, experiment records, timesheets, contractor invoices and project-management records. The ATO provides further detail in its record-keeping guidance.
Can a start-up use the R&D Tax Incentive?
A start-up may be eligible if the entity, its activities and its expenditure meet the program requirements. Eligibility depends on the business’s circumstances. You can start with Rimon’s eligibility checker.
