Important:
- To claim the R&D tax credit, you must submit a detailed statement online.
- In most instances, the last date for submitting a detailed statement was April 30 2010. Find out more
Get ready to file your detailed statement
What do I need to do?
You must file both an annual income tax return and a detailed statement for the year that the tax credit relates to. The detailed statement must be filed no later than 30 days after the due date for the income tax return.
The income tax return must include the total amount of R&D tax credit claimed in the R&D tax credit keypoint. In the supporting detailed statement, you must provide details of the eligible R&D activities undertaken and the eligible expenditure and/or depreciation incurred during the period.
The income tax return and the detailed statement may be completed and filed by different people. For example, a business may complete and file its own detailed statement, while its income tax return is prepared and lodged by a tax agent.
New Zealand legislation
Tax Administration Act 1994
- 68D
- 68E
Exempt income
These filing requirements also apply to entities with exempt income that would not normally file an income tax return.
Non-active companies
A non-active company that claims the tax credit ceases to be non-active, and must file an income tax return.
Electronic filing
Important
The detailed statement must be completed and filed electronically through our website.
To file electronically you need to register for online services.
Registering for online services does not mean pre-approval or eligibility to claim the R&D tax credit.
Tax agents: If you're going to file a detailed statement on behalf of a client, you must upgrade your online services user ID to access their detailed statement. Ask the online services support person or administrator in your office for help or contact the R&D tax credit team.
Due dates
The due date for your detailed statement is no later than 30 days after the due date for your income tax return, including any agent's extension of time arrangement.
Special rules apply to internal software development groups.
We will not accept late claims.
The tax credit will not become available until we receive the detailed statement and the associated income tax return.
Important
Different timeframes may apply when disputing an assessment.
In some circumstances, claimants will have more time than usual to finalise their R&D claim. If your dispute relates solely to an amount of R&D tax credit, you have two years from the due date of your income tax return to issue a notice of proposed adjustment (NOPA). Normal response periods apply in all other cases.
If you did not include an R&D tax credit amount in your 2008-09 income tax return and did not file a detailed statement, you also have two years from the due date of your income tax return to submit an R&D tax credit detailed statement. You must also submit a NOPA to request that your income tax return be reassessed to include your claim for an R&D tax credit.
If you lodged a detailed statement and included the R&D tax credit in your 2008-09 income tax return and now want to dispute the amount, you have two years from the due date of your income tax return to issue a NOPA which should include all the relevant information relating to your dispute.
New Zealand legislation
Tax Administration Act 1994
- 3(1) "response period"
- 68D
- 68E
Filing requirements for groups
For the purposes of the R&D tax credit, group filing of the detailed statement is required for internal software development groups.
Note
Partners are required to file individual statements including contributions to R&D done on behalf of a partnership and R&D on their own account.
Allocation and IRD numbers
The supporting detailed statement for internal software development groups that file as a group, must contain the IRD numbers of the members of the group, and show the allocation of the tax credit to each member.
Internal software development groups
People who undertake internal software development are required to group themselves with other developers under the same control. Find out more about the requirement for developers to group themselves with other developers under the same control.
The detailed statement must be filed by a nominated member of the group on behalf of all group members. The detailed statement will require the R&D tax credit to be allocated to individual members of the group.
The statement should include all eligible expenditure incurred by the members (not just software expenditure), while they were members of the group, whether or not it was undertaken with or for other members or as part of a larger project.
Due dates
The members of an internal software development group must file no later than 30 days after the latest date for any member of the group to file their income tax return. This includes any extension of time arrangement.
The exception to this rule is when an internal software development group files its return on time but the return is incorrect due to a simple oversight. We may grant an extension of time to file a corrected version. This exception is provided to deal with the situation where a return on behalf of a group unintentionally omits a group member with some eligible expenditure. This exception then avoids other group members losing their entitlement to a tax credit.
Groups of companies
Consolidated groups of companies that file a single income tax return may file a single detailed statement at the consolidated level.
Joint ventures (JVs)
An incorporated JV is a company and should file its company income tax return and supporting detailed statement.
Parties to an unincorporated JV must file their detailed statement at the individual level.
New Zealand legislation
Tax Administration Act 1994
- 68E
Find out more
- File your detailed statement online
- What you'll need to complete your detailed statement
- How the claim process works
- Receiving your tax credit
Date published: 04 Feb 2010
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