If you already have approval, however your activities materially change during the approval period, or you are seeking approval for new core or supporting activities, this is the information you will need to know.
You must notify us by the due date if you have:
- a multi-year and single-year approval and your activities have materially changed during the approval period
- new core and supporting activities that you want approval for.
To extend your general approval applications or criteria and methodology application past the 3-year maximum approval period, you must file a new application.
When you file a new application to extend your approval period, tell us why you'e extending it.
You can also extend your 1 or 2 year application by re-opening your existing application. You need to tell us the reason for the approval period extension.
Varying an existing approval
If your circumstances change you can apply to add to or vary your existing approval. You must make the variation application by the approval due date for the first year the change applies to.
You can vary multi-year and single-year approvals to:
- add new research and development (R&D) activities
- amend the information you have already given us about an R&D project, when you first applied for general approval
- ask for a variation to the details of a project you got general approval for.
To vary R&D activities in projects you have already created, you will go back into your R&D workspace and choose the appropriate action (add project or edit project) from the 'I want to' menu in myIR.
Once you have submitted the information, a new approval request will be generated.
Material changes
You should seek a variation to an approved project if there is, or you expect there will be a material change to:
- scientific or technological uncertainty that is being investigated
- a core or supporting activity you are carrying out
- the nature of your supporting activities, or an increase in the number of support activities that you will be including in your claim.
A material change is one that is significant. In the context of in-year approval, the key issue is whether the changes could affect the eligibility of activities for the tax credit.
These are examples of material changes.
- The scientific and technological uncertainty you are investigating changed so much that the evidence you provided is no longer directly relevant.
- The nature of your core activity changed so that it calls into question whether it is directed towards resolving scientific or technological uncertainty. For example, you changed your approach from developing a prototype, to testing something which is already on the market.
You must also seek a variation if:
- you propose to claim for any new supporting activity
- there is any change in an activity and it might no longer meet the supporting activity tests.
The importance of advising us of material changes
You must notify us and ask for a variation if your R&D activities or the conditions of your approval materially change. Otherwise, you risk not being able to claim the credit for any R&D activities that have changed materially since you received the approval.
Due dates for notifications and applications for variation
Where there has been a material change in your activities or criteria and methodologies, you need to advise us by the due date. The due date is the last day of the third month after the end of the income year the material change occurred in.