Free tool
R&D Tax Credit Calculator
Estimate your federal R&D credit under the Alternative Simplified Credit (ASC) method — and how much pre-revenue startups can claim back as cash against payroll taxes.
Qualified Research Expenses
Current tax year. Contractors auto-reduced to 65% per §41(b)(3).
Base Period & Payroll
Leave priors at $0 if you've never claimed — startup 6% rate applies.
FICA Cash Back
Startup ASC: 6% × current QRE
Estimate only. Cap of $500,000/year applies to the FICA offset election. Offset begins the quarter after Form 6765 is filed and any unused amount carries forward to subsequent quarters. Activities must meet the §41(d) Four-Part Test. Consult a CPA before filing.
How the R&D credit works for startups
The federal R&D credit (IRC §41) rewards US-based qualified research. Most startups use the Alternative Simplified Credit (ASC): 14% of QREs above 50% of the prior 3-year average. With no prior QRE history, the rate is 6% of current-year QREs.
Qualified Small Business (QSB) payroll offset
A common misconception: the credit does not reduce FUTA. Under §41(h), a QSB (under $5M gross receipts this year and no gross receipts more than 5 years ago) can elect to apply up to $500,000/year of its R&D credit against the employer’s share of Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) on Form 8974, beginning the quarter after Form 6765 is filed. Unused offset carries forward to future quarters.
Qualifying activities (Four-Part Test, §41(d))
- Permitted purpose: new or improved product, process, software, formula.
- Technological in nature: relies on hard sciences or engineering.
- Elimination of uncertainty about capability, methodology, or design.
- Process of experimentation: systematic evaluation of alternatives.
Estimates only. Always have a CPA or R&D study substantiate before filing.