R&D Tax Incentive 🇳🇿(NZ)

Developing something unique? If you’re building new technology, developing software, or solving technical challenges, you may be able to significantly reduce your tax or receive a cash refund.

The New Zealand Government offers a 15% tax credit for businesses undertaking eligible research and development.

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- What is the R&D Tax Incentive? Get up to 15% back on your R&D spend

The New Zealand Government offers a 15% tax credit for businesses undertaking eligible research and development.

If you’re building new technology, developing software, or solving technical challenges, you may be able to significantly reduce your tax or receive a cash refund.

At Granton, we help you prepare, document, and submit your RDTI claim so you maximise your return and stay compliant.

The Research & Development Tax Incentive (RDTI) is New Zealand’s primary programme for supporting innovation.

  • A 15% tax credit on eligible R&D expenditure
  • Potential cash refunds if your business is in a loss position
  • The ability to offset provisional tax earlier using expected credits
Find Out More (RDTI NZ Website)

Application Process,
Requirements & Key Dates

Step 1: Register

  • Register through Inland Revenue (myIR) to confirm your business eligibility.
  • This can be done at any time.

Step 3: Keep Records

  • Maintain contemporaneous records throughout the year, including:
  • Technical experiments and iterations
  • Development work and testing
  • Costs associated with R&D activities

Step 2: Apply (General Approval)

  • Submit a General Approval application outlining your R&D activities.
  • Available to all businesses, regardless of spend
  • Required for most applicants
  • Must be submitted within 3 months after your financial year ends. For a 31 March year-end, the deadline for FY26 is 30 June 2026

Step 4: Claim

  • Submit your RDTI Supplementary Return with Inland Revenue.
  • Due within 30 days after your tax return deadline
  • Includes calculation of eligible expenditure and tax credits
  • For FY26, the deadline is 30 April 2027

Are you an inventor? Creating unique products? Solving Problems? Filling Gaps in the Market? R&D comes in all shapes and sizes.

At Granton, we know how to best navigate the R&D Tax Incentive Program to ensure we submit a quality submission that properly reflects the innovation occurring in your business. We assist with these applications on a competitive success fee basis. 

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Eligibility Pop Quiz!

Could you be doing R&D? Answer these 5 questions in your head… 

1. Are you building a new product, process, or technology—not just using existing tools?
Innovation is key, not routine development work. You’re probably filling a gap in the market.
2. Have you spent money trying to solve a technical problem or uncertainty?
Think testing, trial and error, or figuring out something that’s never been done in your context.
3. Did you hit roadblocks that required experimenting with different approaches?
If success wasn’t guaranteed and you had to try things, that’s a strong sign.
4. Is your team designing, coding, engineering, or testing something in-house?
We want to make sure the bulk of the experimenting was done in New Zealand! Founders, devs, or tech leads doing the work themselves? That counts.
5. Did you document your work—like images, email exchanges, progress reports, test results, or project notes?
Having records helps show the work was structured and deliberate.

Said yes to the above? You could be eligible! 

Still unsure? Talk to us for free to help you figure it out. 

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What can you claim

  • Eligible expenditure includes (to the extent it relates to R&D):
  • Salaries and wages
  • Contractor costs
  • Overheads (rent, utilities, insurance, maintenance)
  • Materials and consumables
  • Foreign expenditure (capped at 10%)
  • Minimum spend: $50,000 per year

Other Key Details

  • Most businesses and industries qualify
  • Available to startups and established companies
  • If your business is in a loss position, you may also access the R&D Tax Loss Cash-Out programme.
  • Apply during or after your R&D activities
  • No limit on number of projects
  • Cap of $120 million annual claimable expenditure
  • No need to prove commercial success

- Why Choose Granton?

We’re not your typical consultants. We’re startup people—lean, fast, and focused on helping you win.

We specialise in assisting startups from all industries with the R&D Tax Incentive grants—this is what we do, day in and day out. Our team understands the requirements for eligibility like the back of their hands.

  • Trusted by startups, accountants, and lenders across Australia
  • More than 50 happy clients and growing
  • Audit-proof claims with 100% success rate
  • Transparent process, clear pricing, no surprises
Find Out More
With almost 10 years in the grant space as both a lawyer and consultant, I have enjoyed working with startups of all sizes and from all industries (tech being my favourite). I love helping founders continue building their dreams.
Debora Kocak Co-Founder - Granton

Seamless Process

At Granton, we try and simplify the process so that you (the busy startup owner) can focus on your business. Why should you do all the work? The process is efficient and pain-free. Here’s how we do it:

Eligibility Call (15 mins)

A quick chat to confirm your project qualifies and what you could claim.

Discovery Meeting (30 mins) & Submit Docs

Meet with a consultant to discuss your activities and submit financial documents.

Your work ends here.

We Do the Work

We prepare the full General Approval application outlining your R&D activities.—activities, evidence, calculations, and write-up. Note: Must be submitted within 3 months after your financial year ends

You’ll barely need to lift a finger.

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Don't pay upfront. Only pay if you win.

Running a startup is hard enough. We will help you apply for the R&D Tax Incentive with *nothing* upfront. We mean that.

Our pricing for New Zealand R&D Tax Incentive applications is simple. We offer to do the entire claim for just 30% of your R&D credits* (Discounts available for multi-year engagements) 

Book a Free Consultation

We keep it lean and predictable so you can focus on building not budgeting.

Client
Testimonial

We were struggling to navigate the complexities of R&D tax incentives until we found Granton. Their team's expertise and personalized approach made all the difference. Thanks to them, we secured the funding we needed to fuel our growth. Highly recommended.
C. DeVoy
Founder - Contraco

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Unlock the R&D Funding You Need.
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R&D tax advisory and claim preparation services are provided by Innovanz Pty Ltd, an independent specialist firm. Granton does not provide R&D tax advice or prepare R&D claims for New Zealand and acts solely as an introducer and referral partner. By booking this meeting you agree to our terms & conditions

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