Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 February 2026
356. Deputy Catherine Callaghan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the number of companies that were eligible for tax credits arising from research and development for each of the years 2021 to 2025 inclusive; the number of companies that successfully availed of this support; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13988/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra357. Deputy Catherine Callaghan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the budget allocation for companies to avail of tax credits under research and development for each of the years 2021 to 2025; the amount paid from that budget at the end of each calendar year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13989/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 356 and 357 together.
The Research and Development (R&D) tax credit provides companies with a tax credit equal to 35 per cent of the qualifying expenditure incurred on qualifying R&D activities. The R&D tax credit, which was first introduced in 2004, is a broad measure available to companies within the charge to Irish tax who incur expenditure in the carrying on of qualifying R&D activities.
The R&D tax credit is a demand led incentive and therefore the cost will depend on the level of qualifying R&D expenditure that is incurred each year by companies in the carrying on of the R&D activities. Given the cyclical nature of R&D activities this cost will fluctuate each year. In line with other types of tax reliefs it is claimed on a self-assessment basis on the corporation tax return. As with other types of tax reliefs (e.g. capital allowances) there is no formal budget from which the R&D tax credit is drawn down when companies avail of the R&D tax credit.
The Revenue publish detailed statistical data on the R&D tax credit regime as part of the Research & Development (“R&D”) Tax Credit Statistics document, which is available on Revenue’s website, and can be accessed at the following link: www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/documents/statistics/tax-expenditures/r-and-d-tax-credit-statistics.pdf
The number of companies that were eligible for and successfully availed of the R&D tax credit is outlined in the table below for the years 2021 to 2023. Data in respect of 2024 will be published in Q2 2026, while data in relation to 2025 will be published in Q2 2027. The time frame for publishing this data reflects corporation tax return filing deadlines and the time required to prepare data for statistical analysis.
|
Year |
Number of Companies |
|
2021 |
1,629 |
|
2022 |
1,631 |
|
2023 |
1,804 |
