Use the SR&ED calculator before budgeting for a refund
Explore an Ontario credit illustration, see how the amounts connect, and identify what your practitioner needs to verify.
A useful estimate starts with its assumptions
Our SR&ED calculator illustrates a defined Ontario company scenario. It shows potential credits, not a promised cash refund. Your actual result depends on the work, the expenditure rules and your company’s circumstances.
Don’t know which work needs assessment? Start with the eligibility review questions. The amount entered here needs a separate financial review.
When the illustration does not fit
Other provinces, non-CCPCs, associated companies, higher prior income or capital, different tax periods and capital expenditures need different inputs and rules. That does not mean your work is ineligible. We don’t apply this scenario’s answer to those cases.
Check the basis for the numbers
The current CRA federal credit guidance, Ontario innovation credit rules and Ontario R&D credit rules explain the rates and limits. The assistance policy explains interactions. Use the linked CRA guidance when reviewing the assumptions with your practitioner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I enter qualified expenditures rather than my full development budget?
A development budget includes costs that do not all receive the same tax treatment. The amount used here is the current expenditure base after its applicable qualification and adjustment rules have been checked. It is not total revenue, the project price or the full payroll bill. Keep the technical work and the related financial records available when reviewing that amount. A proxy amount needs its own salary base and cap checks. Contract payments and other funding also need attention before using a figure. If you only have a rough budget, treat it as a hypothetical input and ask your preparer to establish the supported amount. A calculation cannot establish which work or costs qualify.
Why does the federal calculation subtract Ontario credits first?
Provincial assistance can reduce the expenditure base used to calculate the federal credit. Adding a federal percentage and a provincial percentage to the same starting amount can therefore overstate the combined result. The illustration first calculates the Ontario innovation credit, then the Ontario research and development credit when that option is selected. It deducts those amounts before applying the federal rates. Choosing a different treatment for the non-refundable provincial credit changes that base. Other funding can require further adjustments before the amount is entered. Keep the assumptions and each calculation step with your estimate so your practitioner can compare them with the treatment used in the actual return.
Turn the questions into a project record
Bring one investigation to a walkthrough. We’ll show how to connect work notes, time, evidence and a narrative draft for your practitioner to review.