MAINSTREET - Research & Development Tax Credit Assessment

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Business Basics

Section 1 of 5 · General Information

Legal Business Name *

Required

EIN / Tax ID

Primary Contact Name *

Required

Role / Title *

Required

Email Address *

Valid email required

Phone Number *

Required

Entity Type *

Required

Tax Year Being Assessed *

Required

State of Incorporation *

Required

Year Business Founded *

Required

Primary Industry / Business Activity *

Required

Who prepares your business taxes?

CPA Firm Internal Accountant DIY / Software Not yet filed

Has the business been acquired or undergone a significant ownership change in the past 3 years?

Yes No In Progress

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Payroll & Financials

Section 2 of 5 · Key Financial Inputs

Why this matters: The R&D credit is calculated primarily on wages paid to employees performing qualified activities. Accurate payroll data is the single biggest driver of your credit estimate.

Total W-2 Payroll (Tax Year) *

If unsure, this can be an estimated amount. Can be found on your W-3 tax form with your W-2s, or on your annual payroll summary report.

Required

Total Number of W-2 Employees

Estimated % of employee time spent on R&D / technical / product work

Include: engineers, scientists, developers, lab staff, production/process improvement staff

Annual Gross Revenue (Tax Year)

Did the business have a federal income tax liability this year? *

Required

Did you receive any government grants, SBIR/STTR awards, or funded research contracts during the tax year?

Yes No Unsure

Grant / Contract Details

Approx. total amount, project covered, and funding source

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R&D Eligibility — The 4-Part Test

Section 3 of 5 · IRS Qualification Criteria

The IRS requires all four criteria to be met for activities to qualify. Answer honestly — partial qualification still generates significant credits.

1. Permitted Purpose — Does your work aim to create or improve a product, process, software, formula, invention, or technique?

Examples: new product design, improved manufacturing process, internal software systems, algorithms, formulations

Yes — clearly Yes — partially Unsure No

2. Technological in Nature — Is the work based on principles of engineering, computer science, biology, chemistry, or physics?

This doesn't require a PhD — production line optimization, software development, and food science all qualify

Yes — clearly Yes — partially Unsure No

3. Elimination of Uncertainty — Were you trying to resolve a technical uncertainty (could it fail, or was the outcome unknown upfront)?

Examples: "We weren't sure if the new process would achieve the target yield" or "We didn't know if the algorithm would scale"

Yes — clearly Yes — partially Unsure No

4. Process of Experimentation — Did you evaluate alternatives, run tests, iterate on prototypes, or use trial-and-error?

Examples: A/B testing, prototype builds, lab experiments, iterative design sprints, simulation runs

Yes — clearly Yes — partially Unsure No

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R&D Activity Details

Section 4 of 5 · Business Components & Expenses

What types of R&D activities does your business perform? *

Select all that apply

New product development Process / production improvement Software / algorithms (internal use) Software / algorithms (sold to customers) Formula / formulation R&D Prototype / testing / QA Engineering design Other

Who owns the intellectual property from this R&D work? *

We own all IP Mixed Third party / client owns it Unsure

Note: You may still qualify even in mixed-IP arrangements. An advisor will clarify.

Briefly describe your primary R&D project(s) for this tax year *

Plain English is fine — e.g. "We developed a new gluten-free cookie formulation that required 6 months of kitchen trials" or "We built an internal inventory optimization algorithm from scratch."

Please provide a brief description

US-Based Employees Performing or Supervising Qualified R&D Activity

List employees whose roles involve qualifying R&D work. This is used to calculate your Qualified Research Expenses (QREs). Add as many as apply.

First & Last Name Job Title % of Time on R&D (Est.)

Did you incur supply or material costs specifically tied to R&D activities?

Yes No Unsure

Estimated R&D Supply / Material Costs

Did you hire any US-based contractors or third-party firms to perform R&D on your behalf?

Yes No

Estimated Contractor / Vendor R&D Spend

Only 65% of contractor costs are included in the R&D credit calculation

Did you pay any US-based Cloud Computing or Server Hosting expenses?

Examples: AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, DigitalOcean, dedicated servers used in R&D development or testing

Yes No Unsure

Estimated Cloud / Server Hosting Costs

Do you have documentation supporting your R&D activities? (Select all that apply)

Payroll records Project notes / lab notebooks Engineering drawings / specs Prototype / test records Vendor / supply invoices Prior tax returns None yet

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Prior Years & Next Steps

Section 5 of 5 · History & Engagement Preferences

Have you claimed R&D tax credits in prior years?

Yes — multiple years Yes — one year No — first time Unsure

Is your company a Startup or Qualified Small Business (QSB)?

Yes No

Startups with under $5M revenue can apply R&D credits against payroll taxes — a major cash benefit even with no income tax liability.

How did you hear about MainStreet?

Name of CPA / Accountant or Firm

Preferred next step

Schedule a credit review call Get estimate first Connect with my CPA Just submitting for now

Any additional context or questions for the team?

Unlock Your R&D Tax Credit
— Before It's Too Late

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Assessment Received!

Unlock Your R&D Tax Credit— Before It's Too Late

Ready to Submit Your Assessment?

Assessment Received!

Unlock Your R&D Tax Credit
— Before It's Too Late