As had been anticipated, the ATO will be requiring adjustments to R&D claims that contain salaries reimbursed by the JobKeeper Scheme.
Companies lodging FY20 R&D claims who have also received the JobKeeper stimulus must carefully review and adjust R&D claims where necessary.
The basis of this need for adjustment is the ATO’s position that companies are not deemed to incur salary expenditure at their own financial risk where such costs are being reimbursed by the Job Keeper Scheme.
Draft Taxation Determination TD 2020/D1 (Income tax: notional deductions for research and development activities subsidised by JobKeeper payments) was released by the ATO on 27 July. Notable extracts from the draft TD include:
This treatment from the ATO seems reasonable, and in accordance with our expectations.
Should you require any assistance with the relevant adjustments, please contact our office on 1800 792 676.