In the case of Industry Research & Development Board v Unisys Information Services Australia, the Commissioner ruled in favour of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), finding that there was no intention to exclude the de minimis principle in the interpretation of sections 705-35 and 104-626 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997).
Background
Decision
The appeal will be dismissed with costs due to:
R&D activities don’t have to be highly innovative and involve a significant degree of technical risk to be eligible to claim. Activities that your business can claim under the R&D tax incentive do need to contain a component of these two elements, however in the example of this case, the activities may be “de minimis” – a latin term for “minimalist approach”.
Re Industry Research & Development Board v Unisys Information Services Australia Pty Ltd (formerly Synercom Australia Pty Ltd) [1997] FCA 777 (19 August 1997).