Who We Help · Startups & SMEs
Small teams can run institution-grade research.
Structured research is not a big-company luxury. It is a method — and methods scale down.
You do not need a research department. You do not need a lab. You need a well-framed question, a designed experiment, and records kept as the work happens. That is what we bring, at a scale a small team can actually use.
The barrier to starting has never been lower
Here is the practical part. Normally, you need at least $20,000 of eligible R&D expenditure in an income year to claim the R&D Tax Incentive offset.
But eligible R&D expenditure paid to a registered Research Service Provider (RSP) — one that is not your associate, for work in a field the RSP is registered for — is not subject to that $20,000 minimum threshold.
In plain terms: a small, well-run research project conducted through an RSP can potentially access the incentive from the first dollar. For a startup or SME, that changes the maths of starting real research.
| Usual route (in-house or non-RSP) | Via a registered RSP | |
|---|---|---|
| $20,000 minimum-spend threshold | Applies — below $20,000 of eligible spend, the offset generally cannot be claimed that year | Does not apply to spend with a registered, non-associate RSP in its registered fields |
| Small project (e.g. under $20,000) | Usually cannot access the offset for that year | May be claimable — subject to the activities meeting the R&DTI eligibility rules |
| Eligibility of the activities | Self-assessed by you | Still self-assessed by you — the RSP route does not change this |
The honest boundary: the R&D Tax Incentive is self-assessed. Using an RSP removes the minimum-spend barrier — it does not make your activities automatically eligible. You still assess your activities against the R&DTI criteria, and confirm your tax position with a registered tax agent. Read more: how self-assessment works.
Sound familiar?
No research team
Your engineers are shipping product. Nobody has time to design experiments or keep evidence records — so the hard questions stay unanswered.
A research office, on subscription →Tight budget
You cannot commit six figures to find out whether an idea holds. You need a small, contained first step with a clear answer at the end.
Feasibility diagnostic →New to structured R&D
The founding team is technical but has never run hypothesis-driven research with controls, versioned records and defensible findings.
See the method →The recommended path
Start small. Scale only when the evidence says so.
Feasibility diagnostic (1–2 weeks)
A short, low-commitment engagement that frames your question, checks whether it is genuinely researchable, and scopes what an answer would cost.
A small research project
One contained investigation, designed and documented properly — enough to produce a real finding without betting the budget.
Scale as needed
If the results justify it, grow into a research roadmap or an ongoing research office subscription. If they don't, you stop — with a documented answer instead of a lingering maybe.
Start with a low-commitment diagnostic
One to two weeks. A framed question, an honest feasibility read, and a clear view of what comes next — before you commit to anything bigger.
Start with a low-commitment diagnosticGeneral information only — not tax, financial or legal advice. R&D Tax Incentive eligibility, thresholds and rates depend on your specific activities and circumstances and can change. The incentive is self-assessed; expenditure to a registered Research Service Provider is exempt from the $20,000 minimum-expenditure threshold only where the RSP is not your associate and the work falls within its registered research fields, and using an RSP does not make activities automatically eligible. Always confirm current rules with the Australian Government (business.gov.au and ato.gov.au) or a registered tax agent.