01 / Tell us about your development work.
We’ll start by getting to know your business. Tell us what your business develops or improves, which tax years you want to discuss, where the work happens, and who prepares your returns. Share a few examples of the technical work without feeling that you need to describe it in tax terminology.
On that call, we’ll discuss whether you need help reviewing activities, gathering records, or preparing a full study. We’ll need to examine the supporting information before calculating a credit.
If you are calling about a client, a brief description is enough to start. We’ll agree on the services needed and how to share records before you send confidential information.
02 / Agree on the work and who will handle it.
Before we begin, we agree on which entities, tax years, states, and services the engagement will cover. It should also identify the people who can answer technical and financial questions. Development work and accounting information often sit with different teams, so a shared contact plan matters.
Discuss the filing calendar and any existing credit work with your tax preparer. Prior calculations, amendments under consideration, or unanswered questions from an earlier review may affect what information needs to be gathered. The goal is to surface those issues before the preparation is well underway.
Confirm the deliverables and responsibilities in the engagement. Return filing, elections, and any work outside documentation and calculation preparation should be addressed explicitly. Timing and fees depend on the agreed work and should be discussed directly.
03 / Review your projects and expenses.
Begin with an inventory of projects and source information. Technical records describe what the team tried and learned. Financial records identify the related amounts and their accounting source. The preparation brings the two together without treating every project cost as qualifying by default.
A consistent project identifier can make this work much easier to follow. Use it in descriptions, schedules, and supporting folders. Keep source data separate from working schedules, explain adjustments, and retain a list of questions that need resolution.
Our documentation guide includes examples of records to discuss. The list can help you prepare, but the actual request should reflect your business rather than require every company to produce the same set of files.
04 / Calculate the credit and document the findings.
Your accountant should be able to follow how the study reached its conclusions. An activity narrative explains the work being evaluated. Expense schedules explain where the amounts came from. Calculation workpapers connect those inputs to the result for the relevant period and jurisdiction.
Open questions should remain visible until they are resolved. If the available records do not establish a fact, the preparation should not hide that uncertainty behind a general statement. Factual descriptions should be checked with people who know the work.
Federal and state schedules should be clearly distinguished. When a state review draws on the same project records, the documentation should still explain any state-specific treatment. This helps your tax team see both the shared foundation and the differences.
05 / Share the study with your tax team.
Before the file is handed over, confirm which version is ready for review and what questions remain. Your tax preparer should have the information needed to assess how the credit fits with the return, including relevant elections and utilization considerations.
Keep the completed work with the underlying records in an organized archive. A narrative without its supporting files is harder to use later. The IRS emphasizes the importance of documentation behind a research credit; maintaining that connection should be part of the process.
Use the review to identify practical improvements for the next period. A project closeout note, preserved test results, or a more consistent naming convention can be useful. The aim is to make the next review clearer while leaving the business team focused on its work.
Ready to discuss the process for your company? Call Paribus Advisors and tell us about your projects, the period you are considering, and your accounting team. We will start there.
More help with your R&D credit.
Explore how to prepare for your first study and what affects study fees. Paribus Advisors does not charge up-front fees; terms depend on your engagement.