Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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115. To ask the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the report published by an organisation (details supplied); if his officials have examined the report; his policy proposals to address the issues identified in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31490/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The report, 'A Future Tax Strategy to Grow Irish Indigenous Exports', commissioned by the Irish Tax Institute, has been examined by my officials in the Department of Finance.

Among the concerns raised were that the R&D Tax Credit has a low take-up among SMEs and that there are barriers to the administration process. This was identified by a survey of SMEs for the report.

The central purpose of the R&D Tax Credit is to encourage companies to undertake high-value add R&D activity in Ireland, thereby supporting jobs and investment here. The principal benefit of the R&D Tax Credit is that it provides a tax credit at a 25%, entailing that for every €4 spent on qualifying R&D, a tax credit of €1 will be provided to the company.

I would note that the R&D tax credit is a standard measure available to all companies. However, I am cognisant that the administration process may be an issue for some smaller companies. In this regard, the Revenue Commissioners, in conjunction with relevant stakeholders, have established an R&D discussion group which will look at the administrative burdens faced by those engaging with the R&D Tax Credit.

Furthermore, with a view to streamlining the audit of R&D claims for small businesses, the Revenue Commissioners have stated in a recent e-Brief that they will not challenge the claim under the "science test" in certain circumstances. The new practice will apply to small or micro businesses where:

- an IDA / Enterprise Ireland R&D grant has been approved in respect of the project;

- the credit claim in any year is no more than €50,000;

- the project is undertaken in a qualifying field of science or technology.