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The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is required to publish the following details of entities who claim the R&D Tax Incentive (R&DTI) from 1 July 2021:

  • the name of the entity claiming the R&DTI
  • the entity's Australian Business Number (ABN) or Australian Company Number (ACN)
  • the entity’s total R&D expenditure (total notional deductions claimed, minus any feedstock adjustments).

The ATO will begin publishing the reports in October 2024. The initial publication will include entities that claimed the R&DTI in their 2022 company tax return, and whose income year began on or after 1 July 2021.

Following this initial publication, the ATO will continue to publish updated reports on R&DTI entities each year – 2 years after the end of the financial year in which the claim was made.

The transparency report will contain 2 components:

  • the 'Report of data about Research and Development tax incentive entities', published on data.gov.au
  • the 'Research and development tax incentive – transparency report', with an analysis of the data, published on the ATO’s website.

Why is this happening?

Publication of this information is a legislated requirement which came into effect in July 2021, following reforms to the policy and administration of the R&DTI program.

These reports are part of the government’s broader approach to improve tax transparency and will help:

  • increase public accountability for R&D claimants, and
  • encourage voluntary compliance with the program.

Confidentiality of R&D activities

The laws that apply to the R&DTI continue to require the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) and the ATO to keep most details about an entity’s participation in the R&DTI program private.

This means:

  • the ATO’s report will not contain any information collected by DISR
  • DISR cannot disclose any information about a company’s R&D activities or any compliance action related to those activities, and
  • the ATO cannot disclose any information about a company’s R&D expenditure (beyond what is published in the transparency reports), or any compliance action related to it claiming the R&DTI.

Find out more about tax transparency reports

Report misuse of the R&DTI program

DISR takes allegations of misuse of the R&DTI program very seriously.

If you suspect or are aware of misuse of the program, you should lodge a complaint through our anonymous online fraud control portal.

This secure reporting platform is our preferred reporting method as it enables confidential, ongoing communication.

You can also report fraud via:

  • Phone: (02) 6213 6376 during business hours
  • Post: Fraud Integrity and Assurance Team, GPO Box 2013, Canberra ACT 2601

If your complaint relates to R&DTI expenditure claims you are also encouraged to contact the ATO through its Tax Integrity Centre on 1800 060 062, or by completing the online tip-off form.

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