Income Tax Incentives
Research Expense Credit
An individual, estate, trust, partnership, corporation, or limited liability company is allowed an income tax credit for conducting research in North Dakota. The credit is equal to a percentage of the excess of qualified research expenses in North Dakota over the base amount in North Dakota.
“Qualified research expenses” and “base amount” have the same meaning as defined under federal income tax law (I.R.C. § 41). The applicable percentage is 25% for the first $100,000 of excess expenses in a tax year. For excess expenses over $100,000 in a year, the applicable percentage for tax years 2007 through 2016 is:
- 20%, if qualified research in North Dakota first begins in 2007 through 2010, or
- 7½% for 2007, 11% for 2008, 14½% for 2009, and 18% for 2010 through 2016, if qualified research in North Dakota began before 2007, or
- 8%, if qualified research in North Dakota first begins after 2010.
For tax years after 2016, the applicable percentage for excess expenses over $100,000 in a year is 8% for all taxpayers, regardless of when qualified research first begins. For taxpayers who began qualified research in North Dakota before January 1, 2007, the maximum credit allowed in any year is $2 million, and any credit over this amount is not allowed in any year. In the case of a passthrough entity, such as a partnership or S corporation, the credit is passed through to its owners in proportion to their ownership interests.
The credit allowed to a corporation included in a consolidated North Dakota income tax return may be used to reduce the aggregate tax liability of all corporations in the return. This does not apply to tax credits received or purchased from other taxpayers.
An unused credit may be carried back three tax years and carried forward up to fifteen tax years. Subject to certain conditions, a taxpayer may sell, transfer, or assign up to $100,000 of its unused tax credit to another taxpayer if the taxpayer selling the credit is certified by the Department of Commerce Division of Economic Development and Finance to be a primary sector business with annual gross revenues of less than $750,000 that conducts qualified research in North Dakota for the first time after December 31, 2006.
