Oct 21, 2024
Discover Zeynep Çetintaş, our first innoAthlete—living passion & excellence. How innoscripta’s program empowers employees to achieve their dreams.
Today, we are proud to introduce Zeynep Çetintaş, our first innoAthlete. Zeynep is a Recruiting Specialist in our Istanbul office and impresses not only with her professional skills but also with her personal dedication. In addition to her work at innoscripta, Zeynep trains three hours every day to realize her dream: becoming the European Kickboxing Champion. She embodies the values that are important to us at innoscripta – excellence and passion.
In this spirit, we launched the innoAthlete program. With this new initiative, we provide our employees a platform to show what’s possible when you work hard and pursue your goals with determination. The program supports and promotes colleagues who, through their dedication and commitment, become role models – both professionally and personally.
The innoAthlete program reflects our company’s values. It demonstrates that success is not only achieved through professional competence but also through personal dedication and passion. At innoscripta, we believe that great achievements are built on a combination of hard work and the pursuit of perfection. Zeynep is the perfect example of putting these values into action.
We are proud to support Zeynep on her journey and are excited to give her, as part of the innoAthlete program, a platform to share her story with the world.
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Aug 08, 2025
Patents and their impact on Research Allowance in Germany
What is a patent? What could be patented? These are the common questions in the mind of stakeholders of a company with R&D projects and innovations. In Germany, the patent is part of the industrial property right that grants the holder the exclusive right to use their innovation. The answer to what could be patented is broad as it is not limited to any type of invention, sectors of organisations or their size, but will be granted based on the newness, non-obviousness and industrial applicability of the invention. To get an invention patented the application must be sent to the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt, DPMA). The applicant needs to disclose the details of the invention including its technical specifications, and should ensure transparency in a way that a specialist should be able to use or reproduce it without the need for any further information. It is not possible to add additional information after the submission of the application. The application for the patent can be submitted in two ways, either by submitting in writing via a patent information centre or electronically via DPMAdirektPro software.After the application submission, there is a statutory examination process to determine the eligibility of the invention to be patented. The detailed examination process includes compliance assessment, classification under the International Patent Classification (IPC), and validation of the novelty of the invention. Once an invention is patented, it has a validity up to 20 years, subject to the renewal charges starting from the third year. It will be published in the Gazette (Patentblatt) and the information will also be available on websites such as EPATISnet and DPMAregister.The Forschungszulage, is a tax incentive programme focusing on promoting R&D projects and innovations. Here, the financial assistance is given as tax credits to the companies with qualified research projects and it is granted on the basis of the eligible R&D costs incurred for the project. A project's eligibility is defined by analysing its aspects based on criteria outlined in Frascati Manual, which mandates that the features like novelty, creativity, uncertainty, and systematic approach be present in it. The validation to determine whether a project qualifies as R&D is handled by BSFZ (Bescheinigungsstelle Forschungszulage), and it is the first step in the process of claiming the research allowance to acquire a BSFZ certificate which states the qualification of the project as an R&D project. And, the second step being claiming the research allowance by submitting the application to the tax office. Why is a patent important for R&D?A patent is a protection given to the inventor or company to exclusively use their work and avoid the duplication or replication of it by others. Germany follows a strict criteria to grant patents to any inventions and only technical inventions are eligible. To be eligible to receive the patent, an invention is required to meet the following criteria under Section 1(1) of the Patent Act:Novelty: The invention needs to be brand new and delineable to the state of the art. It should not be publicly disclosed before through written or oral descriptions, or exhibitions. Inventive steps: The invention should not be obvious and it must have a technical advancement from what is already known.Industrial applicability: The invention should be usable in any industry with the scope to be reproducible. These aspects closely align with the criteria that defines an R&D project regarding Research Allowance. For example, the Frascati Manual states that R&D work must generate new knowledge, should not be routine work, and include uncertainties.Novelty as a Criterion: For Patent and Forschungszulage ClaimNovelty is a common concept in both, patent and Forschungszulage approval. For patents, the way novelty is defined is very strict and global. The application of a particular invention for patent will be denied if the same type of knowledge is available to the public anywhere in the world by any means before the date of filing the application.In the Forschungszulage application process, the novelty is assessed in the framework of business enterprise. Based on the specifications in the Frascati Manual, an R&D project must generate novel knowledge which is not already present in the industry and new to the business. Reproducing existing work and known results and reverse engineering are not considered novel. A new application or use case for an existing technology with all its associated risks and uncertainties could be eligible for the Forschungszulage, even if it is not patentable. Overall, the eligibility standards for the Forschungszulage are lower than those for patents.How Does a Patent Add Value During the BSFZ Review Process?Even though a patent is not mandatory in the process of claiming the Forschungszulage, it can add significant value to the project during the BSFZ review. Following are a few reasons:Proven Novelty: A patent proves the novelty of an invention satisfying a core R&D criterion. There will not be any room for doubt of the newness of the project that has received a patent by fulfilling all the complex requirements. Inventive step confirmation: One of the conditions to receive the patent for an invention is its non-obviousness. This closely aligns with the criteria of creativity and systematic approach, proving the project is qualified as R&D. Evident systematic documentation: The application for the patent itself requires detailed and accurate documentation and this reflects positively while seeking research allowance and resulting in a successful application. Note: The cost incurred to apply for a patent is not eligible to be added under the expenses in the Forschungszulage claim. The eligible expenses are purely the ones incurred for research and development activities and not any administrative costs. Practical recommendations for companies regarding patents and Research AllowanceTo leverage the best out of patent and research allowance, the companies can consider these practical steps:1. Maintaining the confidentiality of the invention: Before filing for the patent, the details of the invention need to be kept confidential including in presentations or internal meetings with all stakeholders to maintain its novelty and avoid duplication due to early disclosure. At this stage, applying simultaneously for the research allowance and a patent can be beneficial, as it helps companies to navigate the complex documentation in a single process, saving a considerable amount of time. 2. Using patent documents to support Forschungszulage claim: Similar to Research Allowance application, patent application needs detailed technical documentation and this structured information can be strong evidence while claiming the allowance as it reflects the systematic approach and reproducibility of the research work during BSFZ review. 3. Applying early for the Research Allowance:Even though it is possible to claim the research allowance retroactively for up to four years, applying early has its own advantages, such as faster approval. This can help a company maintain liquidity and budget for new innovation.Conclusion: A patent is a strong ally but not a requirementAlthough a patent is not mandatory to claim Forschungszulage, it can add substantial value during the application process by demonstrating the eligibility of the R&D project highlighting elements such as novelty and systematic approach. Ultimately, companies need to consider patents as a strategic ally to research allowance, not essential, but potentially can contribute value when integrated carefully with research objectives and timelines.
Jul 30, 2025
How to document R&D hours for a successful Forschungszulage claim
Forschungszulage (Research Allowance) is the tax incentive launched by the government of Germany to promote innovation by providing financial assistance to R&D projects. The programme allows companies with qualified research activities to claim up to 25% (35% for SMEs) of their eligible expenses, mainly the personnel expenditures through the R&D tax credits. To substantiate the claims, it is mandatory to produce accurate and transparent documentation of working hours using the timesheets meant for the R&D activities. Suggested Reading: To learn more about how the Research Allowance works and who is eligible, see our comprehensive Research Allowance guide for 2025.Maintaining a timesheet is not just a formality, it is a significant document that depicts the time spent by the human resources on the project while claiming the research allowance. As per the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) and BSFZ, only the hours logged in the documents are eligible for the claim, and the data which is omitted or misrepresented will not be considered during the Forschungszulage application.To ensure the compliance of the applications with guidelines and aid auditing, the BMF has established an official timesheet template. The template is designed to give transparent guidelines for the applicant in order to log their data in the correct format by checking all the mandatory fields. The statutory requirements do not mandate the applicant to follow this template but it is designed with alignment to GoBD. In case the company has multiple projects running simultaneously, it is needed to maintain separate timesheets for each of them.Components of the official timesheetThe timesheet outlines the documentation of the effective working hours in a standardised structure for the companies. There are two main sections in the timesheet showing annual working hours and monthly working hours.1. Annual time calculationThe various aspects of the yearly time recording are ascertained on the basis of the following main points.Contractual working hours: The total effective hours for the year are calculated as weekly hours x 52 weeks. Deductions: Public holidays, vacation days taken by personnel, sick leave, and maternity or paternity leave are subtracted when calculating the effective working hours, as a basis for calculating the percentage of hours spent on R&D out of the total annual working time.2. Documentation of R&D activitiesMonthly data: Over the course of the month, the time spent on each day by each individual performing the tasks should be recorded separately.Project identification: If a company runs multiple R&D projects simultaneously, it is required to maintain different timesheets for the projects. One timesheet is meant for one particular project certified by BSFZ.Details of human resources: While entering the data, the details of the personnel performing the activities need to be recorded clearly including their names, designations, type of R&D work they conducted.Excluded activities: The activities such as administration, management, and logistics are not qualified to be added in the timesheet meant to claim research allowance.Approvals: The data mentioned in the timesheets need to be confirmed and approved by the personnel and project lead by verifying the information and authorised with their signatures.3. Additional guidelinesThreshold: Of the total hours spent on R&D project activities, only up to 40 hours per week, i.e., 2080 hours per year for an individual is eligible, even if the employee works overtime on the project.Retention of documents: Timesheets need to be stored and produced on request of verification of claim and future audits. Reasons why to maintain an accurate timesheetMaintaining an authentic and verifiable timesheet confirms the claim from the company is:Transparent with traceable documents and is audit-proofClarity in terms of the claim based on qualified expenses and effective application.Compliance with the claim and process with the guidelines of BSFZ and Tax office.ConclusionThe Forschungszulage programme offers the financial advantage to the small and large organisations alike, and it's in the hands of the company to make the best out of this government initiative. Following accurate documentation with transparency and verifiable records is one of the important steps in the application process. The timesheet provides clarity to the companies about what information needs to be recorded with regard to the human resources involved in the R&D project and how it is processed under the claim for research allowance. Having an authentic documentation process and effective application helps a company to acquire financial aid in the form of tax credits and elevate their R&D efforts to promote innovation. Connect with innoscripta to know more about the efficient R&D project documentation process and explore user-friendly time tracking software platform to successfully apply for Forschungszulage.
