Governments in many countries provide support for research and development (R&D) with the aim of promoting R&D investment in their respective economies. For example the primary policy objective behind the Irish R&D Tax Credit is to increase business R&D in the State, as R&D can contribute to higher innovation and productivity.
Support can come in the form of direct support such as grant funding or other fiscal incentives, or indirect support such as tax incentives. I am aware that, in addition to Ireland, a number of countries in the European Economic Area (EEA) provide a tax credit or tax relief for the carrying out of R&D.
My Department does not have access to comprehensive information on the tax systems of other countries and, as such, I cannot comment on the availability of tax credits for R&D or the scope of these credits in other jurisdictions.
The Deputy may be interested in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Compendium of Information on R&D Tax Incentives. While this is not constrained to the countries of the EEA, it does provide general information on R&D supports across the members of the OECD. www.oecd.org/sti/rd-tax-stats-compendium.pdf.
