Insurance company technology advances may qualify for R&D tax credit
Insurance companies are committing significant research and development (R&D) resources to improve their services and the technology that connects them to agents, partners, and clients. These expenditures may qualify for significant savings under the R&D tax credit.

The industry is changing so rapidly, in fact, that companies are investing heavily in technology that may qualify for the research and development (R&D) tax credit.
The proprietary systems that insurance companies develop to analyze data, track policies, process claims, and improve the experience of portal users often require unique and flexible architecture. Many systems that support back-office functions, like billing and accounting, may also meet the additional eligibility requirements to qualify internal use software for the R&D tax credit, as they’re innovative, not commercially available, and their development involves significant economic risk.
Calculating the R&D tax credit
One of the most challenging aspects of properly calculating the R&D tax credit is accurately tracking the time and expenses that meet the eligibility requirements. The calculation is a complicated process of comparing current-year numbers to figures from the immediate three preceding years. (The official name of the program is the “Credit for Increasing Research and Development.”) However, it can yield significant tax advantages. For example, an insurance company that was able to demonstrate qualified research wages of $1.8 million and contract research expenses of $4.5 million, claimed a tax credit of $550,000 — a direct reduction of their tax owed for the year.
To learn more about how your insurance company’s potential eligibility for this important tax incentive, please contact one of our experts.