Funding Consulting:
R&D Tax Credit, ZIM & go-inno

In principle, any company subject to taxation in Germany can apply for funding — regardless of industry or legal form. For most programmes like ZIM or go-inno, the EU definition of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) applies: fewer than 250 employees and either annual turnover below €50 million or a balance sheet total below €43 million. Startups and young companies are explicitly eligible. The R&D tax credit (Forschungszulage) is the only exception: it has no size restriction, so large companies also benefit — but they receive the standard 25% rate instead of the 35% SME bonus. The prerequisite for any funding is a verifiable research and development project with scientific or technical uncertainty that goes beyond the current state of the art.

The R&D tax credit under § 1 FZulG is applied for in two mandatory steps. First, you submit an application to the Bescheinigungsstelle Forschungszulage (BSFZ) in Berlin. The BSFZ assesses whether your project meets the content criteria — basic research, industrial research, or experimental development with scientific uncertainty. The certification is typically issued within 3 months. Second, with the BSFZ certificate, you file the R&D tax credit application with the competent tax office, usually together with the corporate or income tax return. The tax office verifies the eligible expenses and sets the credit amount. The credit is then deducted directly from the tax liability or paid out. We handle all documentation with BSFZ and the tax office — including the technical project description, cost breakdown and evidence.

The Forschungszulagengesetz (FZulG) has been the legal basis for tax-based R&D funding in Germany since 1 January 2020, issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF). § 2 FZulG defines eligible R&D activities: basic research, industrial research and experimental development with verifiable scientific or technical uncertainty. § 3 governs the assessment base — eligible costs include personnel costs of R&D staff, for contract research with third parties based in the EU/EEA 70% of the fee (for contracts issued after 27 March 2024; previously 60%), and depreciation on capital investments. § 4 sets the funding rate: 25% standard, 35% for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Through the Wachstumschancengesetz reform, the assessment base rises to €12 million per year from 2026, supplemented by a 20% overhead allowance. For SMEs this yields a maximum annual credit of up to €4.2 million per company. The credit is tax-free under § 6 FZulG and does not reduce deductible business expenses.

The ZIM directive governs the Central Innovation Programme for SMEs (ZIM), implemented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). The current ZIM-Richtlinie 2025 was published on 11 December 2024 and has applied since 1 January 2025, valid until 30 June 2027 (end of the GBER framework). It covers all market-oriented R&D projects regardless of industry. Funding amounts: up to €690,000 per single project, up to €560,000 per partner in cooperation projects, plus up to €420,000 for innovation networks. Funding rates vary by company size, project type and regional status: small companies 25–55%, medium 25–50%, other mid-caps up to 500 employees 25–40%. External partners can be included with up to 35% of personnel costs. Feasibility studies run up to 12 months; market launch services can be claimed up to 18 months after project completion. Eligible applicants are SMEs under the EU definition (<250 employees); cooperation projects may also include companies with up to 1,000 employees.

Processing times differ fundamentally between the three programmes. go-inno can be deployed immediately and is approved retroactively — zero risk for the client. You start the consulting project right away while we handle the application with the project carrier in parallel. Formal approval typically follows within a few weeks. ZIM applications usually take 8–12 weeks of BMWK processing time from submission to decision. Important: the project must not begin before submission (principle of antragstellung vor Vorhabensbeginn). The R&D tax credit is the only fully retroactive programme: it is claimed through the corporate or income tax return at the competent tax office — even for already completed R&D projects from previous fiscal years. The prerequisite BSFZ certification is usually issued within 3 months. For two of the three main programmes, the traditional waiting period before project start is therefore eliminated entirely.

Yes — and this is one of the R&D tax credit's biggest advantages over other funding programmes. You can claim the credit for all eligible R&D projects that started after 1 January 2020 and meet the content criteria under § 2 FZulG (basic research, industrial research, experimental development). In practice: if you conducted R&D activities in past fiscal years without recognising them as eligible, you can apply for the credit retroactively — as long as the tax assessment limitation period under § 169 (2) sentence 1 no. 2 AO (4 years after the respective fiscal year) has not expired. The process: first we file the certification application with BSFZ. After positive review, you submit the R&D tax credit application to the tax office, optionally with an amended tax return. The credit is then set for the respective fiscal year. We assess together which of your past projects are eligible and which periods are still open.

Yes, but cumulation rules apply. The R&D tax credit can generally be combined with ZIM and go-inno — however, the same costs cannot be funded twice (§ 7 FZulG). Personnel costs already covered by ZIM cannot additionally feed into the R&D tax credit assessment base. go-inno and ZIM can be used sequentially (go-inno for the concept phase, ZIM for implementation). EU state aid caps under the GBER must be observed overall. We review each project individually to determine which combination maximises the funding effect without violating the rules.

Our success rate is above 90% — rejection is the exception. If it does happen, you have two options. With BSFZ, you can file an objection within one month of the decision and submit additional technical evidence. The most common rejection reasons are insufficient differentiation from the state of the art, missing scientific uncertainty in the project, or unclear personnel cost allocation. For ZIM rejections by BMWK, the most common reason is insufficient innovation level or unclear market positioning — here a revised resubmission is possible after 6 months. In both cases, we analyse the rejection reasons in detail, revise the application documents and support the objection or resubmission. The costs for the initial consultation and potential analysis are never charged — our risk.

No. Funding consulting is a standalone service that you can book independently of any design or development project with us. Of course, we are happy to support you with the implementation of your innovation project as well — but it is not a prerequisite.

go-inno and ZIM have different funding goals, recipients and scales. go-inno (BMWK innovation vouchers) funds exclusively the consulting service — external support by authorised consultancies in planning, conceptualising and preparing an innovation project. The grant covers 50% of consulting costs, up to €20,000 per calendar year (up to 5 vouchers), and is approved retroactively. ZIM (Central Innovation Programme for SMEs, run by BMWK) funds the development project itself — personnel costs of in-house R&D staff, materials, external services and contract research. Funding rates are 25–55% depending on company size and project type, with a cap of €690,000 per single project. Both programmes can be optimally combined sequentially: first go-inno for strategic preparation and feasibility analysis, then ZIM for the concrete R&D implementation. Read more in our go-inno guide.