An assessment of R&D tax credits and their role towards innovation within Irish industry

The Irish Government has identified research and development (R&D) and innovation as among the key pillars of growth within the economy. To achieve this growth, R&D tax incentives, which are adopted in advanced economies, are set into policy to encourage firms to innovate, thus, making companies more competitive and productive. One of the key enablers to driving R&D is a well-designed, competitive and sustainable tax policy to support the activity. However, evidence on the effectiveness of R&D tax incentives for innovation is largely anecdotal and the influence of innovation on firm-level taxation is still underexplored, in terms of and empirical examination. This paper sets out to review the recent trends and views of industry regarding R&D tax credits.