SR&ED return rates depend on the type of company and how much taxable net income it generates each year.
A CCPC is a Canadian-controlled private corporation.
For SR&ED eligibility purposes, an SME is defined as a small-medium sized enterprise generating less than $500K of taxable net income in the prior fiscal year.
Companies that are both CCPC and SME receive the following return rates*:
Investment tax credits (ITCs) generated from these expenditures are considered refundable. This means that the company will receive a cheque from the government if it has already paid its income tax owing for the year!
*These rates are calculated with an overhead proxy of 55% for companies based in the province of Alberta. The provincial portion varies in each province. Please see the "Provincial SR&ED Return Rates" page for other provinces