Ireland: Preparer identification | Research Credit Integrity Alliance

This page records whether Irish law or Revenue's forms require a research and development (R&D) corporation tax credit claim to name the person who prepared it. It covers the details required with the claim, the pre-filing notification, and the agent link system through which Revenue records who acts for a company.

Details required with a claim

A claim for the R&D corporation tax credit is made on the return a company must file under Part 41A of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA 1997), that is the corporation tax return, within 12 months of the end of the accounting period in which the expenditure was incurred.1 Revenue's guidance states that the claim is made by completing the relevant sections of Form CT1 through the Revenue Online Service (ROS).2

Section 766C(9)(b) lists the details the company must give when it claims:

the R&D expenditure on plant or machinery;
the emoluments of employees carrying on qualifying R&D activities;
the remaining R&D expenditure incurred in the accounting period; and
any non-refundable credits under the earlier R&D tax credit that are carried forward.1

Revenue's manual adds that the company must also specify the amount of each instalment claimed and whether it is to be treated as an overpayment of tax or paid to the company.2 None of these statutory details is the identity of a person who prepared the claim, or the basis on which that person was paid.12

Revenue's manual also states that no supporting R&D documentation is required to be submitted with the return, although it may be requested later to verify that the claim is valid.2

Whether Form CT1 has any field identifying an agent or preparer is not stated in the Revenue sources reviewed for this page.

The pre-filing notification

Companies claiming for the first time, and companies that have not claimed in any of the previous three accounting periods, must notify Revenue at least 90 days before the claim is made.1 The notification form asks for:

the company's corporation tax reference number, name and address;
the accounting period concerned;
the number of employees carrying on R&D activities and the number of R&D projects;
details of expenditure met by grant or other assistance; and
a description of the qualifying R&D activities, and any other information the company wishes to give.3

The form carries a declaration "to be signed on behalf of the company" that it is correct and complete, with the signatory's status, and asks for contact details in case of a query about the form.3 It does not have a field for an agent's Tax Advisor Identification Number (TAIN) or for the name of a person who prepared the notification or the claim.3 The form must be filed through MyEnquiries.3

How Revenue knows who acts for a company

Although the claim details do not include a preparer, Revenue holds a record of a company's agent where the agent is linked to the company.

An agent must have a TAIN before representing any Revenue customer.4
An agent link notification must include the client's details, the taxes for which the agent acts and the agent's TAIN.4 Since the end of March 2025, links can be made online through Revenue's e-linking process.5
Revenue can only give details of a taxpayer's affairs to an authorized person who is on record as the taxpayer's agent.4
Agents who submit returns and claims for clients must keep a record of the client's explicit permission to submit that return or claim.4

A person who helps prepare a claim without being the linked agent, for example a specialist working alongside the company's usual agent, is not required by the sources reviewed to be identified to Revenue.134

Notices sent to the agent on record

Revenue's Code of Practice for Revenue Compliance Interventions states that notification of a Level 2 compliance intervention, such as a risk review or audit, issues to taxpayers and to agents where relevant, and that where Revenue has a record of an agent representing the taxpayer for the tax in question, a copy of the notification is sent to that agent.6 The taxpayer and the tax agent on record receive 28 days' notice of a Level 2 intervention.6

Responsibility stays with the company

Section 1077F(16) provides that accounts submitted on behalf of a person are deemed to have been submitted by that person, unless the person proves they were submitted without their consent or knowledge.7 Revenue's Code of Practice states that the taxpayer cannot devolve the responsibility of making a correct return to an agent.6

Summary

Question	Position in the sources reviewed
Statutory claim details include the preparer?	No1
Pre-filing notification names the preparer or agent?	No field for it; signed on behalf of the company3
Does Revenue record the company's agent?	Yes, through the TAIN and agent link4
Must the fee basis be stated?	Not in the claim details or the notification13

Sources

Revenue Commissioners, Notes for Guidance, Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, Finance Act 2025 edition, Part 29, section 766C, subsections (9) and (17). https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/documents/notes-for-guidance/tca/part29.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Tax and Duty Manual Part 29-02-03, Research and Development (R&D) Corporation Tax Credit (last updated April 2026), section 8.6.2. https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-29/29-02-03.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Research and Development Corporation Tax Credit: Pre-filing Notification Form in respect of a claim to be made under section 766C TCA 1997, form and notes. https://www.revenue.ie/en/companies-and-charities/documents/rd-form-766c.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Tax and Duty Manual Part 37-00-04b, Guidelines for Agents or Advisors acting on behalf of taxpayers (last reviewed September 2026), sections 2, 5 and 12. https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-37/37-00-04b.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Do you need a tax agent? https://www.revenue.ie/en/starting-a-business/starting-a-business/do-you-need-a-tax-agent.aspx (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Code of Practice for Revenue Compliance Interventions (effective 1 May 2022), sections 1.3.2, 1.3.4, 2.10 and 4.6.2. https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/documents/code-of-practice-revenue-compliance-interventions.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back
Revenue Commissioners, Notes for Guidance, Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, Finance Act 2025 edition, Part 47, section 1077F, subsection (16). https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/documents/notes-for-guidance/tca/part47.pdf (accessed 11 October 2026). Back