R&D relief 2026: for companies that think it does not apply to them

The research and development relief lets you deduct 100–200% of qualifying costs from the tax base. Not only laboratories: bakeries, workshops and IT agencies use it too.

Profais Team

Accounting firm in Łódź · KIBR member

21 March 2026 · updated 22 October 2026 · 6 min read

The R&D (research and development) relief is one of the most generous, and at the same time one of the least used, preferences in the Polish tax system. The reason? Most entrepreneurs think “research and development” means only laboratories and factories with R&D departments. That is a myth.

Legal basis: Article 26e of the PIT Act and Article 18d of the CIT Act. Since 2022 the so-called “super-relief” has applied: a 200% deduction of R&D pay costs, which in practice means that for every zloty paid to an R&D employee you recover PLN 0.38 of tax (19% × 2.0 for the flat tax or CIT).

What R&D activity really is

The Act defines R&D as creative activity, undertaken systematically, in order to:

Increase the stock of knowledge
Use knowledge to create new applications

R&D activity is divided into two kinds:

Scientific research: exploratory, theoretical
Development work: practical, aimed at a product / process

For most companies it is development work that matters. It includes:

Designing new products or their prototypes
Significant modifications of existing products
Tests, validations, trial production
Creating new technologies or processes
Integrating existing technologies in a new way

Who really does R&D (outside laboratories)

Practice shows that R&D exists wherever a company solves new problems or creates new solutions. Examples from our practice:

A bakery developing a new type of gluten-free bread: recipes, rheology tests, trial bakes
A car workshop designing an assembly system for a specific model: holder prototypes, strength tests
An IT agency creating its own frameworks or non-standard algorithms
A furniture manufacturer developing a new back-rest design with fewer parts
A logistics company implementing its own route optimisation system
A dental practice testing a new treatment methodology in cooperation with a medical university

What can be deducted: the catalogue of qualifying costs

The Act lists the costs qualifying for the relief precisely:

| Category | Deduction 2026 | |-----------|------------------| | Pay of R&D employees (employment contract) | 200% | | Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) contributions of R&D employees (employer’s) | 200% | | Pay under mandate contracts for R&D staff | 100% | | Materials and raw materials for R&D work | 100% | | Low-value fixed assets used in R&D | 100% | | Expert opinions, opinions and advisory services from universities and the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) | 100% | | Depreciation of fixed assets used in R&D | 100% | | Intangible assets (for example licences for R&D software) | 100% | | Obtaining and maintaining a patent | 100% |

The increased rate of 200% for R&D pay has applied since 1 January 2022 to all taxpayers, not only CBRs.

200%

the cost of pay and ZUS contributions of R&D employees is deducted twice

How to calculate it: an example

An IT company (a limited company, CIT 19%) has in 2026:

Gross income: PLN 1,000,000
R&D pay costs: PLN 400,000 (already counted in costs)
ZUS contributions for those employees: PLN 80,000

Without the R&D relief:

CIT: 1,000,000 × 19% = PLN 190,000

With the R&D relief:

Additional deduction: (400,000 + 80,000) × 100% = PLN 480,000 (200% in total, the first 100% already in costs)
Tax base: 1,000,000 − 480,000 = PLN 520,000
CIT: 520,000 × 19% = PLN 98,800
Saving: PLN 91,200

Recording R&D costs

A condition for using the relief is separating R&D costs in the accounting records. In practice this is solved in three ways:

A separate set of accounts in the chart of accounts (for example accounts 402-B, 411-B)
Analytical accounts within cost accounts: projects marked with the prefix R&D
External records (a spreadsheet, a project management program) + a summary for PIT/B+R

The records must make it possible to identify:

Which items are R&D costs
Which projects they relate to
How the proportion was calculated (for example the share of R&D hours in the employee’s work)

Unused relief: what then

The R&D relief is deducted from the tax base. If in a given tax year the deduction exceeds the base, the excess carries forward to the following years:

Standard period: 6 following tax years (Article 26e(8) of the PIT Act)
New companies (1st and 2nd year): an alternative: an application for a cash refund of the amount of the relief (Article 18da of the CIT Act for companies, similarly in PIT)

The cash refund is useful for start-ups that do not yet generate a profit. It lets them “recover” the relief without waiting for a profitable year.

IP Box + R&D: they can be combined

Many of our clients use the R&D relief (deduction of costs) and the IP Box (a 5% rate on income from qualifying IP) at the same time. The two preferences complement each other:

R&D reduces the tax base (for example by PLN 480 thousand)
IP Box is applied to qualifying income (for example PLN 600 thousand) at a rate of 5%

You will find the full description of the IP Box in the article IP Box for programmers and others: 5% tax instead of 19%.

An individual tax ruling

As with the IP Box, we recommend applying for an individual tax ruling before applying the relief. The cost is PLN 40, the time limit 3 months. The question in the application: do the described projects meet the definition of R&D activity, and do the indicated costs qualify for the deduction.

A positive ruling protects against the relief being challenged during an inspection. Even if an official has a different view, they cannot depart from the position in the ruling, as long as the description of the facts matches reality.

What to do now

If after reading this you have concluded that your company may qualify for the R&D relief:

Identify projects from the last 5 years that may be R&D
Gather documentation: employee contracts, scopes of duties, project notes
Contact our firm: within the books we keep, we will help separate the R&D costs
If yes, corrections for previous years (a 5-year period) and the procedure going forward

At Profais we help separate R&D costs in the books and prepare returns. See our full accounting service. We are an accounting firm, not a tax adviser. The assessment of whether projects meet the definition of R&D, and the application for a ruling, are provided by a tax adviser (in line with the Tax Advisory Act). You will find our contact details on the home page.

Sources: podatki.gov.pl: R&D relief, the PIT Act (Articles 26e–26ec), the CIT Act (Articles 18d–18db).

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can a small company use the R&D relief?

Yes. The relief has no taxpayer size threshold. Any company that carries out research and development activity can use it, whatever its form (sole trader business, limited company, limited partnership) and industry. What matters is the nature of the activities, not the size of the company.

How much can be deducted under the R&D relief?

As standard, 100% of qualifying costs (pay of R&D employees, materials, equipment, university expert opinions, depreciation). Companies with the status of a Research and Development Centre (CBR) deduct 150%. For the cost of pay and Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) contributions of R&D staff, 200% since 2022 (the so-called R&D super-relief).

Is an unused relief lost?

No. If in a given tax year you do not have enough income to use the full amount of the deduction, you can use the unused part over the following 6 years. For new companies there is also an alternative: a cash refund in the first and second year of operation (Article 18da of the CIT Act).