With the Forschungszulage (public funding under the FZulG), there are practically two "worlds":
1. BSFZ certification (technical/substantive): Here it's about whether your project is recognized as R&D at all (project description, systematic approach, etc.).
2. Tax office (financial/tax): This is where they verify whether the eligible expenses actually occurred — and that's exactly what you need Forschungszulage documentation for. Often you don't have to submit all receipts immediately, but you must retain them in full and be able to present them quickly, transparently, and in an immutable form upon request.
That's why a simple principle pays off: Set up documentation not "for the application," but "for the audit."
Yes — you can still set up Forschungszulage documentation retroactively in a clean way. What matters most then is plausibility and a traceable rationale. If you don't have day-by-day time tracking, you can often reconstruct R&D time shares retroactively based on project traces (e.g., tickets, commits, sprint reviews, project plans/Gantt, meeting minutes, deliverables) and derive hour records from them; be strict about separating vacation/sick days and non-eligible activities (routine operations/administration).
The key is to document the logic (which sources, which assumptions, which period), store the documents GoBD-compliantly, and ultimately be able to show a consistent chain of payroll evidence/payroll journal → time share → project linkage.
At its core, you must be able to clearly assign your eligible costs to one (or multiple) R&D projects. To make that work, you should split your documentation into these areas:
(optional / depending on your setup): Overhead lump sum (from 2026 for projects starting on/after 01/01/2026) → calculation logic + base documents
In practice, personnel costs are often the biggest lever. For them to be accepted, you need two things:
Typically keep ready:
As soon as employees are not working 100 % on the R&D project (or are split across multiple projects), you need a robust time allocation logic.
Important: There is no "one mandatory template," but documentation must be GoBD-compliant: traceable, complete, correct, timely, organized — and ideally immutable.
What belongs on a good timesheet (practical minimum):
If you want a template, you can find one here: Timesheet template for the Forschungszulage (PDF + Excel)
Our software can process HR/payroll data (e.g., from Personio) and automatically send digital timesheets to employees. This reduces manual effort, ensures consistent structures — and later makes it much easier to provide evidence to the tax office.
If sole proprietors or partners work on development themselves, own contributions are essentially a separate documentation block.
What you need:
This is especially relevant for founder-led tech companies, because development hours can add up quickly.
If you involve external service providers or research suppliers, you should set up documentation so the project linkage is unambiguous.
Documentation checklist:
Important: Contract research is not "everything external". What matters is that these are R&D services and that the linkage to the project can be evidenced.
Official contact point (for framework/process): BSFZ – Bescheinigungsstelle Forschungszulage
Depending on the project, depreciation of certain movable assets may also be relevant (e.g., measuring devices, prototype equipment, specialized machinery, hardware for test environments).
What you should document:
More details: Assets in the Forschungszulage
In addition to costs, you need a "project trail" showing: this was systematic, technical, development-driven.
Proven in practice:
This doesn't have to be a novel — but it should be understandable for third parties what was developed, why it was technically uncertain, and how you proceeded.
Many teams start with Excel — that can work, but you should then establish a clean practice, e.g.:
A digital system is often easier here because it directly incorporates structure, permissions, approvals, and archiving.
The Forschungszulage is often applied for retroactively — and audits can happen later. Therefore:
The Forschungszulage is one of the most attractive, predictable funding instruments for innovation in Germany — especially because it:
If you want to solve this efficiently (without your CTO/finance team investing weeks), combine:
For the tax office, you mainly need timesheets/time tracking, payroll evidence (e.g., payroll journal), evidence for contract research (contracts, invoices, performance evidence) and, if applicable, fixed-asset/depreciation evidence for assets. In addition, project-related development documentation is useful (project plan, reports, minutes).
If employees do not work exclusively on the R&D project or have multiple roles/projects, timesheets or project-based time tracking are practically the standard to substantiate the eligible share in a traceable way.
There are sample templates (among others from the BMF as guidance). But you do not have to use one specific template — what matters is that your records are GoBD-compliant and plausible.
Plan so that you can retain documents cleanly for multiple years (tax logic + potential later audits). In practice, structured filing over several years is essential.
Often not — but you must retain the receipts and be able to provide them promptly upon request. That is exactly why Forschungszulage documentation is so important.
zeitmaker.com offers its own software which, among other things, can process Personio data and send digital timesheets to employees. This makes documentation consistent, easier to find, and much easier to present during audits.
Drop us a line about what's on your mind — we'll get back to you personally and without obligation.
Forschungszulage for the food industry: up to 35% on personnel costs and contract research. Technology-neutral, no competitive process, often retroactive.
You can apply for the Forschungszulage retroactively—up to 4 years. Learn how the process works, the best strategy, and what to watch out for.
The Forschungszulage offers 8 key benefits: statutory entitlement, retroactive claims, open to all sectors, usable without profit, digital process and broad cost coverage.
Check in 4 steps if your project qualifies for the Forschungszulage: R&D classification, novelty, technical risk and systematic approach. Quick self-test.
