Forschungszulage for construction companies: your development work is eligible
New concrete formulations, serial construction, automated site processes, AI in construction scheduling: R&D in construction rarely happens in a lab. It happens in the test facility, the site office and on the building site itself. That is exactly what the Forschungszulage funds, at 25% of eligible R&D costs, or 35% for SMEs. Unlike a grant it does not depend on a limited budget pot: it is a statutory tax entitlement. Your effort: 4 calls, less than 5 hours in total.
- funding rate for SMEs
- 35%funding rate for SMEs
- retroactive
- 4 yearsretroactive
- success-based
- 100%success-based
What counts as eligible in construction
The BSFZ assesses every project against three criteria. What matters is not whether you run a research department, but whether you are solving a technical question with an open outcome. What the individual characteristics mean:
Concrete formulations and low-CO₂ binders
New formulations and processes where strength, setting behaviour or durability can only be verified through test series.
Serial and modular construction
Prefabricated components and new joining principles whose tolerances, building physics and assembly sequence are not yet technically proven.
Automated construction site processes
Prototyping and testing of automated site workflows where only the trial shows whether the method holds up.
AI and sensor systems in scheduling
Algorithms for forecasting, quality control or sensor analysis whose accuracy is uncertain under real site conditions.
New building materials
Development of building materials and components, including at suppliers and building materials companies, up to certification readiness.
Measurement and testing methods
Condition diagnostics and non-destructive testing where the measuring principle or the analysis has to be developed from scratch.
Not sure whether your project qualifies? A 5-minute call is enough for a first assessment, and then you know whether the effort pays off.
Get your project assessedWhich costs you can claim
In construction the biggest lever is your own people: design, test facility, software, and site management where it works on the trial part. The pure production costs of the building itself do not count.
- Personnel costs
- 100% claimable, proportional to R&D time: development, design, trials, software engineering
- Contract research
- 70% of the fee (for expenditure up to 27.03.2024: 60%), if the materials lab, testing institute or university is based in the EU/EEA
- Overhead flat rate
- A 20% flat rate on direct project costs, for projects starting in 2026 or later
- Own contributions
- €100/h for work from 2026 (until the end of 2025: €70/h), for sole traders and partners, max. 40 hours per week
- Funding rate
- 25% of eligible expenditure, 35% for SMEs
- Assessment base
- Up to €12 million per year from 2026 (28.03.2024 to the end of 2025: €10 million, before that €4 million); retroactive applications are capped at the limits in force at the time
- Assets
- Depreciation on newly acquired movable assets (e.g. test and trial equipment) used exclusively for R&D, acquired after 27.03.2024
- Not via the Forschungszulage
- Series and production investments in construction machinery, BIM rollouts or IT infrastructure, that is what KfW and state programs are for. What is eligible is the development behind them: your own algorithms, your own sensor systems, a new methodology with an open outcome
Common doubts
Three sentences we keep hearing from construction
What keeps construction companies from applying, and what actually applies:
“We build things, we don't do research.”
R&D in construction rarely sits in a lab. It sits in the formulation, the joining detail, the assembly sequence and the software. As soon as the technical outcome is open and you proceed systematically — hypothesis, test, iteration — you are at the heart of the eligibility criteria.
“Surely there are better grants for construction.”
ZIM was the obvious alternative for a long time. But since 7 July 2026 the BMWE no longer accepts new ZIM applications, with few exceptions, not even project outlines, and a resumption is targeted for early 2027 at the earliest. The Forschungszulage, by contrast, is a statutory tax entitlement: no limited budget pot, no competition for funds, no application freeze.
“Nobody here books hours to projects, we could never prove it.”
You do not need a new time-tracking system for this. Site diaries, measurement records, project files and variation orders usually contain enough to attribute R&D hours to a project. We put it into the shape the tax office will want to see later.
Do you recognise yourself in one of these sentences? Then let's clarify in a call what actually counts in your case.
Check your eligibility in a call8 benefits
Why is the Forschungszulage a good funding option?
Compared to traditional funding programmes, the Forschungszulage is the better choice for most companies.
- 1
Legal entitlement
No competition for budgets: if the criteria are met, funding must be granted.
- 2
Up to 4 years retroactive
Even completed projects can still be funded.
- 3
Open to all industries
Software, mechanical engineering, MedTech, construction: R&D is R&D, whatever the industry.
- 4
Even without profit
No tax burden needed, the allowance is paid out as a credit.
- 5
Less bureaucracy
No upfront project plan, no interim reports, no proof of use.
- 6
Fully digital process
Application via BSFZ portal and ELSTER, no paper, no postal mail.
- 7
Thematically open
No rigid topic catalogue: product development, process innovation, everything counts.
- 8
Broad cost base
Personnel costs, contract research and capital assets are eligible.
Common questions from construction
Talk to people who understand construction technology
In a first call we clarify which of your projects meet the R&D criteria and which costs you can realistically claim. 5 minutes are enough for a first assessment.
More industries
Eligible R&D looks different in every industry. Here is what counts in the other sectors.
Mechanical engineering
Forschungszulage for mechanical and plant engineering: eligible projects, cost types, common pitfalls. Recover 25%, or 35% for SMEs, of your eligible R&D costs.
View industry page →
Software & AI companies
Forschungszulage for software and AI teams: which projects are eligible and why applications fail. Recover 25%, or 35% for SMEs, of your eligible R&D costs.
View industry page →
MedTech & HealthTech
Forschungszulage for medical technology and digital health: eligible projects, R&D versus regulatory work. Recover 25%, or 35% for SMEs, of eligible R&D costs.
View industry page →
Food industry
Forschungszulage for food manufacturers: eligible recipe, process and packaging development. Recover 25%, or 35% for SMEs, of your eligible R&D costs.
View industry page →
Automotive
Forschungszulage for automotive suppliers: what is eligible, how to separate series launch and OEM contracts. Recover 25%, or 35% for SMEs, of eligible R&D costs.
View industry page →
Defense tech & dual-use
Forschungszulage for defense tech and dual-use: why the FZulG is technology-neutral, and how secrecy, dual-use demarcation and public procurement contracts play out in the application. 25%, 35% for SMEs.
View industry page →