Aussie developers get new tax breaks

The Australian government has announced a re-working of its R&D Tax Concession, now known as the R&D Tax Incentive, to benefit local developers.

The incentive applies to any R&D (which, for local studios could mean the creation of new technology and game engines during the early phases of a game’s development) occurring after 1st July 2011.

It will offer "a 45 per cent refundable tax offset (equivalent to a 150 per cent deduction) toeligible entities with an aggregated turnover of less than $20 million per annum" as well as "a non-refundable 40per cent tax offset (equivalent to 133 per cent deduction) toall other eligible entities."

The bottom line is that a significant amount of development costs can now be recouped through the incentive scheme, which should spark growth in the local development community.

The incentive only applies to Australian companies or companies operating as residents of Australia.

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