Professional Training
Training built around real fact patterns and real examination outcomes rather than a recitation of the statute.
What's included
- Role-based curriculum for tax, finance and engineering staff
- Case study workbooks drawn from anonymised real examinations
- Reference materials and internal checklists your team keeps
- Post-session assessment and follow-up clinic
Who this service is for
CPA firms, corporate tax departments and finance teams building internal capability.
Discuss this service (opens in a new tab)How it works
Step 1: Built for the audience
Programs are structured for the audience. Accounting firms receive a practitioner track covering qualification analysis, calculation mechanics, state programs and examination procedure. In-house teams receive a track focused on their own industry, systems and documentation workflow.
Step 2: Case-study modules
Each module works through anonymised case studies, including claims that failed, because the failures teach the evidentiary standard more effectively than the successes. Case studies are de-identified and used with client consent where required.
Step 3: Live, remote or on site
Sessions are delivered live, remotely or on site, and can earn continuing professional education (CPE) credit, which is provided through Swanson Reed.
Where creditARMOR helps
The parts of the platform this service draws on.
- Draft federal & state IDR-style questionsThe questions an examiner is likely to put in an Information Document Request, drafted per project: eight project-level federal questions and two state questions for each business component, plus the company-wide federal and state questions answered once from your forms. See the feature
- Evidence scoringEvery IDR question is rated Strong, Weak or Missing against the files you uploaded. See the feature
- Shared resultsShare the report and exports with your CFO, your CPA firm or your specialist, so everyone works from the same evidence and the same score. See the feature
Related services
- AI-Powered R&D Tax Credit ReviewMachine-assisted analysis of your projects, payroll and ledgers to estimate your credit and identify documentation gaps before you file.
- Audit ReadinessStress-test an existing or planned claim against the evidence standards examiners commonly apply.
- Compliance ReviewAn independent second opinion on methodology, base period calculations and multi-state apportionment.
- Documentation BuilderCapture engineering activity as it happens so project narratives are supported by contemporaneous records — continuously, not annually.
Common questions
What is the R&D tax credit?
The federal research and development tax credit, found at Section 41 of the Internal Revenue Code, is a credit that reduces federal income tax liability dollar for dollar, subject to the general business credit limitation, for businesses that conduct qualified research in the United States. Under section 280C(c), the section 174A deduction is reduced by the credit unless the taxpayer elects a reduced credit. Qualified small businesses may instead apply up to $500,000 a year against payroll taxes. Many states operate their own research credit program, and a company can often claim both the federal and a state credit for the same underlying work. creditARMOR covers the federal research credit and research credit programs in 38 states. Virginia's research credits expired for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025; its page remains for earlier years and carryforwards.
Does my company need a laboratory to qualify?
No. Qualification turns on a four-part test, not on job titles or facilities. Software teams, manufacturers, engineering firms, food and beverage producers, agricultural technology businesses and many others can qualify when they resolve technical uncertainty through a process of experimentation and the activities are not excluded. Software developed primarily for internal use must also meet the high threshold of innovation test.
What are the four parts of the qualification test?
The activity must have a permitted purpose: the costs must be eligible research or experimental expenditures (IRC sections 174 and 174A), and the research must relate to a new or improved business component (a product, process, computer software, technique, formula or invention) and aim to improve its function, performance, reliability or quality. It must be technological in nature, meaning the process of experimentation fundamentally relies on principles of the physical or biological sciences, engineering or computer science. It must be intended to discover information that would eliminate uncertainty about the capability or method for developing or improving the business component, or about its appropriate design. And substantially all (at least 80%) of the activities for the business component must be elements of a process of experimentation, such as modelling, simulation or systematic trial and error, used to evaluate one or more alternatives.
Run a free R&D tax credit mock audit.
You can also book a free thirty-minute scoping call with a specialist. Upload your files and see how your evidence would hold up to the questions an IRS examiner is likely to ask. A higher score means a more audit-ready claim.
creditARMOR is a free service. Passing this mock audit does not guarantee that your claim will pass an IRS examination. Book a call or email hello@creditarmor.ai for a login.