R&D Tax Incentive

Turn your R&D into strategic liquidity

We partner with founders under $20m revenue to unlock capital through the R&D Tax Incentive.

Book a Strategic ReviewCheck Your R&D Eligibility

Up to 43.5% cash rebate

Available for eligible Australian companies currently operating in a tax-loss position.

10-Month claim window

The strict timeframe from the end of your financial year to secure liquidity.

Minimum $20k R&D spend

The accessible baseline required to begin unlocking your non-dilutive capital.

Under $20m annual revenue

Qualifies your business for the highest premium tier of the government offset.

The Core Problem

Building a business today is complex

Growth creates pressure, innovation consumes cash, and traditional financial reports rarely tell the full story.

The Sentinel Difference

Strategic liquidity for scaling founders

We structure your access to the R&D Tax Incentive to maximise operational runway.

    Structured liquidity strategy

    Stop leaving non-dilutive capital on the table. We engineer structured access to the R&D Tax Incentive and other government-aligned innovation pathways to maximise your operational runway.
    Liquidity

    Uncompromising financial discipline

    Financial reports rarely tell the full story. We provide clear, strategic interpretation of your data to uncover hidden margin opportunities, extend your runway, and identify risk signals before they escalate.
    Insight

    Bulletproof innovation governance

    Innovation without structure creates burnout. We build robust documentation and experimentation frameworks strictly aligned with AusIndustry standards, ensuring your claim is completely defensible.
    Governance

    AI enabled operating models

    Investing in tech without discipline is a trap. We help transform traditional, manual workflows into AI-supported, efficiency-enhancing systems that allow your team to scale without proportional headcount growth.
    Efficency

    Strategic valuation architecture

    We design the vehicle that drives enterprise value. We structure your company toward sustainable profitability, positioning you perfectly for institutional-grade readiness, future capital raises, or exits.
    Valuation

Eligibility Criteria

Do you meet the baseline criteria?

Ensure your company meets the four mandatory ATO and AusIndustry requirements.

Australian Company

You must be incorporated in Australia (or operate as an eligible permanent establishment) and trade as a corporate entity.

Genuine R&D

Your activities must involve systematic experimentation to resolve technical uncertainty where the outcome cannot be known in advance.

Minimum $20k Spend

You must meet the annual threshold of at least $20,000 invested in eligible wages, contractors, or prototype costs.

Contemporaneous Records

Your activities must be registered with AusIndustry and supported by real-time documentation and lodged R&D schedules.

Not 100% sure if your specific activities check every box?
Take the 2-Minute RDTI Diagnostic

Your Growth Pathway

We meet you where you are

A structured financial roadmap designed to support your exact stage of growth.

  • 01

    Early Growth

    Establishing the baseline.
    Deliverables
    • Financial clarity & reporting
    • RDTI eligibility assessment
    • Cash flow stabilisation
    • Governance foundations
  • 02

    Scaling Phase

    Accelerating the margin.
    Deliverables
    • Liquidity acceleration
    • Margin optimisation
    • AI workflow integration
    • Operating model refinement
  • 03

    Institutional Readiness

    Structuring for enterprise value.
    Deliverables
    • Valuation modeling
    • Balance sheet optimisation
    • Strategic capital positioning
    • Institutional engagement prep
Book a Strategic Review

Our Philosophy

The Sentinel Flywheel

We integrate innovation strategy, financial architecture, and restructuring insight into a compounding system.

    Your R&D is a strategic asset, not just an expense

    Every business solves problems. The difference is whether those problems are being captured, documented, and structured as eligible innovation. We identify the R&D activities already happening inside your business — product development, technical experimentation, process engineering, and software builds — and ensure they are recognised as a source of strategic value.
    Innovation

    Converting eligible activity into non-dilutive capital

    Your innovation unlocks real funding. Through the R&D Tax Incentive, government grants, and ESIC investor incentives, qualifying technical work is converted into capital that flows directly back into the business. For eligible companies under $20m turnover, the R&D Tax Incentive alone can deliver a refundable cash offset on eligible expenditure every financial year.
    Strategic Liquidity

    A stronger balance sheet on your own terms

    Non-dilutive capital changes the dynamics of your business. It strengthens your balance sheet, improves working capital, and reduces your dependence on external equity at unfavourable terms. With strategic liquidity flowing consistently, you gain the financial breathing room to invest in growth on your own timeline rather than being forced into premature fundraising.
    Financial Strength

    Growth without the structural debt

    Financial strength creates the foundation for disciplined growth. We engineer tax-efficient corporate structures, implement real-time financial reporting, isolate and protect your intellectual property, and build the governance frameworks that institutional stakeholders expect. The result is a business that scales without accumulating the hidden liabilities that derail companies at exactly the wrong moment.
    Structured Scaling

    Positioned for investment, acquisition, or long-term scale

    A structurally sound, innovation-led business commands premium valuations. When your balance sheet is clean, your tax position is optimised, your IP is protected, and your governance is institutional-grade, you negotiate from strength. And the enterprise value you create feeds directly back into further innovation — compounding the cycle.
    Enterprise Value

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Government innovation pathways can be complex. Here is how we bring structure to the process.

Standard accounting firms typically treat the RDTI as a retrospective, end-of-year tax compliance exercise. We approach it through a CFO lens. Sentinel House integrates your claim with your broader liquidity strategy, ensuring your innovation spend actually extends your runway and enhances your enterprise valuation.
It can, but the AusIndustry guidelines are incredibly strict. Simply building an app or integrating an existing AI model does not automatically qualify. You must prove you are undertaking systematic experimentation to resolve technical unknowns that couldn't be solved by a competent professional in the field. We help you build the governance frameworks to prove this defensibly.
For eligible companies, you have a strict 10-month window from the end of your company's financial year to lodge your R&D application with AusIndustry. However, the best claims are built contemporaneously (in real-time throughout the year), which is why we implement structured innovation governance early.
If your company has an aggregated turnover of under $20 million and operates in a tax-loss position, you may be eligible for the maximum premium tier: a 43.5% refundable tax offset on your qualifying R&D expenditure.
It is a high-level, confidential assessment of your current financial architecture. We evaluate your baseline RDTI eligibility, look at your immediate cash flow pressures, and identify where a structured liquidity strategy could accelerate your growth. No commitment, just CFO-level clarity.