As one of the most research and development driven industries, the pharmaceutical industry has 
A number of recent breakthroughs in treatment for diseases like Hepatitis C, Ebola, malaria and even Alzheimer’s, are fueling an era of increased research and development in the pharmaceutical industry.
With more than 7,000 innovative drugs in development worldwide by pharmaceutical companies and over $500 billion invested in R&D since 2000, new advances in regenerative medicine and diagnostics are an area of tremendous growth. (“Innovation In Drug Research And Development By The Pharmaceutical Industry”)
R&D Trends
One important trend has been towards curing rarer diseases, with smaller patient populations. To improve services these people, governments have sped up the approval process for conditions where there is no existing treatment. This is leading to an increase in new treatments.
Another R&D trend occurring in the pharmaceutical industry is a movement toward reduction of patent protection. This being the case, in order to continue competing globally, there is a need to constantly develop and improve drugs, which may lead to many instances where there are technological obstacles that organizations run into – areas where testing and experimentation to overcome these obstacles is necessary.
These instances are where the Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) program comes in to assist you with the recovery of funds spent on testing and experimentation.
Challenges which lead to SR&ED
During drug discovery, often carried out by universities and research facilities, challenges include the identification of an organic compound that could inhibit or activate a biochemical reaction and its organic synthesis in order to achieve an acceptable yield with little or no side products.
During drug development, non-medicinal ingredients must be formulated with the active ingredient in order to achieve the desired effect. These activities would normally qualify as research and development under the SR&ED program.
More Eligible SR&ED projects
Your company may be working on SR&ED eligible projects without being aware that it qualifies. To give you some examples of SR&ED eligible activity in your industry, here are some more activities that likely qualify:
- experimentation with the synthesis of a compound
- identification of adverse effects during pre-clinical studies or clinical trials
- improvement of drug stability
- improvement of drug affinity
How to take advantage of the opportunity
In Canada, the pharmaceutical industry is increasing annually – from 2001 to 2010, the GDP in this industry rose by $600 million, making Canada’s pharmaceutical market the eighth largest in the world. If your company is involved in this growth, you may qualify for tax credits to offset the cost of your research and development.
Since SR&ED claims require technical knowledge as well and financial and accounting skills, our consultants are engineers and industry experts who understand your business and the claims process thoroughly.
Take advantage of every available resource to keep your company competitive by maximizing your R&D efforts. Contact ECR today to arrange a free, no-risk consultation.
“Innovation In Drug Research And Development By The Pharmaceutical Industry”. Phrma.org. N.p., 2016. Web. 30 Apr. 2016.