Commonwealth Numbered Regulations Commonwealth Numbered Regulations(1) For subsection 29A (3) of the Act, a registration of an entity as a research service provider is subject to the conditions specified in subregulations (2) and (4).
Note If the entity breaches a condition, the Board may, under subsection 29H (1) of the Act, revoke the entity's registration as a research service provider.
(2) The conditions are:
(a) the research service provider is competent to manage and provide services in relation to R&D activities; and
(b) the research service provider acts in the best interests of each of the R&D entities in relation to the services that the research service provider is providing to the R&D entities under contractual arrangements; and
(c) the services provided by the research service provider are controlled by the R&D entity, or R&D entities, to which the services are provided; and
(d) the research service provider maintains, to the extent required under contractual or other arrangements between the research service provider and an R&D entity:
(i) the confidentiality of the services it provides to the R&D entity in relation to R&D activities; and
(ii) the security of information given to the research service provider by the R&D entity; and
(e) the research service provider has a management structure that is appropriate for the research service provider to manage the provision of services in relation to R&D activities on a day-to-day basis (such as a committee that manages the provision of the service); and
(f) the research service provider keeps separate financial records for services provided in relation to each R&D activity; and
(g) the research service provider ensures that the R&D entity to which the research service provider provides services in relation to R&D activities owns, or has a right to use, all results of those services, including the results of any services provided by a subcontractor of the research service provider in relation to the R&D activities; and
(h) the research service provider maintains records of services provided in relation to R&D activities for each R&D entity, including records of the charges made to the entity and a copy of the contract to provide the services, and makes those records available on request by the Board; and
(i) the research service provider gives the Board an annual report in relation to the services the research service provider provided in relation to R&D activities during the period covered by the annual report, and the annual report is in a form approved by the Board; and
(j) the research service provider subcontracts the provision of services only if:
(i) the research service provider is providing part of the services; and
(ii) the research service provider is not able to provide the remainder of the services; and
(k) if the research service provider provides services outside Australia in relation to R&D activities for an R&D entity -- the research service provider must tell the R&D entity and the Board about the services provided outside Australia before the end of the income year in which the service was provided.
Note If expenditure on an activity conducted outside Australia is to be claimed as a tax offset under Division 355 of the ITAA 1997, the activity must be covered by a finding under paragraph 28C (1) (a) of the Act.
(3) For paragraph (2) (a), when deciding whether a research service provider is competent to manage and provide services in relation to R&D activities, the matters the Board must consider include:
(a) whether the research service provider has administrative arrangements for planning and managing the provision of the services; and
(b) the performance of the research service provider in relation to services provided in relation to R&D activities (particularly those that produced commercial results); and
(c) the annual cost of services provided in relation to R&D activities; and
(d) the main source of income of the research service provider.
(4) If the entity is a research service provider (levy collecting) for a financial year, it is also a condition of the registration that the research service provider:
(a) gives the Board details of the services in relation to R&D activities the research service provider provided in the financial year for which the research service provider is registered ; and
(b) gives the Board a written report about how much of the levies collected by the research service provider in the financial year was used for providing services in relation to R&D activities, and how much was not; and
(c) gives the details mentioned in paragraph (a) and the report mentioned in paragraph (b) to the Board within:
(i) 10 months after the end of the financial year; or
(ii) a further period allowed by the Board; and
(d) gives the Board any further information requested by the Board in relation to the services provided during the financial year by the research service provider.