The Massachusetts R&D tax credit, explained
Massachusetts offers a state R&D credit worth 10% of qualified research spending above a base amount, plus 15% for university research.
Last verified July 2026 against Massachusetts Department of Revenue guidance.
The short answer
Yes. Massachusetts has run its own research credit since the 1990s, separate from the federal R&D credit. The standard rate is 10% of Massachusetts qualified research expenses above a base amount, plus 15% of payments for basic research done through outside research organizations like universities.
How the Massachusetts credit works
Companies can also use an alternative simplified method: 10% of the year's qualified research spending above half of the average from the prior three years. Only research physically performed in Massachusetts counts toward either calculation.
The credit is not refundable for most companies. It offsets the corporate excise tax, and each return can use only $25,000 plus 75% of the excise liability above that amount in a single year, so larger credits build up as a carryforward. A separate rule lets DOR-certified life sciences companies convert up to 90% of an unused credit balance into a cash refund.
How it stacks with the federal credit
Massachusetts' credit stacks with the federal R&D credit, which runs roughly 6% to 10% of qualified spending. Startups under $5 million in revenue can apply up to $500,000 of the federal credit against payroll tax each year, which gives them cash back well before they owe income tax.
Take a Massachusetts biotech startup with 25 researchers and an average salary of $150,000, or about $3.75 million in wages. If qualified research spending comes out to $3 million for the year, and the prior three years averaged $1.5 million, the alternative simplified method gives a base of $750,000. The $2.25 million above that produces about $225,000 in Massachusetts credit at 10%.
At a federal rate near 8%, the same $3 million in spending could produce about $240,000 in federal credit, most of it usable against payroll tax right away. The Massachusetts credit adds to that total but is limited by the $25,000-plus-75%-of-liability rule each year, so a young company usually carries most of it forward. This is an example, and actual figures depend on wages, contractor spending, and each company's base-period calculation.
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Eligibility and how to claim it
Any corporation doing qualified research in Massachusetts can claim the credit, including early-stage software and life sciences companies. The research has to meet the same four-part federal test: technological in nature, aimed at eliminating uncertainty, involving a process of experimentation, and intended to improve a product or process.
The credit applies to the corporate excise tax only. It is not available against the personal income tax, so S corporation shareholders and partners in unincorporated pass-through entities do not get a personal-return version of it. Companies claim it on Schedule RC, Research Credit, filed with Form 355 or Form 355S.
Claimship prepares the research study and documentation behind the credit. Your CPA is the one who files Schedule RC with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue as part of your corporate excise return.
Official source: Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
Carryforward and deadlines
There is no separate application for the standard credit. Companies calculate it and claim it on Schedule RC when they file their annual Massachusetts corporate excise return.
Unused credit falls into two carryforward buckets. Amounts limited by the annual $25,000-plus-75% cap carry forward with no expiration. Amounts that exceed the corporate minimum excise floor carry forward for 15 years. Life sciences companies with DOR certification can instead elect a cash refund of up to 90% of the unused balance.