Private ruling: Early stage innovation companies
Date of advice: 11 February 2022
Published: May 2022
Ruling period: 1X July 20XX to 30 June 20XX

Ruling: Q1: Does Company A satisfy the conditions to be an early stage innovation company (ESIC) under subsection 360-40(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997)? | A1: Yes.

Relevant facts and circumstances: Company A was incorporated in Australia in July 20XX. Its equity interests are not listed for quotation in the official list of any stock exchange. Company A has no subsidiaries. In respect of the income year ended 30 June 20XX (i.e. the income year previous to the 20XX income year), Company A had nil expenses and nil assessable income since it was not in existence. In respect of the year ended 30 June 20XX (i.e. the income year previous to the 20XX income year), Company A had total expenses of $X and nil assessable income. Company A is developing a technology platform that is a significantly improved product compared to that offered by competitors. Company A owns the IP underlying the technology platform. Company A has taken steps to commercialise the platform including recruiting staff into the business and demonstrating the platform concept with an initial group of interested parties to help trial the platform. It has also applied for and obtained registered trademark and internet domain names for the platform brand. Although the first alpha version of the platform has been released, Company A is working on developing an 'Open Application Programming Interface' which will help with the integration of the platform with interested parties. Company A's initial target market is a number of select industries in Australia but eventually it intends to expand the target industries and also expand overseas. Company A has raised capital in the income year ended 30 June 20XX and also intends to raise additional capital during the income year ending 30 June 20XX.

Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Subdivision 360-A | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 section 360-40 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subsection 360-40(1) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(a) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(a)(i) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(a)(ii) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(a)(iii) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(b) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(c) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(d) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(e) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(i) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(ii) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iii) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iv) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(v) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 paragraph 360-40(1)(f) | Corporations Act 2001 section 9

Reasons for decision: Summary: All legislative references are to the ITAA 1997. | Detailed Reasoning - Qualifying early stage innovation company: Subsection 360-40(1) outlines the criteria required for a company to qualify as an ESIC at a particular time in an income year. This time is referred to as the test time. The criteria are based on a series of tests to identify if the company is at an early stage of its development and it is developing new or significantly improved innovations to generate an economic return. | Detailed Reasoning - 'The early stage test': The early stage test requirements are outlined in detail within paragraphs 360-40(1)(a) to (d). | Detailed Reasoning - Incorporation or registration - paragraph 360-40(1)(a): To meet the requirement in paragraph 360-40(1)(a), at a particular time (the test time) in an income year (the current year) the company must have been either: The term 'current year' is defined in subsection 360-40(1) with reference to the 'test time'; the 'current year' being the income year in which the company issues shares to the investor. A company that does not meet any of these conditions will not qualify as an ESIC. | Detailed Reasoning - Total expenses - paragraph 360-40(1)(b): To meet the requirement in paragraph 360-40(1)(b), the company and its 100% subsidiaries must have incurred total expenses of $1 million or less in the income year before the current year. | Detailed Reasoning - Assessable income - paragraph 360-40(1)(c): To meet the requirement in paragraph 360-40(1)(c), the company and its 100% subsidiaries must have derived total assessable income of $200,000 or less in the income year before the current year. | Detailed Reasoning - No stock exchange listing - paragraph 360-40(1)(d): To meet the requirement in paragraph 360-40(1)(d), the company must not be listed on any stock exchange in Australia or a foreign country. | Detailed Reasoning - Innovation tests: If the company satisfies the early stage test, the company must also satisfy one of two innovation tests: the objective (100 point) test [1] or the principles-based test. | Detailed Reasoning - 'Principles-based test' - subparagraphs 360-40(1)(e)(i) to (v): To satisfy the principles-based test, the company must meet five requirements in paragraph 360-40(1)(e). This is tested at a time immediately after the relevant new shares are issued to the investor. The company can demonstrate that it meets each requirement through existing documentation such as a business plan, commercialisation strategy, competition analysis or other company documents. The company must be able to show that tangible steps have been or will be taken in relation to each of the requirements. The five requirements of the principles-based test, as outlined in paragraph 360-40(1)(e) are: i. the company must be genuinely focused on developing one or more new or significantly improved innovations for commercialisation; ii. the business relating to that innovation must have a high growth potential; iii. the company must demonstrate that it has the potential to be able to successfully scale up the business relating to the innovation; iv. the company must demonstrate that it has the potential to be able to address a broader than local market, including global markets, through that business; and v. the company must demonstrate that it has the potential to be able to have competitive advantages for that business. | Detailed Reasoning - Developing new or significantly improved innovations for commercialisation: For the purposes of Subdivision 360-A, the Explanatory Memorandum to the Tax Laws Amendment (Tax Incentives for Innovation) Bill 2016 provides the following at paragraph 1.76 in relation to the definition of innovation: Implicit in the definition of innovation is the requirement that the company is developing a new or significantly improved type of innovation such as a product, process, service, marketing or organisational method. This list of various types of innovations provides flexibility for innovation companies and is adaptable to current and future innovations. The Oslo Manual, published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) provides a description of these different types of innovations... The innovation being developed by the company must either be new or significantly improved for an applicable addressable market. The company's addressable market is the revenue opportunity or market demand arising from the innovation or the related business. The addressable market must be objective and realistic. Improvements must be significant in nature to meet this requirement. Customising existing products or minor changes resulting from software updates, pricing strategies or seasonal changes are examples of improvements that would not be considered significant. The OECD Oslo Manual defines innovations as significant changes, with the intention of distinguishing significant changes from routine minor changes. However, it is important to recognise that an innovation can also consist of a series of smaller incremental changes that together constitute a significant change. [2] In discussing services innovation activity, paragraph 111 of the OECD Oslo Manual states: Innovation activity in services also tends to be a continuous process, consisting of a series of incremental changes in products and processes. This may occasionally complicate the identification of innovations in services in terms of single events, i.e. as the implementation of a significant change in products, processes or other methods. The OECD Oslo Manual, in relation to defining innovative services, states at paragraph 161 that "innovations in services can include significant improvements in how they are provided (for example, in terms of their efficiency or speed), the addition of new functions or characteristics to existing services, or the introduction of entirely new services." The company must be genuinely focused on developing the innovation for a commercial purpose in order to generate economic value and revenue for the company. This requirement draws the distinction between simply having an idea and commercialising an idea. 'Commercialisation' includes a range of activities that involve the implementation or sale of a new or significantly improved innovation that will directly lead to the generation of economic value for the company. | Detailed Reasoning - High growth potential: The company must be able to demonstrate that it has the potential for high growth within a broad addressable market. This refers to the company's ability to rapidly expand its business. Companies that are limited to supplying local customers will not meet this requirement. | Detailed Reasoning - Scalability: The company must be able to demonstrate that it has the potential to successfully scale up the business. The company must have operating leverage, where as it increases its market share or enters into new markets, its existing revenues can be multiplied with a reduced or minimal increase in operating costs per unit. | Detailed Reasoning - Broader than local market: The company must be able to demonstrate that it has the potential to address a market that is broader than a local city, area or region. The company does not need to have a serviceable market at a national, multinational or global scale at the test time. However, it does need to show that the business is capable of addressing a market that is broader than a local market and that the business can be adapted to a broader scale in the future. | Detailed Reasoning - Competitive advantages: The company must be able to demonstrate that it has the potential to have competitive advantages, such as a cost or differential advantage over its competitors which are sustainable for the business as it expands. The company can analyse what competitors in the market offer, and consider whether the company has a differentiating advantage that would allow it to outperform these competitors. | Detailed Reasoning - Foreign company test - paragraph 360-40(1)(f): To meet the requirement in paragraph 360-40(1)(f), the company must not be a foreign company within the meaning of the Corporations Act 2001 at the test time . The dictionary in section 9 of the Corporations Act 2001 defines a foreign company to mean: (a) a body corporate that is incorporated in an external Territory, or outside Australia and the external Territories, and is not: (i) a corporation sole; or (ii) an exempt public authority; or (b) an unincorporated body that: (i) is formed in an external Territory or outside Australia and the external Territories; and (ii) under the law of its place of formation, may sue or be sued, or may hold property in the name of its secretary or of an officer of the body duly appointed for that purpose; and (iii) does not have its head office or principal place of business in Australia. | Detailed Reasoning - Test time: For the purposes of this ruling, the test time for determining if Company A is a qualifying ESIC will be a particular date during the income years ending 30 June 20XX and 20XX. | Detailed Reasoning - Current year: For the purposes of subsection 360-40(1), the current year will be either the year ended 30 June 20XX (the 20XX income year) or the year ending 30 June 20XX (the 20XX income year). | Detailed Reasoning - Incorporation or registration - paragraph 360-40(1)(a): In respect of the 20XX income year, as Company A was incorporated on 14 July 20XX, which is within the last 3 income years, subparagraph 360-40(1)(a)(i) is satisfied. In respect of the 20XX income year, as Company A was incorporated on 14 July 20XX, which is within the last 3 income years, subparagraph 360-40(1)(a)(i) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Total expenses - paragraph 360-40(1)(b): In respect of the 20XX income year, Company A had nil expenses in the prior income year (the 20XX income year) since it did not exist, therefore paragraph 360-40(1)(b) is satisfied. In respect of the 20XX income year, as Company A had expenses of $1 million or less in the prior income year (the 20XX income year) paragraph 360-40(1)(b) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Assessable income - paragraph 360-40(1)(c): In respect of the 20XX income year, Company A had nil assessable income in the prior income year (the 20XX income year) since it did not exist, therefore paragraph 360-40(1)(c) is satisfied. In respect of the 20XX income year, Company A had nil assessable income in the prior income year (the 20XX income year) so paragraph 360-40(1)(c) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - No stock exchange listing - paragraph 360-40(1)(d): As Company A is privately owned and is not listed on any stock exchange in Australia or a foreign country paragraph 360-40(1)(d) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Conclusion on early stage test: Company A will satisfy the early stage test for the period 1X July 20XX to 30 June 20XX, as each of the requirements within paragraphs 360-40(1)(a) to (d) have been satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Developing new or significantly improved innovations for commercialisation - subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(i): Company A is genuinely focussed on developing its platform for a commercial purpose. Company A's platform will be a significantly improved service compared to existing services. Company A has not yet made its first commercial sale to any party. Therefore subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(i) will be satisfied for the time period from 1X July 20XX until 30 June 20XX or from 1X July 20XX to the date when the platform has been fully developed if that occurs before 30 June 20XX. Once the platform has been fully developed, Company A will no longer be 'developing' the product for commercialisation and subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(i) will no longer be satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - High growth potential - subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(ii): Company A expects its platform to appeal to a wide range of parties in many industries. Company A has demonstrated that it has high growth potential with its platform both in Australia and overseas. Therefore subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(ii) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Scalability - subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iii): Company A has demonstrated that it has the potential to scale up its business. Therefore subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iii) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Broader than local market - subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iv): Company A's platform will initially be targeted at the Australian market but is intended for worldwide use. It will be released globally once it gains traction in the initial targeted markets. The platform can be used worldwide by any service provider. Company A has demonstrated that the platform has the potential to address a broader market than just the local market, including international markets. Therefore subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(iv) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Competitive advantages - subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(v): Company A has demonstrated the potential for the platform to have competitive advantages within its markets, satisfying subparagraph 360-40(1)(e)(v). | Detailed Reasoning - Conclusion on principles test: Company A satisfies the principles based test as it satisfies the requirements within subparagraphs 360-40(1)(e)(i) to (v) for the period 1X July 20XX to 30 June 20XX unless the platform is fully developed before 30 June 20XX in which case Company A only satisfies the principles based test from 1X July 20XX to the date the platform is fully developed. | Detailed Reasoning - Foreign Company Test: As Company A was incorporated in Australia it is not a foreign company and paragraph 360-40(1)(f) is satisfied. | Detailed Reasoning - Conclusion: Company A meets the eligibility criteria of an ESIC under section 360-40 for the period 1X July 20XX to 30 June 20XX unless the platform is fully developed before 30 June 20XX in which case Company A only satisfies the criteria of an ESIC from 1X July 20XX to the date the platform is fully developed. [1] The objective (100 point) test is not considered for the purposes of this ruling. [2] OECD Oslo Manual, paragraph 124 and paragraph 151.

incorporated in Australia within the last three income years (the latest being the current year); or | incorporated in Australia within the last six income years (the latest being the current year), and across the last three of those income years before the current year the company and its 100% subsidiaries incurred total expenses of $1 million or less; or | registered in the Australian Business Register within the last three income years (the latest being the current year).