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Practical Income Manual 2020.

C. Exclusions (art. 35.3 LIS) and prior assessment of expenses

Exclusions

Regulations: Art. 35.3 LIS

The assumptions that are not considered research and development nor technological innovation activities are the following:

  1. Activities that do not involve significant scientific or technological novelty . In particular, routine efforts to improve the quality of products or processes, the adaptation of an existing product or production process to specific requirements imposed by a customer, periodic or seasonal changes, except textile and industry samples footwear, tanning, leather goods, toys, furniture and wood, as well as aesthetic or minor modifications to existing products to differentiate them from other similar ones.
  2. The activities of industrial production and provision of services or distribution of goods and services . In particular, the planning of productive activity: the preparation and start of production, including the setting of tools and those other activities other than those referred to in numbers 1 to 4 of letter b) of section 2 of article 35 of the LIS ; the incorporation or modification of facilities, machines, equipment and systems for production that are not affected by activities classified as research and development or innovation; the solution of technical problems of interrupted production processes; quality control and standardization of products and processes; prospecting in social sciences and market studies; the establishment of networks or facilities for marketing; the training and formation of personnel related to said activities.
  3. The exploration, drilling or prospecting of minerals and hydrocarbons

Prior assessment of expenses corresponding to scientific research or technological innovation projects

Regulations: Art. 38 Regulation IS , approved by Royal Decree 634/2015, of July 10

Persons or entities that have the purpose of carrying out scientific research or technological innovation activities may request from the Tax Administration the valuation, in accordance with the Corporate Tax rules and, on a prior and binding basis, of the expenses corresponding to said activities. that they consider susceptible to enjoying this deduction, establishing the aforementioned regulatory precept the content of the application and the procedure to follow.