Accounting, tax & financial pros
Books and taxes for R&D tax credit firms.
A contingency fee tied to the credit a study actually finds, subcontract engineers doing site visits, and commissions paid to the accounting firms that send you clients. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August made $29,000. The Larkspur Manufacturing study fee is on its own line, kept apart from your flat fee work, since it was sized to the credit that study actually found.
- Larkspur Manufacturing study feeContingency fees
- Flat fee study, small clientFlat fee studies
- Subcontract engineer, site visitsContract engineering labor
- Referral commission, Whitmore AccountingReferral fees paid
- Study prep software renewalCredit study software
Why your books are different
An R&D credit study firm's own books go wrong in a few predictable spots.
You build a study that ties a fee to the size of a credit someone else finds hidden in their engineering work. Your own firm's books need the same discipline, because a contingency fee, a subcontract engineer, and a referral commission all behave differently and rarely get tracked that way.
-
1
Contingency fees and flat fee studies blend together
A fee sized to the credit a study actually identifies and a flat fee charged to a smaller client both often land in the same revenue line, hiding how much of the firm's income depends on larger, credit-sized engagements.
What we doKeeps contingency fees separate from flat fee studies, so the firm can see how much of its income rides on credit size versus steady flat-fee work. -
2
Subcontract engineers get lumped into general contract labor
Engineers brought in for client site visits and technical interviews are a real, study-specific cost, but they usually land in a general contract labor account with no link to which study they supported.
What we doKeeps subcontract engineering costs tied to the study they supported, so the firm can see whether a given study was worth its cost. -
3
Referral commissions paid to accounting firms get buried
A commission paid to the accounting firm or advisor who sent a client is a real and often significant cost of winning that engagement, but it frequently gets folded into a general expense account instead of tracked against the referral relationship.
What we doKeeps referral commissions paid out in their own line, so the firm can see what each referral source is actually worth. -
4
Site visit travel for engineering interviews rides along with general travel
Visiting a client's shop floor or lab to interview engineers is often necessary to document a credit study, but the travel cost behind it usually lands in general travel with no link to the study it supported.
What we doKeeps site visit travel tied to the study it supported, so the real cost of building each credit study is visible. -
5
A large contingency fee makes one month look unrepeatable
A study tied to a large manufacturer's credit can pay far more than a routine engagement, and if it is not flagged, that month can look like a new normal instead of one strong study finally paying out.
What we doFlags unusually large contingency fees, so a big month reads as one study's size, not a shift in the whole business.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an R&D credit study firm.
Set up once for how your firm bills and spends. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Contingency feesSized to the credit a study identifies for the client.
- Flat fee studiesSet fees for smaller or simpler engagements.
- Referral incomeStudies sent over by other accounting firms or advisors.
- Consultation feesInitial eligibility reviews billed apart from a full study.
Money out
- Contract engineering laborEngineers brought in for site visits and technical interviews.
- Referral fees paidCommissions paid to accounting firms that send clients.
- Credit study softwareTools used to document and organize each study.
- Travel to client sitesVisiting shop floors and labs to interview engineers.
- Professional liability insuranceCoverage sized for exposure if a credit is challenged.
- Continuing educationCourses tracking how the credit and its rules develop.
What we watch for you
- Contingency versus flat fee split
How much of your income depends on credit size versus steady flat-fee work.
- Engineering cost per study
Subcontract engineer cost against what each study actually pays.
- Referral commission cost
What each referral source is paid against what it brings in.
- Site visit cost per study
Travel against study fees, so field work stays worth doing.
Ask Gus
Things R&D credit study firm owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
Not likely. I flagged that fee as unusually large for the credit it found, so this reads as one big study, not a new normal.
About $2,200 this month. I keep referral commissions in their own line, so you can see exactly what that relationship costs against what it brings in.
That one is above my pay grade to settle from the books alone. I can show the accountant your subcontract engineering costs against your study volume, and that conversation can start from real numbers.
The tax side
The tax side of running an R&D credit study firm.
Most of what trips up your own return is timing, the same care you use to document exactly when a client's engineering work qualifies for a credit.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- A contingency fee is usually earned at delivery, not laterA fee tied to a credit's size is usually earned when the study is delivered and the credit is documented, not whenever the client eventually uses it on a filed return.
- 1099s for subcontract engineersA subcontract engineer brought in for site visits, paid $2,000 or more in 2026 and not on payroll, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- Self-employment tax and the S corp questionContingency fees and flat fee studies together make up net profit, and all of it owes 15.3 percent self-employment tax up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base. Electing S corp status by March 15 can change how much of it gets taxed that way.
- Section 179 on study equipmentComputers and study documentation software bought for the firm can usually be written off in the year purchased, up to $2,560,000.
Deductions R&D tax credit firms miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Credit study software
- Travel to client engineering sites
- Subcontract engineer payments
- Referral commissions paid out
- Professional liability insurance
- Continuing education courses
- Home office costs
- Computer and workstation upgrades
- Secure document storage
- Conference travel
- Industry publication subscriptions
- Document preparation costs
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
An R&D credit study firm's year, kept every month.
Studies cluster around your clients' own filing deadlines, not a calendar you control. Gus keeps your own numbers steady in the background, whatever your study pipeline looks like this quarter. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
New studies line up
New engagements come in ahead of the spring filing rush, last year's own return gets started, and a set-aside gets planned around contingency fee timing.
- April
Filed, credits and all
Your own return is filed and signed, whether or not the year's largest contingency fee has landed yet.
- July
Midyear study check
Where the firm stands, how many studies are in progress, and whether referral commissions are still worth what they bring in.
- October
Before extended filing deadlines
A look at studies likely to wrap up before extended returns are due, and what equipment or staffing is worth adding before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for R&D tax credit firms. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions R&D credit study firm owners ask first.
Can Gus keep a big contingency fee from making the whole year look inflated?
Yes. Unusually large fees get flagged against the credit size they came from, so a big month reads as one study's size, not the business suddenly growing.
Can Gus tell my contingency fees apart from flat fee studies?
Yes. They stay in separate lines, so you can see how much of your income depends on credit size versus steady flat-fee work.
I pay a few accounting firms a commission for referrals. Where does that show up?
In its own referral fees line, separate from general expenses, so you can see what each relationship actually costs against what it brings in.
My engineers travel to client sites for interviews. How does that get tracked?
Tied to the study it supported, so you can see the real cost of building each credit study against what it pays.
I have not looked at the firm's own books since spring. Is that fixable?
Yes. Studies come first, understandably. Send the statements you have, and Gus will work through the backlog while the accountant checks behind him.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever