Maryland R&D Credit Application: A November 15, 2026 Checklist

The short answer: to earn a Maryland R&D tax credit for research done in tax year 2025, a business must submit an application to the Maryland Department of Commerce by November 15, 2026. The date comes from the statute itself, Md. Code, Tax-General §10-721(c)(1): November 15 of the calendar year after the tax year in which the Maryland research expenses were incurred. Because November 15, 2026 falls on a Sunday, Commerce’s program page lists tax year 2025 applications as open June 1 through November 16, 2026. Plan to file by the 15th and treat the extra day as a buffer.

The application is not a formality. Maryland’s credit is certified by Commerce out of a capped annual pool before anyone can claim it on a return. No application means no certificate, and without a certificate there is nothing to claim. This guide covers the deadline, how the credit is computed and prorated, how small businesses get a refund, and what happens after you apply.

When is the Maryland R&D tax credit application due?

Commerce states the rule plainly: a business must submit its application no later than November 15 of the calendar year following the tax year in which the Maryland qualified research and development expenses were incurred.

For a calendar-year business:

• Tax year 2025 expenses: apply by November 15, 2026. The portal is listed as open June 1 through November 16, 2026.
• Tax year 2026 expenses: apply by November 15, 2027.

For a fiscal-year business, the statute keys the deadline to the end of the tax year. A fiscal year that ended during 2025 is due by November 15, 2026.

Notice the sequencing. The federal extended deadline for calendar-year C corporations and individuals was October 15, 2026, so a calendar-year company on extension usually files its federal and Maryland returns before the Maryland application is due, and months before a certificate arrives. Commerce’s page acknowledges that application dates follow the filing date for taxes, which is why the credit is usually claimed on an amended or later return.

How the Maryland credit is calculated

Maryland now has a single credit: 10% of Maryland qualified research and development expenses above a Maryland base amount (§10-721(b)(2)). Older Commerce application instructions described a separate 3% “basic” credit and a 10% “growth” credit. The current statute and program page describe only the 10% credit, so treat any guide that still splits the two as out of date.

Two definitions do most of the work, and both borrow from federal law:

• Maryland qualified research is research that meets the federal definition in §41(d) and is conducted in Maryland.
• Maryland qualified research and development expenses are §41(b) qualified research expenses incurred for that Maryland research: in-house wages, supplies, computer rental and the qualifying share of contract research. Our qualified research expenses guide covers each category.

The base follows Commerce’s published method:

1. Gather Maryland gross receipts for the claim year and the four preceding years, or for the years the business existed.
2. Gather Maryland qualified research expenses for the same years.
3. Divide average Maryland research expenses by average Maryland gross receipts for the preceding years. That is the base percentage.
4. Multiply the base percentage by average Maryland gross receipts. That is the Maryland base amount.
5. Subtract the base amount from the current year’s Maryland research expenses and take 10%.

Illustrative only. Every figure below is invented to show the mechanics.

A company has $1,200,000 of Maryland research expenses in 2025. Over the four prior years it averaged $900,000 of Maryland research expenses on $6,000,000 of Maryland gross receipts. The base percentage is 15%, the base amount is $900,000, and the excess is $300,000. The computed credit is $30,000, before any proration.

Commerce adds one helpful rule: if the claim year is the first year the business incurred research expenses, the Maryland base amount is zero and the credit is 10% of that year’s Maryland research expenses.

For a group, §10-721(e) treats all members of a §41(f) controlled group as a single taxpayer. Commerce’s FAQ says only the parent applies, and each Maryland subsidiary is allocated a share in proportion to its own Maryland research expenses.

How the $12 million pool is certified and prorated

The computed number is a request, not an award. The statute caps approved credits at $12,000,000 per calendar year and splits that pool:

• $3,500,000 is reserved for small businesses.
• $8,500,000 is available to applicants that are not small businesses.
• If either group applies for less than its share, the unused room moves to the other group.
• If a group applies for more than its share, each applicant in that group receives the credit it applied for multiplied by the group’s share divided by the group’s total requests.
• No single applicant may be approved for more than $250,000.

Commerce’s own example shows how the limits stack. A non-small business applies for $500,000 in a year when non-small businesses request $15,000,000 in total. Its prorated amount is $283,333, which exceeds the per-applicant maximum, so it is approved for $250,000.

Commerce then certifies the approved amount by February 15 of the year after the application. For tax year 2025 applications filed in 2026, that means by February 15, 2027.

Small businesses: the refundable version

This is the part of the Maryland credit that matters most to startups. Credits certified after December 15, 2012 are refundable for a small business to the extent they exceed the business’s Maryland income tax for the year. A pre-profit company can therefore turn a certified credit into cash.

The statute defines a small business as a for-profit corporation, LLC, partnership or sole proprietorship with net book value assets of less than $5,000,000, at the beginning or the end of the tax year in which the research expenses were incurred, as reported on the balance sheet. “Net book value assets” means the total net value of assets, including intangibles, without subtracting liabilities, less depreciation and amortization. Small businesses must submit documentation of the asset test with the application.

On the return, the Comptroller’s Form 500CR separates the two versions: Part K-I for businesses not certified as a small business (non-refundable) and Part K-II for businesses certified as a small business (refundable). At the federal level, the comparable cash route for young companies is the payroll tax offset, and the two can apply to the same research year.

How to apply through the Commerce portal

Applications go through Commerce’s online portal at rdtaxcredit.commerce.maryland.gov, linked from the program page. Have these ready before you open it:

1. Maryland gross receipts for the claim year and the four preceding years.
2. Maryland qualified research expenses for the same years, limited to research performed in Maryland.
3. Your federal credit computation for the same year. Maryland borrows the federal definitions, so the Maryland figures should reconcile to the federal study.
4. For a small business, the balance sheet showing net book value assets under $5,000,000 at the beginning or end of the year.
5. For a controlled group, the parent’s figures covering every member’s Maryland expenses.

Location deserves attention. Under §10-721(f), Commerce and the Comptroller may consider where services were performed, where the people performing them live or work, and where supplies were consumed in deciding whether research was conducted in Maryland. If part of the engineering team works from other states, the Maryland number is not simply the federal number.

After you apply: the certificate, then the claim

Once Commerce certifies the credit, §10-721(c)(8) gives two ways to claim it:

1. Amend the return for the tax year the expenses were incurred and attach a copy of the certification; or
2. Attach the certification to a return filed for any of the seven tax years after that year.

Credit beyond the year’s tax carries forward until the end of the seventh tax year after the year the expenses were incurred. A small business can instead claim a refund of the excess.

Three filing mechanics your preparer will handle. The credit is claimed on Form 500CR, and the Comptroller requires business tax credits to be claimed on an electronically filed return unless a waiver is granted on Form 500CRW. The 2025 Form 500 instructions list the Maryland R&D credit among the credits that must be added back as an addition modification (line 7f, code B). And pass-through entities allocate the credit to owners under the Comptroller’s regulations.

Maryland R&D credit timeline for calendar-year 2025 expenses

Maryland R&D credit timeline for calendar-year 2025 expenses

Date	What happens
June 1, 2026	Commerce portal opens for tax year 2025 applications
October 15, 2026	Federal extended filing deadline for calendar-year C corporations and individuals
November 15, 2026	Statutory application deadline (a Sunday; the portal is listed as open through November 16)
By February 15, 2027	Commerce certifies approved credit amounts
After certification	Claim on an amended 2025 return, or on a return for any of tax years 2026 through 2032

Five ways Maryland credits get lost

1. The federal return is done, so the file is closed. The Maryland application comes after the federal extended deadline. Put November 15 on the calendar separately.
2. Treating the request as the award. Proration and the $250,000 ceiling can cut the certified amount well below the computed one.
3. The wrong entity applies. In a controlled group, the parent applies for the group.
4. Out-of-state research in a Maryland number. Remote staff and out-of-state contractors need to be separated out.
5. No proof of small-business status. The refund depends on the asset test, and the test depends on the balance sheet.

How a Ricerca study handles Maryland

A Ricerca study computes the Maryland figure from the same substantiated expense base as the federal §41 credit, applying the Maryland entry in our rules registry, so the number on the Commerce application ties back to the federal workpapers. Your CPA or tax preparer signs and files the return and attaches the certificate. For the other states we cover, see our 2026 state credit table, and for the rest of the fourth quarter, the year-end R&D credit checklist.

New to the credit itself? Start with the R&D tax credit guide.

FAQ

Is the 2026 deadline November 15 or November 16?

The statute and Commerce’s program page both say November 15. Because November 15, 2026 is a Sunday, Commerce lists the tax year 2025 portal as open through November 16, 2026. Filing by the 15th satisfies both readings.

Can I claim the Maryland credit without applying to Commerce?

No. The statute requires the application, and claiming the credit requires attaching Commerce’s certification to the return.

Is the Maryland R&D tax credit refundable?

Only for a small business, defined as having net book value assets under $5,000,000 at the beginning or end of the tax year. Other businesses use the credit against Maryland income tax and carry any excess forward up to seven years.

We just started doing R&D. Do we qualify?

Possibly, and the math favors you. Commerce’s FAQ says that if the claim year is your first year of research expenses, the base amount is zero and the credit is 10% of that year’s Maryland research expenses, subject to proration.

What if we miss the November 15 deadline?

Neither the statute nor Commerce’s program page describes a late-application route. The practical step is to prepare early for the next year’s application.

How long will the program run?

The statute bars Commerce from approving a credit for a tax year beginning after December 31, 2030. Commerce’s page says the credit remains in effect until January 31, 2031, subject to extension by the General Assembly.

Sources

• Maryland Department of Commerce - Research and Development Tax Credit (program page and FAQ)
• Md. Code, Tax-General §10-721 (Maryland General Assembly)
• Maryland R&D Tax Credit application portal (Maryland Department of Commerce)
• Comptroller of Maryland - Tax Year 2025 Corporate Income Tax Booklet (Form 500 and Form 500CR references)
• Maryland Department of Commerce - prior-year application instructions (PDF) (describes the former basic and growth credits)
• IRC §41 - Credit for increasing research activities (U.S. House, Office of the Law Revision Counsel)