Indiana R&D credit rules for TY2026
Each row is a field from the registry entry our engine applies. A blank field says so; it is never filled in.
- Credit for TY2026
- Current credit Yes. Our rules registry carries a current Indiana research credit for tax year 2026.
- Structure
- Incremental: the credit applies to qualified research expenses above a state base amount
- Credit rate
- 15% on the first $1,000,000 of the credit base, then 10% above it A two-tier slab, applied by the engine in that order.
- Base method
- The state adopts the federal §41 base computation, applied to Indiana qualified research expenses.
- Carryforward
- 10 years
- Carryback
- None recorded
- Refundable?
- Not determined in our registry - we confirm it in the study The registry treats an unverified "nonrefundable" as unknown rather than asserting it.
- State form
- Schedule IN-RDC
- Statute
- IC 6-3.1-4-2
How the Indiana credit is computed
The Indiana credit is incremental: it applies to the qualified research expenses that exceed a state base amount, not to the whole year's spending. The registry carries a two-tier rate: 15% on the first $1,000,000 of the credit base and 10% on the amount above it.
The state adopts the federal §41 base computation, applied to Indiana qualified research expenses.
Unused credit carries forward 10 years. Refundability: not determined in our registry, so the study confirms it against the statute rather than asserting it here.
Ricerca computes the Indiana figure from the same substantiated expenses as the federal §41 credit, under the registry entry for the year claimed. Where the registry is silent, the study says so and the point is resolved with your return preparer, not assumed.
Claiming it alongside the federal credit
The federal §41 credit comes first: it is computed from the qualified research expenses the study substantiates and filed on Form 6765 with the return. The Indiana credit is then computed from that same base under the state's own rules.
State credits generally reach only research performed in the state, so the study records where each expense was incurred as it is built, not at filing time.
One base, two computations
- 1 Qualify the activities under the four-part test and total the year's QREs.
- 2 Compute the federal §41 credit and file it on Form 6765.
- 3 Apply the Indiana entry above to the Indiana share of that base, and file it on Schedule IN-RDC.
What the registry tells the preparer
These notes travel with the Indiana entry inside the platform, reproduced verbatim for the person signing the return.
- Indiana's credit is computed under IC 6-3.1-4-2 as 15% of the qualified research expense increment up to $1,000,000 plus 10% of the increment above $1,000,000. IC 6-3.1-4-2.5 offers an ALTERNATIVE elective method (10% of Indiana QRE exceeding 50% of the average Indiana QRE for the 3 preceding taxable years); it is an affirmative election the preparer must make on the return and is NOT computed here. Indiana measures the base against INDIANA qualified research expense - confirm the base against the Indiana history before filing.
Registry sources
The citations the Indiana registry entry carries, verbatim: what the study cites and a reviewer can check.
- Statute
- IC 6-3.1-4-2
- Form
- Schedule IN-RDC
Registry entry version 2024.1, exported from services/study-api/app/engines/rules_engine.py (STATE_RULES_2024 + STATE_RULES_REGIME_OVERRIDES via RulesEngine.get_state_rules) on September 10, 2026. The entry above governs TY2026; a study for an earlier year uses that year's entry.
See what an Indiana study could capture
Tell us what your team builds and we will come back with what a Ricerca study could capture: the federal §41 credit, the Indiana credit above it, and the §174A deduction. Free, and no obligation.