B.C. Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (BC IDMTC)

The BC IDMTC is a cash credit equal to 17.5% of eligible salaries of employees developing an interactive digital media product in BC, mainly video games. Contractors do not qualify. The claimant is required to meet the three characteristics of the “interactive” test for its product, the “principal business” test, and minimum salary requirement.

There are a number of other constraints including salaries cap and bonuses of owners. Claims are complicated by receipt of other “government assistance”. Each of these issues require detailed analysis to ensure the company is a) eligible and b) calculating the tax credit correctly.

The BC Ministry of Finance (BCMOF) will conduct a review to determine if the product qualifies. Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will conduct a review to determine if the calculation of the tax credit is accurate and complete.

By filing dozens of BC IDMTC claims since the inception of the program in 2010, we have come to understand the application of the BC IDMTC legislation as well as the BC MOF and CRA administrative policies in order to file accurate and complete claims for our clients. In some cases we worked with the BC MOF to establish parameters of eligibility for products not previously claimed. We also held discussions with the CRA decision makers to establish synergies between the federal SR&ED tax credits and the BC IDMTC. All of the applications we have filed to date were approved by the BC MOF and the tax credit claims were approved by the CRA after review.

There is a non-refundable application fee of $1,000 to $5,000 depending on the number of employees on your payroll. Contact us for a complimentary preliminary evaluation. If we determine your product qualifies and file the application on your behalf, we guarantee your application will be approved by the BC MOF or we will refund the application fee to you.

Our BC IDMTC Services

  • We take the uncertainty away from the filing process and have a time-proven methodology that minimizes the impact on your work schedule.
  • We prepare the application for registration and all supporting schedules.
  • We compile the eligible costs and calculate the tax credit from information you provide us.
  • We update the relevant tax schedules on your corporate income tax return to make a tax credit claim. We coordinate with your accountant to file the tax return with the CRA in prescribed manner. The filing deadline of the BC IDMTC claim is 18 months from your fiscal year-end.
  • We provide complete and proactive support during reviews by the BC MOF and CRA auditors. We have a reputation with the BC MOF and the CRA for filing eligible claims within the letter and spirit of the BC IDMTC legislation. We work with the reviewers in a cooperative and professional manner. Some of our consultants were former CRA reviewers.
  • We provide training on gathering and maintaining proper cost and activity documents to support future claims.

Testimonials

 

Garri prepared our Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit claims for the past two years. The first claim underwent a detailed review by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and substantially all of the tax credits claimed were approved. All of the tax credits claimed on the second, claim was approved. Garri worked collaboratively with the CRA auditors to facilitate a positive result to the review. I recommend Garri to prepare SR&ED tax credit claims. He has the depth and breadth of knowledge about the SR&ED program to efficiently prepare and defend our claim with minimal impact on our work schedule.

Dale Nelson

Controller Coppertree Analytics Inc.

 

We started working with Garri in 2013 with the intention of filing our SR&ED tax credit claim. Garri and his team handled our SR&ED claim with ease and offered to help us with the BC IDMTC claim. We had no previous experience with applying for the BC IDMTC. Garri was able to guide us, efficiently completing the application for registration and tax credit claim. After a site visit, the BC Ministry of Finance auditor approved the application and the Canada Revenue Agency allowed 100% of the tax credits claimed. I recommend the services of Garri Terzian, CPA to prepare BC IDMTC and SR&ED tax credit claims. Thanks to his expert knowledge and principled approach, we received a significant amount of cash injection into our business operations.

Chris Mair

CEO Hellbent Games Inc.

 

Garri and his team have filed five SR&ED tax credit claims for us to date. 100% of each claim was approved by the Canada Revenue Agency. Garri also introduced us to the BC Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (BC IDMTC) program and assisted us in every step of the filing process from identifying eligible activities, preparing the application for registration, preparing the detailed costing schedules, gathering and keeping documentation in support of the claim and assisting us during the government reviews. During the review the government auditor said “the details in the costing schedules are the best I have seen”. The application was approved and the Canada Revenue Agency allowed 100% of the tax credits claim. I highly recommend Garri’s services to prepare SR&ED and BC IDMTC claims.

Chris Stewart

CEO Kerberos Productions Inc.

I am the co-founder of Vancouver Full Indie, an organization for independent game developers with over 3,500 members. During one of the monthly networking meet-ups, Garri approached me and asked if my game studio was claiming the BC Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (BC IDMTC). We weren’t – my accountant told me earlier that we would not qualify and I didn’t question the matter further. Thankfully, I bumped into Garri, who specializes in IDMTC claims. He thought that my company was a perfect fit for the tax credit. Garri acted quickly to file the application and because of his speed we were able to meet the deadline for applying. Because he is very familiar with the IDMTC process, Garri was able to make sure everything went smoothly. That same year I heard about a few studios getting their claims rejected, but ours went well due to Garri’s expertise.The BC Ministry of Finance approved 100% of the application and the Canada Revenue Agency allowed 100% of the tax credit claim after a detailed review.

I highly recommend hiring Garri to prepare BC IDMTC claims.

Alex Vostrov

CEO Rocket Bear Games Inc.

Engaging Garri was the best decision we made for our SR&ED claims! After discussions with numerous SR&ED consulting firms and being disappointed, Garri was referred to us by an ex-colleague of mine from a big four international accounting firm because of Garri’s reputation in the industry and exceptional work. We had internally prepared a draft of our first SR&ED tax credit claim, but given the complexities of a SR&ED claim and our lack of prior experience with completing one, we wanted to hire a consultant to ensure a strong claim was filed. Garri achieved that for us! He was able to identify areas that not only improved the quality of the claim, but also the total tax credit! Despite us being a first-time claimant, our claim was not selected by CRA for review because of the excellent work Garri did. As a result, it expedited our SR&ED refund, which is critical to early stage companies like ours. The Canada Revenue Agency approved 100% of our 2021 tax credit and we expect the same for our 2022 filed claim. By working with Garri, our team developed a much deeper understanding of SR&ED as Garri goes beyond just preparing the claim and helps companies improve their documentation and claim processes. Garri was also instrumental in helping us obtain SR&ED financing. It’s important to find the right partner to work with when preparing your SR&ED claim and we were fortunate to find that partner in Garri Terzian, CPA. We will be engaging him for all our future SR&ED claims and highly recommend him to everyone else!

Harbir Toor

CFO Eyam Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics Ltd.

Our SR&ED claim was selected for detailed review by the Canada Revenue Agency and the technical auditor, a PhD, proposed to deny half the tax credit claim. Garri subsequently provided overwhelming additional evidence to support our filing position and worked collaboratively with the auditor and his manager who agreed to reverse the audit proposal adjustment and instead allowed 96% of the SR&ED tax credits claimed. During our meeting the Research and Technology Manager said “thank you Garri for being honest and transparent”.

Working with a SR&ED consultant who is respected by the Canada Revenue Agency SR&ED Division manager overseeing one third of the technical audit staff at a major tax services office was critical to our claim’s success during the conflict resolution phase of the audit. The difference in the SR&ED tax credits proposed and ultimately allowed was the difference between our business launching our developed product and closing. We required the SR&ED tax credit refund to finally ship our product and begin generating revenues after three years of prototyping and development. Garri went as far as offering us to defer payment of his invoice until we generated our first revenues to allow us to use the entire amount of the SRED cash refund to fund our upcoming product launch. Garri demonstrated that he is not about the money, is part of the solution and not the problem, and cares about his clients’ success.

I highly recommend Garri to prepare your SR&ED tax credit claims and defend them in case of CRA review. He takes a vested interest in the successful outcome of your claim and provides committed advocacy to protect your rights under the SR&ED legislation based on his in-depth knowledge and experience.

Chris Prendergast

CEO Jamstack Inc.
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