---
title: "Draft a research-activity description against the qualified-research tests"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/taxation/draft-an-r-and-d-activity-description-against-the-eligibility-tests/united-states"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A26-T1-R10-US"
practice_area: "Taxation"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["US"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-22"
---

# Draft a research-activity description against the qualified-research tests

> Draft the description from the activities the client states, and leave a blank beside each test in § 41(d). Do not state that the activity qualifies and do not compute a credit.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/taxation/draft-an-r-and-d-activity-description-against-the-eligibility-tests/united-states  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Taxation](https://ailawframework.com/practice/taxation.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | Draft the description from the activities the client states, and leave a blank beside each test in § 41(d). Do not state that the activity qualifies and do not compute a credit. |
| What the lawyer must review | 26 U.S.C. § 41(d): qualified research means research with respect to which expenditures are treated as domestic research or experimental expenditures under § 174A, which you open; undertaken to discover information that is technological in nature and whose application is intended to be useful in developing a new or improved business component; and substantially all of the activities of which are elements of a process of experimentation for a new or improved function, performance, or reliability or quality. Research related to style, taste, cosmetic, or seasonal design factors does not qualify for that purpose. The tests are applied separately to each business component, which is a product, process, computer software, technique, formula, or invention to be held for sale, lease, or license, or used in the taxpayer's trade or business. The term does not include the activities in paragraph (4). Those include research after commercial production has begun, adaptation of an existing business component to a particular customer's requirement, and duplication of an existing business component from examining it or from plans or publicly available information. Paragraph (4) continues. You read the rest before you treat an activity as outside the credit. You decide whether any test is met. Office of Professional Responsibility Issue 2026-19: verify facts before a return is filed. The description computes no credit. |
| Written for | United States |
| Applies to | [Draft an R&D activity description against the eligibility tests](https://ailawframework.com/practice/taxation/draft-an-r-and-d-activity-description-against-the-eligibility-tests.md) |

## Checking plan

- What the AI does: Draft the description from the activities the client states, and leave a blank beside each test in § 41(d). Do not state that the activity qualifies and do not compute a credit.
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 22 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Notes

- Section 174A was not opened. Do not describe what it treats as a research expenditure.
- No credit is computed. The percentage and the base amount were not used.

## Sources

- [26 U.S.C. § 41 (credit for increasing research activities)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/41) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [IRS Office of Professional Responsibility, Issue 2026-19, Introductory Guidelines for Responsible AI Use in Federal Tax Practice](https://www.irs.gov/pub/opr-taxpros/issue-number-2026-19-introductory-guidelines-for-responsible-ai-use-in-federal-tax-practice.pdf) (checked 2026-10-22)

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*