Abstract
Purpose - This research is intended to analyze the current status and problems of tax benefits in the R&D sector and suggest ways to improve tax credit for research and manpower development expenses when various countries fiercely develop efforts to enhance national competitiveness through increased investment in R&D Design/methodology/approach - This study will examine the current status of the tax support system for domestic and foreign R&D, and suggest improvement measures to expand research and development activities in the future. Findings - First, a plan may be considered to abolish and perpetuate the sunset deadline for tax credit for research and manpower development expenses as in the case of the United States and Japan. This perpetuation can be a proactive measure to actively support long-term R & D investment in companies facing economic decisions under uncertainty. Second, it should be revised to raise the tax credit rate of large corporations, which are shrinking every year, compared to SMEs, so that both large corporations and SMEs can improve their international competitiveness and secure excellent technologies through R & D. Finally, the target technologies for each new growth engine and source technology should be expanded to various fields, including national cybersecurity enhancement technology, aviation engine technology, carbon emission and global cooling technologies, which are areas of interest in major overseas R&D countries, to help active R&D and investment in these areas. Research implications or Originality - This study can find a contribution in comparing and analyzing the national R&D tax support system and presenting improvement measures at a time when the benefits of tax credit for research and manpower development expenses of large companies are decreasing due to frequent tax law revisions and the government's factors of increasing tax revenues. In addition, recent research and development items and research technologies of foreign countries were analyzed by Nature's top 10 major science and technology issues, and advanced technologies that should be applied to target technology areas by new growth engine and source technology were specifically investigated and presented.