Novotech alerts Pharma and Biotechs at DIA 2007 to Australias new R&D tax break that applies to clinical trials
July 1, 2007 by admin
Filed under Company News, Company News 2007
New Tax break comes into effect July 1, 2007
Atlanta, GA – July 1, 2007 — Novotech, the largest Australian owned contract research organization (CRO) with offices on the US east and west coasts, announced on the eve of DIA 2007 that the new tax breaks for research in Australia, which includes clinical trials, starts July 1, 2007.
Novotech CEO Alek Safarian said international firms can now take advantage of generous tax breaks for R&D including clinical trials as part of a bid by Australia to attract increased productive investment in areas including clinical trials.
The change to extend the beneficial ownership test for the 175% R&D Tax Concession will allow claims for R&D projects undertaken in Australia, regardless of where global biotech and pharma firms hold their intellectual property.
The change which comes into effect on 1 July 2007 supplements the R&D value proposition that Australia offers multinational R&D firms and partnering opportunities. Safarian said the new tax break is good news for Novotech clients as most are from the USA and Europe and so can take advantage of this further cost saving.
He said more than 90% of Novotech clients are international biotechs and pharma companies that chose Novotech for quality, speed and cost effective clinical trials, and regulatory consulting.
Novotech continues to win awards recognizing its performance and capabilities. Novotech is the recipient of the Frost & Sullivan Asian CRO of the Year 2006 – Australia Award and a winner of the Deloitte Fast 500 Asia Pacific 2006 program.
According to Frost & Sullivan Program Manager Shruti Dwivedi, Novotech demonstrated “exemplary growth and performance” and is well placed to benefit from the 15% per annum increase in trials conducted in Australia, much of which is coming from large pharmaceutical firms.
Novotech came out on top against its competitors after being evaluated on key criteria including “research capabilities, breadth and depth of services, geographical coverage, and alliances/partnerships that would enhance capabilities and the growth strategies adopted in pursuit of corporate objectives”, said Dwivedi.
“Novotech offers a broad spectrum of services in Australia and New Zealand, catered by a strong research team, experienced in diverse therapeutic fields. It has formed a subsidiary in UK as well as external partnerships/alliances in North America and other regions to widen its geographical reach.”
Novotech also won praise for its therapeutic experience with its special focus on Oncology, Ophthalmology and Cardiology trials. It conducts approximately 40 clinical trials every year, where nearly 80% are in Phase II & III, with remaining in Phase 1.
For meetings with Novotech at DIA 2007 please contact: Alek Safarian at 760-931-4841.
About Novotech
Headquartered in Sydney, Novotech is focused on the Australian and New Zealand markets but has worldwide reach through the company’s subsidiary in the United Kingdom and its US operations.
As the largest independent CRO in Australia, Novotech offers a level of flexibility and local knowledge that is unmatched among other contract research organizations in the region.
Novotech’s US operations make it uniquely positioned to offer trials across the two countries, providing the benefits of Australia’s highly regarded cost-effective clinical trial capabilities, and at
the same time take advantage of access to the much larger US market for rapid patient enrolment – a service that has to date only been available via large global CROs at higher overhead costs.
The Australian Clinical Trials Advantage
Increasingly, US companies are turning to Australia to expedite the pace, and reduce the cost, of clinical trials, while maintaining the high standard of research that US authorities demand. Australia has been ranked the number one location to conduct pharmaceutical clinical trials in an international benchmarking study undertaken by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). The EIU study ranked Australia against six countries – US, UK, Germany, Japan, Singapore and India. Other studies have found that clinical research costs may be as much as 30 percent lower in Australia than in the United States and Europe. In addition, Australian regulatory procedures often enable a trial to begin in as little as 2-3 months from the initiation of the approval process. This compares favorably to usual timelines in major Western countries.
