WBSO project records | Klaren Subsidieadvies

Have my project records reviewed Prepare for an RVO audit

BY PETER KLAREN · LAST REVIEWED SEPTEMBER 2026 · SOURCE: WBSO GUIDE 2026

WBSO project records at a glance

RVO requirement	Practical meaning
Organised per project	A separate file for each approved R&D project
Date + author visible	Documents must be traceable
Technical contribution visible	Make clear who performed which technical work
Retain failed approaches too	Do not document only the final result
Correspond with the application	Do not document a different project from the one for which WBSO was awarded
Update	No later than 2 months after each calendar quarter
Retain	Complete R&D records for 7 years

ON THIS PAGE

Core rules What must the records show? Deadline: 2 months Software Product and process Scientific research Example project file Does it need to be a report? Retain what did not work Date, author and contribution Link with hours registration Common mistakes What does RVO check? How long to retain? Frequently asked questions

What must WBSO project records show?

For a development project

which technical problems or bottlenecks occurred;
which technical solution approaches were investigated;
which experiments, designs or changes were carried out;
how the operating principle developed;
what did and did not work.

For technical-scientific research

which research questions were investigated;
how the research design was implemented;
which experiments and measurements were performed;
which results and technical insights were obtained.

RVO explicitly makes this distinction. A file that describes only functionality or project management makes the technical R&D insufficiently visible.

Within what period must you update the project records?

The project records must be updated no later than two months after the end of each calendar quarter.

Note the difference from hours: hours registration has a much shorter deadline of ten working days. You may therefore collect project documentation quarterly, but you cannot wait until the end of the year or just before an audit to construct the entire file.

Project records built all at once afterwards also lack the chronological technical trail that RVO specifically examines.

Project records for software development

For software projects, version control, tickets, technical designs and test results can provide important evidence of the nature, content and progress of the R&D. RVO explicitly mentions version-control systems and issue trackers as examples.

Git commits and pull requests
branches
Jira/GitHub issues
technical designs
architecture decision records
benchmark results
performance profiles
test logs
experiments with alternative algorithms
documentation of failed approaches
technical notes
failure analyses

Version control alone is not always sufficient. A commit labelled only “fix bug” or “new feature” says little. The records must also make it understandable what the programming-technical bottleneck was, which solution approaches were investigated and how development progressed. Where necessary, combine code history with tickets, technical notes, benchmarks or test results.

More about when software development qualifies: WBSO software and programming.

Project records for product and process development

In physical development, the technical trail mainly consists of designs, measurements and test results. RVO mentions drawings, photographs of prototypes, test results, measurement reports and calculations as useful project documentation.

CAD drawings
design changes
calculations
test setups
measurement results
photographs of prototypes
test reports
material tests
prototype logs
failure analyses
alternative constructions
process measurements
technical emails

See also WBSO product development and WBSO process development.

Project records for technical-scientific research

For technical-scientific research, the project records must make the research process visible: research design, hypotheses where relevant, experiments, measurement series, interim findings, adjusted research questions and results.

The focus is less on a prototype or technical solution and more on demonstrably following the explanatory research. Research directions that did not yield an explanation also belong in the file.

research questions
research design
hypotheses
experiments
measurement series
models and simulations
interim findings
adjusted research directions
technical interpretations
conclusions

More about this project type: WBSO technical-scientific research.

Example of a good WBSO project file

Application: development of a positioning system with ±0.05 mm accuracy.

MARCH

Measurement report shows excessive elastic deformation.

APRIL

CAD variant with modified bearing construction.

MAY

Prototype test shows improvement, but thermal drift.

JUNE

New compensation method designed and tested.

Evidence in the file: drawings, calculations, measurement reports, test photographs and technical notes — all dated.

This creates a logical technical story over time that corresponds with the bottleneck and solution approaches in the WBSO application. Good project records are not a report written retrospectively, but a chronological technical trail.

Must you prepare a special WBSO project report?

No. RVO does not prescribe a fixed format. You may use the systems and documents you normally use, as long as they make the nature, content and progress of the R&D sufficiently clear for each project. The records may be kept digitally or on paper.

A combination of Git, Jira, CAD, test reports and technical notes can therefore work perfectly well — provided the documents together form an understandable technical story.

Retain what did not work as well

A failed test, rejected construction or algorithm that performed inadequately is valuable evidence of technical development. Do not delete such documentation when another solution approach is chosen.

RVO requires all phases of the project to be retained, including documents no longer used in a subsequent development path. Those documents in particular demonstrate that there was technical uncertainty and that you investigated solution approaches yourself.

The opposite is a classic pitfall: a file containing only the final working solution looks like regular development work without uncertainty.

Date, author and technical contribution

Each document must contain a date and the name of its author. In a version-control system, dates and the names of R&D employees must remain clearly visible. The documents must also show the technical contribution of the employees involved.

Practical tip: especially when migrating Git, Jira, CAD or documentation systems, check that author and date information is preserved. With a seven-year retention period, WBSO records will generally outlive several tool changes.

Also pay attention to scope: the project records must demonstrably correspond with the approved R&D activities. This does not mean that the project must proceed exactly as planned — new bottlenecks, failed approaches and changed technical solution directions can be part of the R&D. The file must, however, make clear that you remained within the approved technical development direction.

Project records and hours registration must tell the same story

If an employee records six R&D hours on project P26-04 on 14 September, the project records around that period must also make it plausible which technical activities took place on P26-04.

hours record
6 hours → P26-04 → 14-09-2026
↕
project records
measurement report → bottleneck → new solution approach

The documents do not need to prove every individual hour, but the hours and technical progress must correspond logically. The three types of WBSO records must be mutually consistent.

View the complete overview of WBSO administration →

Common mistakes in project records

01 documentation describes only functionality and no technical problem;
02 project records are built only afterwards;
03 documents have no date or author;
04 only the final successful solution is retained;
05 failed solution approaches are deleted;
06 the project file does not correspond with approved R&D activities;
07 hours registration shows substantial work while very little technical documentation exists;
08 Git/Jira shows activity but not enough context to understand the technical R&D.

What does RVO check in your project records?

During an audit, RVO compares the information in the application with actual practice. The file must answer:

what was applied for?
what was actually carried out?
which technical problems occurred?
which solutions were investigated?
which employees made technical contributions?
how did the project progress over time?
do the hours and project records correspond?

Read how an RVO WBSO audit works → If RVO asks questions, see RVO additional questions.

How long must you retain the project records?

The complete R&D records — including the technical project file — must be retained for 7 years. For software this is particularly relevant because of migrations between tools: make sure repositories, tickets and documentation remain exportable and traceable.

Frequently asked questions about WBSO project records

What must WBSO project records contain?

For each project, the records must show the nature and content of the R&D, the technical bottlenecks encountered, the solution approaches investigated and how the project progressed technically. For technical-scientific research, this concerns the research design, experiments and results.

Within what period must I update the project records?

No later than two months after the end of each calendar quarter. A shorter period of ten working days applies to hours registration.

Must I write a separate WBSO project report?

No. RVO does not prescribe a fixed format. You may use your normal systems and documents, as long as they show the nature, content and progress of the R&D for each project.

Is Git history sufficient as project records?

Not always. The records must also make it understandable which technical bottleneck was solved and which solution approaches were investigated. Where necessary, combine code history with tickets, notes, benchmarks or test results.

Must I retain failed solution approaches?

Yes. All project phases must be retained, including documents that are no longer used. Those documents in particular demonstrate the technical uncertainty.

Must documents contain a date and name?

Yes. Each document must be dated and identify the author. In version control, dates and names of R&D employees must be preserved.

What if the project developed differently from the application?

That is permitted. New bottlenecks and changed solution approaches are part of R&D. The file must still show that you remained within the approved technical development direction.

How long must I retain the project records?

Seven years, like the rest of the R&D records.

Are your WBSO project records audit-ready?

We check whether your technical file, hours registration and approved application correspond logically.