Have my RVO questions reviewed
Help with responding
BY PETER KLAREN · LAST REVIEWED SEPTEMBER 2026 · SOURCE: WBSO MANUAL 2026 (RVO)
Additional questions extend the processing period
As soon as RVO asks additional questions, the statutory processing period is suspended. The period during which RVO is waiting for your complete response is added to the normal processing period. Responding both promptly and completely is therefore in your own interest.
ON THIS PAGE
What are additional questions? · Incomplete or substantive? · Why does RVO ask questions? · Response deadline · How should you answer? · Functional versus technical · Product and process · Software · Technical-scientific research · Weak versus strong answer · Questions about hours · Questions about costs · Clarify, do not rewrite · Common mistakes · What happens next? · Frequently asked questions
What is a WBSO request for additional information?
It is a request from RVO for additional information needed to assess the substance of your application. In its manual, RVO refers to asking additional questions; in practice this is often called a vragenbrief.
Applications are assessed by advisers with technical knowledge of the relevant field. If the project description or the claimed costs and expenditures contain insufficient information, the adviser may ask for clarification.
Incomplete application or substantive questions?
These are two different situations that are often confused.
| Situation | What does it mean? |
|---|---|
| Incomplete application | Formal information is missing. You are given one opportunity to supplement the application; if you do not do so in time, RVO will not process the application. |
| Additional substantive questions | The application is already under assessment. The technical adviser needs more information to determine whether the work qualifies as S&O. |
| Telephone question | The case officer wants brief clarification of a specific point. |
| Questions about costs and expenditures | RVO wants to assess attribution, nature or amount in more detail. |
The distinction matters: with an incomplete application, there is only one opportunity to provide the missing information. Always establish first what type of request you have received.
Why does RVO ask additional questions about a WBSO application?
RVO may, for example, need more information about:
- the technical novelty;
- the specific technical or programming-related bottleneck;
- why existing knowledge or technology is insufficient;
- the proposed solution approaches;
- technical risks and uncertainties;
- which work you carry out yourself;
- employees' roles and technical expertise;
- the basis for the S&O hours;
- the claimed costs and expenditures;
- for technical-scientific research (TWO): the technical phenomenon to be explained and the research design.
Good to know: as part of its assessment, RVO may also consult public sources, such as your own website, business LinkedIn profiles and search results, to assess the level of knowledge and expertise available within the organisation. Make sure your response is consistent with those sources.
How much time do you have to respond?
Check the response date in the RVO portal or in the request you received immediately. The deadline stated there is decisive — there is no single general response period for every request for additional questions.
Do not wait until the last day. Technical employees often need to provide information for a proper response, and this takes time. Schedule an internal discussion with the people carrying out the work well before the deadline.
How do you answer RVO's additional WBSO questions?
- 1. Answer every question separately. Do not leave any part unanswered, and refer clearly to the project and question number.
- 2. State the technical problem. Do not describe only the business problem or desired functionality.
- 3. Explain why existing technology is insufficient. What is already known or has been tried, and where does it fail technically?
- 4. Describe your own solution approach. What are you developing or researching yourself?
- 5. State the uncertainty in advance. Why is it not certain beforehand that the solution will work?
- 6. Substantiate your own activities. Who performs the technical work and what is their technical contribution?
- 7. Substantiate hours and costs when RVO asks for this. Make sure estimates logically align with the activities described.
- 8. Check consistency with the application. The answer should clarify what you applied for and must not create a contradictory account.
Involve your technical employees. Do not leave the substantive response solely to finance or the subsidy adviser. The people who actually perform the technical work are usually best placed to explain where existing techniques fall short and which solution approaches are being investigated.
A functional explanation is usually not enough
Too functional
“We are building a platform that can process large volumes of documents faster.”
More technical
“For datasets above approximately X documents, the existing indexing method runs into memory and latency limits. We are therefore developing an alternative data structure and our own partitioning method. It is uncertain in advance whether this will achieve the required response time without loss of accuracy.”
The second answer explains four things: what does not work technically → why the existing approach falls short → what you are developing yourself → where the uncertainty lies. See also technical novelty for WBSO and the WBSO project description.
Response structure: product and process development
Focus in particular on these four questions:
- What is the technical bottleneck?
- Why does known technology not work here?
- Which technical solution approaches are you investigating yourself?
- How will you demonstrate the operating principle?
Further reading: WBSO product development and WBSO process development.
Response structure: software and programming
For software, RVO specifically considers the programming-related problem:
- What is the programming-related technical problem?
- Why can existing frameworks or libraries not solve it?
- Which technically new software are you developing yourself?
- In which formal programming language?
- What technical risks exist?
Further reading: WBSO software and programming.
Response structure: technical-scientific research
For TWO, the focus is on explaining a phenomenon:
- Which technical phenomenon are you trying to explain?
- Why does existing knowledge not provide an adequate explanation?
- Which research questions are you asking?
- What does the systematic research design look like?
Further reading: WBSO technical-scientific research.
Example: weak versus strong answer
RVO QUESTION
You state that existing matching algorithms do not meet the requirements. Can you explain which programming-related technical bottlenecks occur and how you intend to solve them yourself?
Weak answer
“Existing systems are too slow and insufficiently flexible. We are therefore developing our own solution.”
Stronger answer
“For datasets above X records, the current comparison method exceeds the maximum response time because each new input has to be scored against too large a proportion of the dataset. Existing libraries do not solve this within our memory budget. We are therefore investigating our own partitioning structure combined with incremental scoring. It is uncertain in advance whether this can achieve the required latency without loss of matching quality.”
RVO asks questions about the hours estimate
If the number of S&O hours applied for does not appear logical in relation to the activities described, RVO may ask for further substantiation.
Break the estimate down by technical activity, employee, project phase and period. Make clear which hours are genuine technical S&O and which project management, implementation or other activities fall outside the estimate.
→ WBSO hours registration
Questions about WBSO costs and expenditures
Insufficient information about claimed costs or expenditures may also lead to additional questions. RVO may, for example, want to know:
- how a cost item is directly attributable to S&O;
- what an asset is used for;
- what percentage of an expenditure serves S&O;
- why a prototype has no utility value;
- how the amount was estimated.
→ WBSO costs and expenditures
Clarify, do not rewrite
Your response is intended to give RVO sufficient information about the application under assessment. RVO assesses the activities for which WBSO was applied for.
Use the additional questions to make the activities applied for more specific and technically clearer — not to construct a materially different project after the fact. If the actual situation differs from what the original application suggests, explain this transparently.
Common mistakes when answering additional WBSO questions
× Repeating the commercial objective at length
× Merely saying something is “innovative” or “unique”
× Comparing yourself with competitors without describing a technical bottleneck
× Listing functionalities
× Mentioning standard technology without explaining why it falls short
× Reasoning away the technical uncertainty after the fact
× Defending hours without linking them to activities
× Having an answer written without involving technical project employees
× Creating contradictions with the original application
× Sending more text without answering the question specifically
Technical depth is more important than length.
What happens after you answer the questions?
RVO resumes the substantive assessment once your complete response has been received. The adviser assesses the application together with the additional information and then makes a decision.
| Possible outcome | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Approval | The S&O-verklaring (R&D declaration) is issued as applied for. |
| Partial approval | One or more projects, hours or cost items are not approved or are approved only in part. |
| Rejection | One or more projects do not meet the S&O criteria. |
Do you disagree with the decision? See objecting to a WBSO decision.
How Klaren helps with additional RVO questions
We analyse each question to determine which assessment criterion RVO is seeking to clarify. We then discuss the technology with the developers or researchers involved, structure the technical bottlenecks and solution approaches, and check whether hours, roles and any costs logically align with the original application.
The objective is not to present a different project, but to describe the actual technical substance clearly enough for RVO to assess the application properly.
Frequently asked questions about additional WBSO questions
What is a WBSO request for additional information?
A request from RVO for additional information needed to assess the substance of your application. RVO itself refers to asking additional questions.
Does a request for additional questions mean my WBSO will be rejected?
No. It means RVO needs additional information before a decision can be made.
Why does RVO ask additional questions?
For example, because the technical substance, your own activities, or the claimed costs and expenditures are not yet sufficiently clear to assess.
How much time do I have to respond?
Follow the specific deadline stated in RVO's request or in the application portal. There is no general fixed response period.
Does a request for additional questions extend the decision period?
Yes. The statutory processing period is suspended for the time needed to answer the questions in full.
Can RVO ask additional questions by telephone?
Yes. RVO states that additional questions may be asked through the application portal or by telephone.
Should I involve my technical employees?
This is strongly recommended. They are best placed to explain where existing techniques fall short and which solution approaches are being investigated.
What happens after I respond?
RVO resumes the substantive assessment and then takes a decision: approval, partial approval or rejection.
RELATED PAGES
Have you received additional questions from RVO?
We review the questions, discuss the technical substance with your developers and help prepare a specific and consistent response within the stated deadline.
Have my RVO questions reviewed
033 – 453 08 18
SOURCES AND SUBSTANTIVE REVIEW
RVO — WBSO Manual 2026
Reviewed by Peter Klaren, WBSO specialist since 2004. Last substantive update: 21 September 2026.