Fondo Hello World

Overview

Verify your Fondo setup is working: check that bank transactions are syncing, payroll data is flowing, and your company qualifies for R&D tax credits.

Instructions

Step 1: Verify Bank Transaction Sync

Navigate to Fondo Dashboard > Transactions:

• Confirm recent bank transactions appear (may take 24-48h for initial sync)
• Check that Plaid connection shows "Connected" status
• Verify transaction dates match your bank statement

Step 2: Review Auto-Categorization

Fondo automatically categorizes transactions:

Category	Examples	Tax Impact
Payroll	Gusto payments, contractor 1099s	Deductible, R&D qualified
Software	AWS, GitHub, Figma	Deductible, R&D qualified
Office	WeWork, office supplies	Deductible
Travel	Flights, hotels, meals	Partially deductible
Revenue	Stripe payouts, customer payments	Taxable income
Transfers	Between own accounts	Not taxable

Review and correct any miscategorized transactions in Dashboard > Transactions.

Step 3: Check R&D Tax Credit Eligibility

Fondo Dashboard > Tax Credits > R&D Assessment

Eligible if ALL apply:
✓ US-based employees (W-2, not just contractors)
✓ Developing new/improved products, processes, or software
✓ Technical uncertainty exists in the development
✓ Systematic experimentation/iteration to resolve uncertainty

Average startup credit: $21,000/year
Maximum (payroll tax offset): $500,000/year

Step 4: Verify Payroll Data

Dashboard > Payroll Integration
  → Confirm employee count matches your payroll provider
  → Verify salary data for R&D credit calculations
  → Check contractor payments are categorized separately

Expected Output

After 48 hours of setup:

• Bank transactions auto-categorized (85%+ accuracy)
• Payroll data synced monthly
• R&D eligibility assessment complete
• Estimated R&D credit amount displayed

Error Handling

Issue	Solution
No transactions appearing	Check Plaid connection status, allow 24-48h
Wrong categorization	Manually recategorize, Fondo learns patterns
R&D credit shows $0	Verify W-2 employees doing qualifying work
Payroll data missing	Re-authorize payroll provider OAuth

Resources

• R&D Tax Credit Guide
• Fondo TaxPass

Next Steps

For development workflow details, see

fondo-local-dev-loop

.