Georgia Tech Research Corporation asserts a right of ownership to any intellectual property that was developed by an employee of Georgia Tech or resulted from significant use of Georgia Tech resources, even in research projects sponsored by industry. However, GTRC has worked hard to create and establish mechanisms that enable companies to easily obtain access to the project IP on fair and reasonable terms with minimal negotiations.

It is the policy of Georgia Tech that an advance payment is required on all industrial projects with industry sponsors. This advance payment is required because it usually takes several months from the start of a project until receipt of the first payment. The amount of the advance payment is usually 25% of the total project cost. However, if the sponsor has a bad credit rating, a higher amount (up to the full project cost) may be required. The sponsor is notified of this advance payment requirement in the proposal transmittal letter. The amount of the advance payment is cited in the payment clause of the contract. An invoice for the advance payment is transmitted by the Program Initiation Division Contracting Officer with the proposal. The advance payment is applied against the final invoice for the project, and any funds remaining are returned to the sponsor. This policy does not apply when the industrial sponsor has a prime government contract under which Georgia Tech will be a subcontractor.