New York State Independent Film Production Tax Credit Program

New York State Independent Film Production Tax Credit Program is sponsored by Empire State Development. Offers a tax credit of 30% of qualified production costs for independent film productions in New York State.

NY-ES Independent Film Production Tax Credit - Entertainment Partners NEW YORK - EMPIRE STATE INDEPENDENT Eligible Production Types Location Production Needs NYS Film Tax Credit Program Guidelines Incentive 30% - 50% Refundable Tax Credit Related Programs NEW YORK Labor Resident ATL 30% - 50% (Aggregate ATL Compensation limited to 40% of NYS Production Spend) Resident BTL 30% - 50% Non-Resident ATL 30% - 50% (Aggregate ATL Compensation limited to 40% of NYS Production Spend) Non-Resident BTL 30% - 50% Labor Uplifts 10% on qualified wages, salaries, and compensation for services performed in a designated upstate county for productions with a minimum spend of $500K.

Click here to see county list. Production Plus/Labor : Companies that submit at least two applications totaling $20M+ after Jan 1, 2025, are eligible for a 5% bonus on subsequent projects for qualifying independents. Other Uplifts: 10% bonus for in-state scoring with 5+ musicians.

Qualified Spend Spend 30% - 50% Qualified production costs are for tangible property or services used or performed within New York State directly and predominantly in the production of a qualified film.

Spend Uplifts 10% on qualified production costs for services performed/property used in a designated upstate county if the majority of principal photography shooting days were in a qualified county and the production has a minimum spend of $500K. Click here to see county list. Companies that submit at least two applications totaling $20M+ after Jan 1, 2025, are eligible for a 5% bonus on subsequent projects for qualifying independents.

Other Uplifts: +10% bonus for in-state scoring with 5+ musicians. Minimum/Caps Minimum Spend $1,000,000 budget (for productions where the majority of principal photography shooting days occur in NYC, Westchester, Rockland, Suffolk, and Nassau counties); $500,000 budget (for the rest of the State, excluding pilots).

Minimum Filming Days Facility and location thresholds apply Project Cap Capped at 2 projects per company per year Annual Cap $100M Application Applicants complete and submit the Project Summary Form online. All other documents which comprise a complete application are submitted through the secure file transfer system. Submission is highly recommended at least 10 business days before the start of principal photography.

Additional Requirements Screen Credit Yes CPA Audit Yes Loan-Out Registration No Income Tax Withholding Individual: Not Required Sunset Date December 31, 2036 Additional Information To qualify as a "qualified independent film production company," the entity company either cannot be a publicly traded entity, or if it is, no more than five percent of the beneficial ownership can be owned directly or indirectly by a publicly traded entity.

Qualified ATL labor is limited to 40% of all other qualified NYS production costs. Changes to Credit Claim Timing - For applications submitted after Jan 1, 2025, credits may be claimed in full in the tax year that includes the last day of the allocation year (eliminating the 1-to-3-year payout) and streamlining prior multi-year claim schedules.

Credit Recapture Provision Added - If a project is later found ineligible and the tax credit certificate is revoked, any claimed credit must be repaid in the year the revocation becomes final. New York has introduced a mandatory 0. 5% contribution for a workforce development program which will be deducted from all tax credit certificates issued after Jan 1, 2023.

For Animation, see the separate: New York - Postproduction credit. Relocating television series have specific eligibility requirements regarding prior production history, episode count, and budget. Applicants are required to submit a Diversity Plan outlining specific goals and strategies to hire a diverse workforce.

New York State Governor's Office for Motion Picture & Tv Development Contance McFeeley, Director NYS Entertainment Tax Credit Program Yoni Bokser, Executive Director NYS Office of Motion Picture & TV Development esd. ny. gov/new-york-state-film-tax-credit-program-production/