Illinois

For film and television projects, file an application with the film office at least five business days PRIOR to beginning principal photography in Illinois; and meet the minimum in-state spending requirement of more than $50,000 for productions less than 30 minutes or more than $100,000 for productions 30 minutes or longer. For a commercial, the application must be filed with the film office at least 24 hours prior to the start of principal photography.

Qualified spend includes: costs incurred from the final script stage to the end of postproduction (even if incurred prior to receiving the Accredited Production Certificate) for the purchase of tangible personal property or services from Illinois vendors; and the first $500,000 of compensation paid to each Illinois resident employee or resident owned loan out company, and not more than 9 nonresidents (not including Actor) employed in the following positions: Writer, Director, Director of Photography, Production Designer, Costume Designer, Production Accountant, VFX Supervisor, Editor, Composer, and Actor. The number of nonresident actors’ wages that may qualify as Illinois labor is limited to no more than two for productions with Illinois spending of $25 million or less and four nonresident actors for productions with Illinois spending of more than $25 million. For purposes of calculating Illinois labor expenditures for a television series, the nonresident wage limitations are applied to the entire season.

This program is not administered on a first-come, first-served basis. The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall review applications to determine whether the project has met a preponderance of eligibility criteria as described in the program legislation. Eligible productions may earn a transferable tax credit equal to 30% of all qualified spend and the first $500,000 of compensation paid to each resident and certain nonresident positions (as defined above). An Illinois resident is defined as someone who has a valid state ID or driver’s license that was issued prior to the commencement of the production. An additional 15% may be earned on the wages paid to individuals who reside in economically disadvantaged areas where the unemployment rate is at least 150% of the state’s annual average. The credit may be claimed upon completion of production in Illinois but no later than two years following the completion of production in Illinois. For tax credits transferred on or after July 1, 2023: the transferor must pay a fee equal to 2.5% of the transferred credit associated with nonresident wages and an additional fee of 0.25% of the transferred credit that is not associated with nonresident wages. There is no annual funding cap or per project cap. This incentive program is scheduled to sunset on December 31, 2032.