Illinois Film Production Services Tax Credit
Illinois offers a 30% transferable credit on qualified in-state spend and resident wages — 35% if you do at least 75% of photography at a qualified production facility. Add 15% on wages paid to workers from economically disadvantaged areas. A diversity plan is required. Minimum $100K spend (for runtimes of 30 minutes or more).
How the program works
- • 30% on qualified Illinois spend & resident wages
- • +5% — Qualified facility uplift: +5% (to 35%) when ≥75% of principal photography days are at a qualified production facility and ≥20% of spend is facility-related.
- • +15% — Disadvantaged-area wages uplift: +15% on wages to individuals residing in economically disadvantaged areas.
- Max effective rate: 50%
- • Minimum qualified spend: $100,000
- • Qualified Illinois spend + resident wages; limited non-resident wages qualify (first $500K per worker, capped positions).
- • Per-person salary counts only up to $500K. A diversity plan and reporting are required.
- • CPA / state audit required
- • Screen-credit / logo requirement
How it becomes cash
This is a transferable credit. Most indie productions don't owe enough state tax to use it, so you sell it to a company that does — usually through a broker, at a discount. That discount is the real cost of turning the credit into cash.
No annual program cap; the program runs through 2038. Per-person salary cap of $500K.
Are you a film commissioner or agency with official updates to this program? If you have corrections to this documentation, please submit them here.
Submit an update →This is an estimate, not advice.
Every number here is an estimate generated from published program rules and your inputs. Programs change with each legislative session, and qualification depends on details a calculator can't see. This is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Before you make a financing decision, confirm everything with the state film office and a qualified CPA and entertainment attorney.