Do I qualify for the Illinois Film Production Tax Credit?

Productions spending at least $100,000 in Illinois generally qualify, or $50,000 for projects under 30 minutes. Use the Qualification Assessment to check your project against the spend, labor, and eligible-expense rules.

How much is the Illinois film tax credit worth?

Since SB 1911 took effect, the credit returns 35% on Illinois resident salaries and on spending with Illinois vendors, and 30% on non-resident salaries, both capped at $500,000 per worker. Stackable bonuses add 15% for wages paid to individuals living in economically disadvantaged areas, 5% for filming outside the Chicago-area counties, 5% for certified green productions, and 5% for a television series relocating to Illinois.

What does IL Film Tax Credits do for productions?

We assess eligibility, prepare and package applications for the Illinois Film Production Tax Credit, build audit-ready documentation, and advise on financing or selling the credit.

Filming in Illinois? Get paid back.

Illinois has one of the strongest film incentives in the country. We help producers figure out what they qualify for, put the application together, and get the money back.

Take the Qualification Assessment How the credit works

Free first look Audit-ready packages Quick response

The credit

35% on labor and vendors

35% on Illinois resident salaries and on what you spend with Illinois vendors. Non-resident salaries earn 30%, for up to 13 technical positions plus 4–6 actors. Both capped at $500,000 per worker.

The uplifts

Project wide uplifts

+5% for filming outside the Chicago-area counties, +5% for a certified green production, and +5% for relocating a television series to Illinois. They apply across the project and they stack.

The payout

Sell it, or carry it five years

Transferable within a year of issuance, to as many as 10 buyers, so a production with no Illinois tax liability can turn it into cash. Unused credit carries forward five years. There is no annual program cap, and the program runs through 2039.

Eligibility

Does your project qualify?

If you're spending money in Illinois on something people will watch, it probably does. Minimum is $100,000 in qualified spend for projects 30 minutes or longer, $50,000 for shorter works.

Feature films Commercials Short films Documentaries Pilot episodes Webisodes Animation Music videos Proof-of-concepts

Not sure where yours lands? The Qualification Assessment walks the rules in about two minutes.

How it works

Three steps to your credit.

We build a game plan

We look at your budget, your crew, your timeline, and map out exactly how to structure payroll and vendors to maximize what you capture.

We run the paperwork

Application, documentation, and Illinois Film Office requirements, all handled while you stay focused on making something great.

The credit lands

After wrap, an audit-ready package goes to the Film Office. They issue your certificate, and you apply it against Illinois tax or sell it.

From the Film Office

Forms and official guidance.

These are the state's own documents, linked rather than copied so you always get the current version. The Illinois Film Office is the authority on all of it. The diversity sheets are worth starting early: the office reviews the final numbers, and a production that cannot show good faith effort can lose the credit outright.

Film Tax Credit Application The application itself, filed before principal photography. PDF Qualified Expenditures List What counts as Illinois spend, and what does not. PDF Designee and Copyright Affidavit Accepted in lieu of proof of copyright. PDF Diversity Plan Tracking Sheet Crew tracking, by gender and race. Reviewed after wrap. PDF Vendor Diversity Tracking Sheet The same for the vendors behind your Illinois spend. PDF Applicant Checklist for Claiming Everything required at the claim stage, after wrap. PDF Program page Rates, eligibility and deadlines, straight from DCEO. Diversity requirements The goals, the good faith standard, and what happens if the numbers fall short. Program FAQ The office's own answers on applying and documentation.

Questions for the office directly go to [email protected].

Tell us about your project.

What are you making, when are you filming, and roughly what are you spending in Illinois? We'll take a look and let you know what's possible.

The first look is free and carries no obligation. You get a straight answer on what your project qualifies for either way. Beyond that, what we charge depends on how much of the work you want handled, and is agreed before anything begins.

[email protected] Or call (608) 212-6930