Washington Production Tax Incentives

Overview

  • Washington offers 2 rebate programs administered by Washington Filmworks (WF). The first program is the production incentive program and has 2 components, 1 for film and television and a 2nd for commercials that film in rural areas of Washington. Under the production incentive program, film & TV projects may qualify for rebate of up-to 45% if the project specific minimums are met and the enhanced incentive (AKAuplift) requirements are met. Commercials may qualify for a 40% rebate.
  • The second program Washington offers is the Small Budget Production Initiative (SBPI), which helps support Washington State filmmakers on projects with budgets of $20K-$1M and 85% of principal photography days occurring in state. Additionally, under SBPI a minimum of two Washington residents in the positions of director, producer, screenwriter or lead actor must be involved in the project through completion. Both programs follow similar regulations, to include: payments to non-resident ATL personnel, production assistants, executive assistants, & extras do not qualify.
  • Producer must complete the legally binding production agreement between WF and the qualified production within two weeks of the date of the funding letter of intent. Program guidelines and criteria and the industry code of conduct must be distributed to department heads prior to the start of production. A meeting to discuss WF policies and procedures and the completion package process must take place between WF and the producers and accounting team prior to the start of production. Principal photography must be completed within 1 year of receiving the funding letter.
  • Motion picture or video productions are exempt from sales and use tax on the rental of production equipment, services, and vehicles; the exemptions do not apply to the outright purchase of production equipment and no application is required.

Eligible project types: Animation, commercials, feature films, pilots, scripted TV; documentaries & reality TV on a case-by-case basis.

Incentive details

Type
Rebate
Rate
40% commercials (filming in rural areas, only); 35% TV (6+ eps); 30% films, TV (less than 6 eps), SBPI.
Uplift(s)
10% "enhanced incentive" for filming at least 50% of principal photography days in a rural county and/or tell the story of a historically underrepresented community.
Annual Cap
$15M
Project Cap
None
Compensation Cap
$50K/non-resident per project or episode.
Eligible Expenses
Purchases made 3 months prior to the date of the funding letter of intent for motion pictures and episodic series and 6 weeks for commercials and are purchased from a Washington State based business for use during pre-production, production, or postproduction in Washington State.
Additional Info
There is a $5,000 administrative review fee for motion pictures and episodic series (fee applies to the review of each episode) and $2,500 for commercial productions.

Requirements

Minimum Spend
$500K (features); $300K (per episode for TV); $150K (commercials); $20K (small budget productions) minimum in-state spend thresholds must be met without including any qualified nonresident labor.
Local Hire Requirement
To qualify non-resident labor, at least 85% of the labor force must be Washington residents.
Logo/End Credit Acknowledgement Required
Yes
Loanout Withholding
None
Application Timing
Applications must be submitted at least five (5) business days prior to the start of principal photography unless applying for an enhanced incentive, in which case the completed application must be submitted at least two (2) weeks prior to the start of principal photography. Motion pictures and episodic series, principal photography must commence no later than 120 days & commercials must commence no later than 45 days after receiving the funding letter of intent.
Audit
Motion pictures and episodic series must submit within 60 days of completing principal photography & commercial productions must submit within 45 days of completing principal photography, a production completion package in a digital format of completing principal photography. Projects must also submit a department of commerce production survey at the completion of the WF completion package review process.

How to Apply

Application
Application Timing
Applications must be submitted at least five (5) business days prior to the start of principal photography unless applying for an enhanced incentive, in which case the completed application must be submitted at least two (2) weeks prior to the start of principal photography. Motion pictures and episodic series, principal photography must commence no later than 120 days & commercials must commence no later than 45 days after receiving the funding letter of intent.
Washington Film Office

Amy Lillard, Executive Director, 206-264,0667, INFO@WASHINGTONFILMWORKS.ORG
Washington Filmworks – Film In Washington State

Helpful Links

2023.05.01_WF Production Incentive_G&C
RCW 43.365.020: Program criteria—Permissible expenditures—Maximum funding assistance—Funding assistance approval—Rules—Reports.
2023.05.01_WF Production Incentive_G&C
Film Office FAQs – Washington Filmworks
WF Declaration of Residency Form 01-25-21
Motion Picture and Video Production Business Exemption Certificate

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