Louisiana Tax Incentives for Your Businesses

Louisiana is a self-proclaimed pro-business state, offering award-winning employee training programs, business grants, educational resources, and plenty of tax incentive programs. If you run a business in Louisiana or if you want to start a new operation, it’s a good idea to review the state resources at your disposal. 

Below, we have a complete list of Louisiana tax credits, incentive programs, and exemptions available to businesses. 

Business tax incentives in Louisiana

Louisiana Quality Jobs Rebate Program

Louisiana’s Quality Jobs Rebate Program is designed to encourage Louisiana companies to create new high-quality jobs. Companies that meet job creation requirements can receive a cash rebate of up to 6% on annual payroll expenses for up to 10 years. 

In addition, they can also get either a state sales and use tax rebate on capital expenses or a 1.5% project facility expense rebate for qualifying expenses. 

To be eligible for the program, your business has to fall into one of the four categories below: 

1. Be involved in one of these industries: Bioscience, Manufacturing, Software, Clean Energy Technology, Food Technology, Advanced Materials, Headquarters of Multi-State Businesses, Aircraft MROs, or Oil and Gas Field Service.
2. Have at least 50% of annual sales out of state and/or to in-state customers or buyers if the product or service is resold by the purchaser to an out-of-state customer or buyer.
3. Spend 50% or more of your time performing services for your out-of-state parent company, including legal, marketing, finance, information technology, order management, distribution center operation, or overall operations support.
4. Be located in a Louisiana parish that’s within the lowest 25% of parishes based on per capita income. 

You also have to meet the job and payroll requirements: 

• Create at least five new direct jobs with a combined annual payroll of at least $225,000 if you have 50 or fewer employees statewide prior to the start date of the contract. 
• Create at least 15 new direct jobs with a combined annual payroll of at least $675,000 if you have 51 or more employees statewide prior to the start date of the contract. 
• All new jobs must be full-time (30 hours or more a week). 
• Provide new employees with a basic healthcare plan in compliance with federally mandated healthcare requirements.
• Pay a minimum wage of $18 an hour for a 4% rebate and $21.66 an hour for a 6% rebate.

Apply for the program here. 

You may also want to check out our related article: 12 Essential Steps to Hiring Employees in Louisiana.

Enterprise Zone Tax Credit

Louisiana’s Enterprise Zone Tax Credit is a job incentive program for new and existing Louisiana businesses. Under the program, companies can get income tax credits and franchise tax credits for meeting these two requirements: 

1. Create a minimum of five net new full-time jobs within two years of their project start date OR increase their current nationwide workforce by 10% within a year of the project start date.
2. Hire for at least half of those jobs from one of four targeted groups: people living in designated Louisiana enterprise zones; people receiving an approved form of public assistance; people lacking basic reading, writing, or mathematics skills; and people considered unemployable by traditional standards.  

The credit ranges from $1,000 to $3,500 per new job created; companies also get a rebate on state sales and use tax paid on qualifying machinery, materials, or equipment. 

Learn more about the process of applying here. 

Digital Interactive Media and Software Program

The state’s Digital Interactive Media and Software Program is a tax credit available to companies producing digital interactive media products and platforms in Louisiana. Think: digital media and games, consumer software, entertainment software, embedded systems, and more. 

Eligible businesses can get a 25% tax credit on qualified payroll for in-state labor and an 18% tax credit on qualified expenditures. Businesses can either apply their tax credit to their state income tax liability or get a rebate for 85% of the value of the tax credit at any time during the year. 

To apply for the program, your business needs to be physically located in Louisiana and have at least one full-time employee. Learn more about what documents you need to apply and how to get started here.

Research and Development Tax Credit

Louisiana has its own state Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit for businesses that invest in qualified R&D activities. Existing businesses with operating facilities in Louisiana can get up to a 30% tax credit on qualified research expenditures—including wages, supplies, and contract research—incurred in the state. 

Activities are considered as qualified research if they meet all four criteria below: 

1. Qualify as a business deduction
2. Used to discover information that is technological in nature
3. Used to discover information that can help develop a new or improved business component
4. Involve a process of experimentation 80% or more of the time

Apply for the R&D tax credit here. 

Angel Investor Tax Credit

Geared toward accredited investors in Louisiana, the Angel Investor Tax Credit encourages investments in early-stage Louisiana businesses that need capital. Investors can get a 25% tax credit on investments in certified Louisiana Entrepreneurial Businesses (LEBs) and a 35% credit on investments in LEBs located in qualified Opportunity Zones. 

The investment cap is $720,000 per business per year, and $1.44 million per business over the life of the program. 

To qualify as a LEB, a business needs to operate in Louisiana, have 50 or fewer full-time employees, have a fully developed business plan, and have either a gross annual sales of less than $10 million or a business net worth of less than $2 million. 

Apply for the tax credit here. 

Motion Picture Production Program

The Motion Picture Production Program incentivizes production companies to set their projects in Louisiana. Under the program, motion picture productions can get a tax credit of up to 40% on their qualified in-state expenditures, which include resident and non-resident labor. Here’s the credit amount breakdown: 

• 25% base credit on qualified in-state expenditures
• 10% increase for Louisiana screenplay productions
• 5% if productions are based outside of the New Orleans Metro Statistical Area

To qualify for the credit, Louisiana screenplay production companies must spend at least $50,000 on in-state expenditures. All other eligible productions (including feature-length motion pictures, TV series, animated short films, and documentaries) must spend a minimum of $300,000 on in-state expenditures. 

Learn more about the program here. 

Live Performance Production Incentive Program

Louisiana’s Live Performance Production Incentive Program gives tax credits to eligible concert, theatrical, and live productions that originate or debut in Louisiana. The credit amount varies depending on how much a company spends on in-state expenditures: 

• 7% credit for certified Louisiana expenditures between $100,000 and $300,000
• 14% credit for certified Louisiana expenditures between $300,000 and $1 million
• 18% credit for certified Louisiana expenditures over $1 million
• Additional 7% credit for payroll expenditures to Louisiana residents

Learn how to apply for the incentive here. 

Entertainment Job Creation Program

Under the Entertainment Job Creation Program, Qualified Entertainment Companies (QECs) can get tax credits for creating well-paid jobs for Louisiana residents. Eligible companies can get:

• A 15% credit on annual W2 wages for each new job whose payroll is equal to or greater than $45,000 per year, up to $66,000 a year
• A 20% credit on annual W2 wages for each new job whose payroll is equal to or greater than $66,000 per year, up to $200,000 a year

To qualify for the program, you need to meet the below criteria:

• Be engaged in the development or distribution of audio, visual, or both audio-visual entertainment products for public consumption, directly or indirectly
• Be authorized to do business in Louisiana
• Create a minimum of five new direct jobs that meet or exceed a salary of $45,000 a year per person
• The jobs must be full-time (30 hours or more a week) and filled by Louisiana residents working at a physical location in the state

Learn more about the application process here. 

Need help calculating paychecks? Check out our handy Louisiana salary and payroll calculator, as well as our hourly paycheck and payroll calculator. 

Music Job Creation Program

Similar to the Entertainment Job Creation Program, the Music Job Creation Program gives Qualified Music Companies (QMCs) tax credits for creating well-paid jobs for Louisiana residents. Eligible companies can get:

• A 10% credit on annual W2 wages for each new job whose payroll is equal to or greater than $35,000 per year, up to $66,000 a year
• A 25% credit on annual W2 wages for each new job whose payroll is equal to or greater than $66,000 per year, up to $200,000 a year

To qualify for the program, you need to meet the below criteria:

• Be engaged directly in the production, distribution, or promotion of music
• Be authorized to do business in Louisiana and either permanently locate or expand existing operations in the state
• Create a minimum of three new direct jobs that meet or exceed a salary of $35,000 a year per person
• The jobs must be full-time (30 hours or more a week) and filled by Louisiana residents working at a physical location in the state

Learn more about the application process here.

Sound Recording Incentive Program 

The Sound Recording Incentive Program gives recording companies an 18% tax credit on eligible production expenditures for sound recording productions in Louisiana. 

To qualify for the program, you need to meet the below criteria: 

• Engage in a sound recording production (that includes recordings of music, poetry, or spoken-word performances) in Louisiana.
• Spend a minimum of $25,000 on sound recording expenditures if you’re not a Louisiana resident; spend a minimum of $10,000 if you are a Louisiana resident.

Find out more about the program and submit an application here. 

Learn everything you need to know about starting—and growing—a business in Louisiana. 

Business tax exemptions in Louisiana

Industrial Tax Exemption Program

Louisiana’s Industrial Tax Exemption Program (ITEP) gives manufacturing companies in Louisiana an 80% property tax abatement on a new investment for up to 10 years. To qualify for the abatement, companies must be classified as manufacturing (with a North American Industry Classification System code that begins with 31, 32, or 33) or be related to the manufacturing at the project site. 

Get more information—and apply—here. 

Restoration Tax Abatement Program

The Restoration Tax Abatement (RTA) Program supports businesses that expand, restore, develop, or improve their existing structures in certain qualifying locations in the state. Those include downtown development districts, historic districts, opportunity zones, and economic development districts.  

If a business qualifies, it can get a 10-year abatement of property taxes on its building and materials costs, machinery and equipment purchases, and labor and engineering costs. More information on the abatement is available here. 

Louisiana city and county tax credits

Tax incentive programs aren’t just at the state level—many cities and counties offer their own business tax incentive or tax credit programs. Reach out to your city’s economic development council to discover tax programs for local businesses. 

Search for your city’s website here. 

Business financing in Louisiana

Along with Louisiana’s many tax incentive programs, the state also has a multitude of grant and loan opportunities for businesses of all sizes. For more information, take a look at Gusto’s guide to Louisiana business grants and loans.