Colorado film tax incentive

What Colorado actually pays

A credit that pays out in cash when it exceeds what you owe the state. Close to a rebate for most independent productions.

New to the mechanics? Tax credit vs rebate vs grant and What counts as qualified spend.

What qualifies

Min $100K CO local spend (CO company) / $1M (out-of-state; $250K for TV commercials & video games). At least 50% Colorado-resident cast & crew. Proof of 80% financing. Colorado income tax withholding required on qualified wages (non-residents/loan-outs at 4.40%). Content creation only — no marketing, distribution, or out-of-state development costs.

• Pilot
• Animation
• Commercial
• Miniseries
• Documentary
• Music Video
• Scripted TV
• Feature Film
• Streaming / SVOD
• Video Game / Interactive

Other state programs

Separate incentives Colorado runs alongside the headline program. Each has its own base, rules and application — the rates here are the programs' own, not additions to the rate above.

• Colorado Refundable Film Incentive Tax Credit (HB23-1309 / HB24-1358)

  20% of ALL actual qualified local expenditures (C.R.S. 39-22-559(3)): Colorado vendor spend plus wages of residents AND non-residents if Colorado income tax is withheld; $1M cap per person / per personal-service corp. Gates, not basis: >=$100K QLE and >=50% Colorado-resident workforce (narrow-eligibility). 22% when >=50% of production occurs in an Enterprise Zone: OEDIT policy under the statute's 'not to exceed 22%' ceiling, multiplies the whole base (narrow-eligibility, not additive). Reservation before production; $5M/calendar-year statewide cap; EDC merit selection.

  Minimum spend: $100K

  20%–22%

• Permanent-resident exemption from state (and by default local) sales/use tax on lodging – 30 consecutive days

  Minimum spend: N/A

  2.9%

• Mountainfilm Emerging Filmmaker Fellowship

Grants & funds

Grant funds and fellowships available to productions here, including national programs. Awarded competitively rather than earned on spend.

• Redford Center Grants

• Mountainfilm Commitment Grants

How to apply

Submit pre-application via OEDIT portal (oedit.my.site.com) → submit proof of 80% financing → if invited, submit full Statement of Intent & Application for Conditional Approval → EDC approval → executed contract before incurring eligible expenses. After production: CPA audit + Film Incentive Proof of Performance.

Common questions

What is the Colorado film tax incentive rate?

Colorado offers 20% to 22% on qualified in-state spend through the Colorado Film Incentive Tax Credit. It is a refundable credit. A credit that pays out in cash when it exceeds what you owe the state. Close to a rebate for most independent productions.

What is the minimum spend for the Colorado film incentive?

$100,000 of Colorado spend. The old $100K/$1M/$250K tiers lived in C.R.S. 39-22-559(3)(a),(3)(b), which HB24-1358 repealed.. Falling under the minimum is a total loss of the benefit, not a partial one — it is worth confirming the threshold before locking a budget.

Is the Colorado film incentive transferable or refundable?

Refundable — the excess over your state tax liability is paid out in cash.

Verify before you budget. These figures come from our own incentives database and each shows when it was last reviewed — but programs change between funding cycles and legislative sessions. Confirm with the film office, or ask us, before a number goes into a budget.