What is the Hawaii film tax incentive rate?

Hawaii offers 22% to 32% on qualified in-state spend through the Motion Picture / Digital Media 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 Hawaii film incentive?

$100,000 qualified HI spend per applying year (split-year: $100k in Year 1). 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 Hawaii film incentive transferable or refundable?

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

Refundable creditHuman verified· 2026-08-31Active

Hawaii film tax incentive

Motion Picture / Digital Media Tax Credit

Headline rate

22%up to 32%

Minimum spend

$100,000 qualified HI spend per applying year (split-year: $100k in Year 1)

What Hawaii 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

Refundable credit on qualified HI production costs: 22% on Oahu, 27% on Neighbor Islands (Maui, Kauai, Hawaii Island, Molokai, Lanai). Rates apply to filers registering on/after Jan 1, 2023 (Act 217). Minimum $100,000 qualified HI spend per applying year. Qualified spend = in-state costs subject to HI GET or income tax (crew/cast/musician wages, rentals, equipment, travel/airfare incl. interisland, lodging, set/wardrobe/props, post-production, insurance/bonding, shipping, state/county facility & location fees). Both resident and non-resident wages qualify. Out-of-state costs can qualify if HI Use Tax (4% + county surcharge) is paid. Certain internet-only distribution productions qualify. Non-qualifying: out-of-state insurance premiums, non-HI-registered CPA fees, fines/penalties/interest, banking fees, USPS postage.

Animation
Commercial
Miniseries
Documentary
Scripted TV
Feature Film
Post-Production
Streaming / SVOD
Video Game / Interactive

How to apply

Apply via the DBEDT Production Tax Credit online portal (dbedtfilmtaxcredit.ehawaii.gov). Step 1: Register to do business in HI + obtain a GET license; submit the Pre-Production Registration Form (PRF) at least 7 business days before the first HI shoot day, plus a Start of Principal Photography (SOPP) letter before Day 1. Receive a Pre-Qualification Letter (PQL). Step 2: Track all qualified expenditures and meet on-screen credit requirements during production. Step 3: Submit the Hawaii Production Report (HPR) with expenditure report, crew/vendor/loan-out lists, payroll logs, use-tax statement, workforce-development proof, and end-credit verification within 90 days of the subsequent year. Step 4: Upon certification, claim the refundable credit on the HI state tax return.

The rule to remember

Refundable, not transferable. 22% Oahu / 27% Neighbor Islands. $100k min, $17M/project, $50M/yr cap. Register 7 biz days pre-shoot; withhold GET on loan-outs; 0.1% workforce dev + 0.2% special-fund contributions; shared-card screen credit. Sunset 1/1/2033.

Common questions

What is the Hawaii film tax incentive rate?: Hawaii offers 22% to 32% on qualified in-state spend through the Motion Picture / Digital Media 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 Hawaii film incentive?: $100,000 qualified HI spend per applying year (split-year: $100k in Year 1). 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 Hawaii 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.

QUICK CALCULATOR

What could Hawaii be worth?

A first-pass estimate with the arithmetic shown, so you can check it rather than trust it. Switch states right here to test the same budget elsewhere, or line up to five states up side by side on the compare page.

Compare with

Programs in a similar rate band. The mechanism matters as much as the percentage — a transferable credit at 30% is not the same money as a cash grant at 30%.

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Tracking changes to this program?

We re-verify Hawaii against the film office and the statute, and write when something moves that would change a budget. One email, no cadence you didn't ask for.