Mississippi film tax incentive

What Mississippi actually pays

The state pays cash against qualified spend. No tax liability needed, no broker, no discount — the cleanest structure for an independent production.

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

What qualifies

≥2 episodes made in MS. 25% spend / 35% resident payroll / 20% non-resident payroll / +5% veteran. First $3M per individual. $10M dedicated annual pool (separate from the $20M motion-picture cap).

• Miniseries
• Scripted TV
• Streaming / SVOD
• Reality / Unscripted

Uplifts

Rate bumps that stack on the base program, up to its published ceiling. Uplifts are the most commonly missed money in any program, because qualifying for one is usually a location or scheduling decision made long before anyone is thinking about submittal.

• Veteran Payroll Uplift (Motion Picture Incentive Program)

  Payroll to MS-resident honorably discharged U.S. military veterans

  +5%

Other state programs

Separate incentives Mississippiruns 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.

• Motion Picture Incentive Program

  +5% on payroll to MS-resident honorably discharged veterans (resident-vet combined = 35%)

  Minimum spend: $50K

  25%–35%

How to apply

Episodic productions of ≥2 episodes filmed in Mississippi. Apply to MDA / Film Mississippi BEFORE production; spend before the MDA Certification Date does not qualify. Apply via filmmississippi.org/incentive/apply/.

Common questions

What is the Mississippi film tax incentive rate?

Mississippi offers 25% to 40% on qualified in-state spend through the Episodic Television Incentive Program. It is a cash grant. The state pays cash against qualified spend. No tax liability needed, no broker, no discount — the cleanest structure for an independent production.

What is the minimum spend for the Mississippi film incentive?

$50K. 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.

What uplifts are available in Mississippi?

Mississippi offers 1 uplift on its headline program: Veteran Payroll Uplift (Motion Picture Incentive Program). Uplifts are usually decided by scheduling and location choices made months before submittal.

Is the Mississippi film incentive transferable or refundable?

Neither transferable nor refundable, which limits its value to productions with in-state tax liability.

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.