Florida · Hiring · FL-RURAL-001
Rural Job Tax Credit
Publication revised September 24, 2026. Sourcebook page 79.
Credit amount / calculation
$1,000-$1,500 per qualifying employee; maximum $500,000 per business in a calendar year.
Business fit and eligible activity
Eligible manufacturing employers in designated rural counties can use job creation to reduce state tax. Hiring, wages or qualifying training; where the program also requires investment, satisfy both tests.
Illustrative business benefit
If a certified rural manufacturing expansion qualifies for ten employees at $1,000 each, the credit is $10,000. At a certified $1,500 rate, it would be $15,000. Check the location and minimum-job rules before applying.
Timing / first action
Tax-year claim: document the eligible expense, hire or placed-in-service date and meet any separate certification deadline. Obtain eligibility approval from the Department of Commerce and confirm which state tax will receive the credit.
Official sources
- Florida Department of Revenue — Corporate Tax Incentives (floridarevenue.com)
Related programs
Florida Research and Development Tax Credit
Generally
Certified qualified-target-industry businesses claiming the federal research credit can apply for Florida's capped credit.
Individuals with Unique Abilities Tax Credit
$1 per eligible hour, up to $1,000 per employee
Eligible employers can receive a hiring-related credit for employees with qualifying physical or intellectual impairments.
Clean Electricity Investment Credit (Internal Revenue Code §48E)
Generally
Potentially relevant when a forest-products facility owns qualifying zero-emission generation or energy-storage property.
Clean Electricity Production Credit (Internal Revenue Code §45Y)
Production-based
Alternative to the investment credit for owners/operators of qualifying clean-electricity facilities; potentially relevant to qualifying on-site generation.
Credit for Increasing Research Activities (Internal Revenue Code §41)
Regular research-credit method
A sawmill, secondary manufacturer or biomass business can qualify when it performs genuine technological experimentation to improve a product or process.