Montana Economic Development Industry Advancement (MEDIA) Tax Credit

Production or postproduction companies wishing to claim this credit must apply for pre-certification with the Montana Department of Commerce Film Office. The application and associated fee are due to the department of commerce prior to beginning principal photography in the state. A unique credit reference number (UCRN) will be issued to the applicant upon approval.

Applicants also must register with the office of the Montana Secretary of State at least 7 to 10 days prior to applying for pre-certification.

The Montana Department of Commerce Film Office has more information as well as instructions on registering with the Montana Secretary of State and applying for pre-certification.

To estimate the potential credit based on expected expenditures and labor costs, visit the Montana Film Office Credit Estimate Calculator, provided as a resource for your estimating purposes only.

After receiving certification from the department of commerce, productions must submit a complete application to the Montana Department of Revenue in order to claim the credit. A complete application must include the application fee, a detailed listing of qualified production or postproduction expenditures (referred to as the “submission of costs”) as well as all applicable forms (see “Forms” below). Large productions with a base investment of over $350,000 must also include a production expenditure verification report.

Submission of Costs May Include:

• General ledgers
• Invoices/purchase orders
• Earnings and payroll reports
• Check stubs
• Form MEDIA-COMP for each employee and loan-out company
• Loan-out withholding agreements
• Verification of loan-out withholding payments
• Other supporting documentation

Compensation costs should be separated from other expense categories, and all expenditures must be submitted in an orderly manner.

Credit Availability and Carryforward Rules:

If credit is still available in the year which the production was filmed, the production will receive credit for that year with a five year carryforward. If there is not credit available in that year, the production will receive credit for the next year with a four year carryforward. If there is no credit available in the next year, they will receive credit in the next year credit is available, up to four years, however, the credit carryforward does not get extended past the original four year carryforward. 

The production expenditure verification report must be issued by a certified public accountant and is due by April 15 of the year following the year of production to be eligible for the MEDIA credit. See 15-31-1006, MCA and ARM 42.4.3413 for report requirements. Visit the Montana Society of CPAs for help finding a qualified accountant.

Complete applications and supporting documentation must be submitted to the department of revenue via Montana’s File Transfer System.

Additional incentives can increase the credit up to an aggregate total of 35 percent of the production's base investment in the tax year. These additional incentives are:

• 25% of compensation for Montana resident crew
• 15% of compensation for non-Montana resident crew
• 20% of above-the-line compensation (actor, director, producer, writer)
• 30% of compensation paid to a student enrolled in a MT college/university who works on the production for college credit
• 10% of payments to MT colleges/universities for stage, equipment, rentals, or location fees for filming on campus
• 10% of all in-studio facility/equipment expenditures when renting a studio for 20 days or more
• 5% of expenditures in an underserved county
• 5% for using "Filmed in Montana" screen credit

The postproduction credit is equal to 25 percent of qualified wages incurred in the state for postproduction activities, which include:

• Picture, sound, and music editing
• Rerecording and mixing
• Visual effects
• Graphic design
• Original scoring
• Animation
• Musical composition
• Other activities performed after initial production

• MEDIA Credit Application (Form MEDIA-Credit)
• MEDIA Credit - Submission of Costs (Form MC-SOC)
• MEDIA Compensation Claim (Form MEDIA-COMP)
  
  • Submitted for each individual for whom credit is being claimed
  • Submit all completed MEDIA-COMP forms in one folder
• MEDIA Credit Payment Voucher

• MEDIA Credit Transfer (Form MTC)
• MEDIA Credit Payment Voucher

• MEDIA Credit Claim (Form MEDIA-CLAIM)