Provincial tax credits: is your business eligible?

Did you know the British Columbia Government has a number of tax credit programs available to small business? Check the list below to be sure you're not leaving money on the table.

• The Book Publishing Tax Credit is available to book-publishing corporations that carry out business primarily in BC, and receive a contribution from the Canada Book Fund (CBF). Eligible recipients may receive up to 90% of the base CBF contributions received in the taxation year.
• The BC Farmers' Food Donation Corporate Income Tax Credit provides a non-refundable tax credit to farmers and farming corporations when they donate to registered charities such as food banks or school meal programs. 
• The Film and Television Tax Credit Program (FTTC) provides refundable tax credits to eligible corporations that produce qualifying film or video productions in BC. The credits are for domestic productions with qualifying levels of Canadian content.
• The Foreign Tax Credit may be claimed by corporations on taxes paid to another country on foreign non-business income. The credit reduces the amount of provincial tax that would otherwise be payable. 
• The Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit program provides a refundable 17.5% tax credit on eligible salary and wages incurred by eligible corporations that develop interactive digital media products in BC.
• The Logging Tax Credit program allows corporations that have paid a logging tax in BC on income earned from logging operations to claim one third of the logging tax payable in the year.
• The Mineral Tax has various allowances and credits that your business may be eligible to take advantage of to reduce taxes.
• The Mining Exploration Tax Credit (METC) is available to eligible corporations and active members of partnerships conducting grassroots mineral exploration in BC.  The credit is calculated as 20% of qualified mining exploration expenses, and/or an enhanced rate of 30% for qualified mineral exploration undertaken in prescribed Mountain Pine Beetle affected areas.
• The Oil and Gas Royalties and Freehold Production Tax - Certain gas and oil production are exempt from the payment of royalty and tax.  Deep well credits can also be used to reduce royalties on production of gas and by-products from deep well events to reflect higher drilling and completion costs.
• The Natural Gas Tax Credit reduces the amount of provincial corporate income tax payable by corporations that own natural gas immediately after it has passed through an LNG facility inlet meter for a major LNG facility during the taxation year. 
• The Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) program provides four distinct refundable tax credits to accredited production corporations who produce film or video productions in BC. The credits are for both domestic and foreign productions and there is no Canadian content requirement.
• The Qualifying Environmental Trust Tax Credit is a fully refundable credit that is available to eligible corporations that are beneficiaries of a qualifying environmental trust located in BC.
• The Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Credit Program provides a 10% tax credit to qualifying corporations that carry on SR&ED in BC before September 1, 2022. 
• The Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Industry Tax Credit provides re fundable tax credit for eligible employers who employ apprentices in the BC shipbuilding and ship repair industry. The credit is based on salary and wages paid to an eligible apprentices before December 31, 2022. 
• The Small Business Venture Capital Tax Credit is available to corporations that invest in shares of a registered venture capital corporation or eligible business corporation.
• The British Columbia Training Tax Credit (TCC) Program provides a tax credit to eligible employers and apprentices engaged in Red Seal (Interprovincial) and BC- Recognized (non-Red Seal) programs administered through the Industry Training Authority (ITA). The training credit is effective until the end of 2022. 

For more detailed information on these programs, including eligibility and how to claim the tax credits, please visit the B.C. Government web site.