The Georgia Retraining Tax Credit: How Does It Work?
The Georgia Retraining Tax Credit provides tax credits according to the Georgia Business Expansion and Support Act of 1994. Eligible businesses may be granted tax credits equal to 50% of the direct cost of training (up to $500.00 per full time employee per year).
The Technical College System of Georgia, as authorized by law, sets standards to approve retraining programs. Reimbursement through this program is retroactive.
Eligible Retraining Programs
Retraining programs that are eligible for the Retraining Tax Credit include:
- Retraining of current employees on newly installed equipment;
- Retraining of current employees on newly implemented technology, such as computer platforms, software implementation and upgrades, Total Quality Management, ISO 9000, and self-directed work teams.
Not eligible: executive training, management development training, career development, personal enrichment training, etc.; cross-training of employees on equipment or technology that is not new to the company.
Eligible Retraining Costs
Certain direct costs are eligible for the Retraining Tax Credit. These costs include:
- Instructor salaries;
- Employee wages during the retraining;
- Development of retraining program;
- Materials and supplies, textbooks and manuals;
- Instructional media, such as video tapes, presentations, etc.;
- Equipment used for retraining only (not production);
- Reasonable travel costs.
Costs that are not eligible include sales taxes, training space, and employee-paid training. An employer may not receive a credit if the employer requires that the employee reimburse or pay the employer for the cost of retraining either directly or indirectly, or through use of forfeiture of leave time, vacation time, or other compensable time. Itemized details regarding the direct retraining costs must be available upon audit.
Eligible Employees
To be eligible for the Retraining Tax Credit, employees must be:
- Georgia residents;
- First-line employees or immediate supervisor;
- Continuously employed with the company for a minimum of 16 weeks;
- Full-time employees (employed for a minimum of 25 hours per week.)
Employees that are not eligible for the Retraining Tax Credit include executives, management, partners, etc. (above first-line supervisors.)
Training Sources
Retraining may be provided by any qualified source, including company trainers, training vendors, technical colleges, or universities.
Are you planning to engage new equipment or technology to advance your business operation? If so, your company may be eligible for Georgia’s Retraining Tax Credits.
The purpose of these tax credits is to:
- Foster the profitability and competitiveness of Georgia’s existing businesses by encouraging workforce development through retraining tax incentives;
- Help companies offset the costs of retraining employees that are affected by the implementation of new equipment or new technology;
- Enhance the skills of Georgia employees to enable them to successfully use new equipment, technology, or operating systems.
Call us today to see how simple this process is, and start saving your company money!
For more information on the Georgia Retraining Tax Credit, contact Brandy Wilkes, Associate Vice President of Economic Development at (229) 468-2228, or email brandy.wilkes@wiregrass.edu.
For more detailed information, see Georgia Retraining Tax Credit Guide.
