FAME Maine Seed Tax Credit Program

In connection with emergency legislation approved on March 18, 2020, certain changes were made to the Maine Seed Tax Credit Program with respect to investments made on or after April 1, 2020.

The changes include:

• The available credit for calendar years 2020 through 2026 is $15,000,000 (increased from $5,000,000). For calendar years 2027 and forward, the credit goes back down to $5,000,000.
• The tax credit is limited to 40% of the amount invested (reduced from 50%);
• The investment by a private venture capital fund for which a credit is being applied for cannot be an amount equal to the lesser of (1) $500,000 times the number of investors; and (2) $3,500,00 in any one eligible business (reduced from $4,000,000 in any one eligible business)

The original $5,000,000 in credits for 2020 were fully used prior to adoption of this emergency legislation meaning an additional $10,000,000 in credits will become available this year. FAME has indicated that the increased available credits are only available in 2020 for investments that occur after April 1, 2020.

For information on eligibility for the credit, click here.