Financial Incentives

Located in a state designated Enterprise Zone, a BioPark address may qualify tenants for tax credits and low interest loans. Additionally, companies interested in collaborating with University of Maryland faculty to advance their technology may be eligible for matching fund grants.

Maryland’s Enterprise Zone offers: (learn more)

• Real Property Tax Credits : 10-year credit against local real property taxes on a portion of real property improvements or new construction. Credit is 80 percent the first five years, and decreases 10 percent annually thereafter to 30 percent in the tenth and last year.
• Income Tax Credits : One- or three-year credit for wages to be paid to new employees. The general credit is a one-time $1,000 credit per new worker. For economically disadvantaged employees, the credit increases to a total of $6,000 per worker distributed over three years.
• Enhanced Job Creation Tax Credits : For businesses eligible for Maryland’s Job Creation Tax Credit Program (a separate program), the tax credit rate is doubled from 2.5 percent to 5 percent and the ceiling is increased from $1,000 to $1,500 per new, qualified position. Minimum qualification is the creation of 25 new permanent full-time jobs.

Other state incentive programs that may apply to companies moving into the BioPark include:

• One Maryland Tax Credit : For companies moving into a “qualified distressed county” in Maryland, of which the city of Baltimore is one, businesses can qualify for up to $5.5 million in income tax credits.
• Maryland Biotechnology Tax Credit : An incentive for investment in seed and early stage private biotech companies based in Maryland. The program provides investors with tax credits or refunds equal to 50 percent of an eligible investment made to a qualified Maryland biotech company. Individual investors must commit a minimum of $25,000. For corporations and ventures capitalists, the minimum investment allowed under the program is $250,000.
• Research and Development Tax Credits : For businesses that incur qualified research and development expenses in Maryland, the business may receive a basic R&D tax credit of three percent of eligible R&D expenses that do not exceed the firm’s average R&D expenses over the last four years or a growth R&D tax credit of 10 percent of eligible R&D expenses that do exceed the firm’s average expenses over the last four years.
• Business Financing and Loans : The State of Maryland and City of Baltimore also offer businesses a range of low cost loans and other financing programs.

For additional information on resources for Maryland bioscience companies, visit the the new Maryland Biotechnology Center website.