The Secret Power of Tax Credits

If you own a small business that’s had good success, you may feel ready to take it to the next level and expand. However, feeling ready and actually being ready are two totally different things; if you don’t have the money to grow your business, it can feel impossible to make expansion happen or like it will take years and years.   

Thankfully, there are small business incentives, such as state credits, federal credits, grants, and more that can make your dream a reality. The trick is just to find the right one for your specific needs and circumstances.

Tax Credits

There are many tax credits that exist to help businesses. Typically, these credits are available to businesses that meet very specific requirements and/or have very specific needs. Thus, it can take a little searching to determine which credits you can apply for.

One great example is the federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit. You can receive this credit for hiring specific “high risk” employees or others who have a lower chance of getting hired elsewhere, such as former felons or those who fall below a certain level on the poverty line. Typically, you can claim as much as $9,600 for each qualifying employee you hire, though there is a limit on the number you can hire and receive the credit for.

There are many credits that, like the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, you can easily become eligible for if you just make a few small changes, and more often than not, these changes are very worth the pay-off.

State Hiring Incentives

Another good way to get extra cash for growing your business is to take advantage of state hiring incentives. Incentives are typically offered based on how many jobs your company can create in your community or other ways in which it can help the community; the more jobs and opportunities you can create, the better.

When you help out and help better your community, everybody wins, and your business is the one that gets the big “thank you” in the end.

Grants

State and federal grants are also a good way to generate money for your business. If you plan on training your employees to do something new, or on offering some kind of new product or service that would help the community, you can typically find a relevant grant that will reimburse you for some or all of your related expenses or at least for specific costs.

You can learn about available grants and determine which ones could apply to you by contacting the United States Department of Labor’s Business Relations Group, as well as other grant-offering resources.

As you can see, there are a great many ways to help your business earn more money, or, at the very least, to cover some of its costs so that you can designate those funds to expansion. Many of these resources can also help your business to make a positive difference in the community; so really, these types of incentives are a powerful win-win option for everyone involved.