Tax Incentives for Historic Building Rehabilitation

Our office facilitates applications to the Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives Program, which offers income tax credits for the rehabilitation of income-producing properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Projects certified for the federal program are also eligible for income tax credits at the state level. Both programs incentivize the revitalization of income-producing historic real estate and level the playing field when redevelopment exceeds the cost of new construction.

***If you are a federal agency or subgrantee of a federal agency consulting under Section 106, please review our Consultation Guide and Appendices**

Federal HTC Program

Income Tax Credits are for rehabilitation of income-producing properties that are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Learn more about this national program.

Montana's HTC Program

The State of Montana’s income tax credit is equal to 25% of the amount an owner claims under the Federal program.

Explore Resources

Learn about SOI standards, learn best practices, and how find professional skilled trades and architects.

Certified HTC Projects

Profiles for recent certified historic tax credit projects across the state. COMING SOON!

For Tax Credit Applicants

The National Park Service (NPS) administers the Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives Program, which provides an income tax credit equal to 20% of the investment in qualified rehabilitation expenditures on income-producing “certified historic structures” listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The State of Montana’s income tax credit is equal to 25% of the amount an owner claims under the Federal program. Those wishing to claim the state credit must first be certified for credits under the Federal program.

NPS certifies projects, and we at the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) liaise between applicants and the NPS. The tax credit program is a three-part electronic application that incentivizes adherence to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. Please follow the process each time you submit a working draft or final draft of Part 1, Part 2, or Part 3.

Determine Project Eligibility

building must be income-producing and depreciable for at least five years
building must be listed in the National Register of Historic Places, either as an individual building or as a contributing building to a historic district
project must meet the substantial rehabilitation test
all work must adhere to the Standards for Rehabilitation

National Register Listing. Historic Tax Credits are for buildings listed or eligible for listing in the National Register. Check with our office to determine if your building is listed in the National Register. If it's not, you must nominate your property concurrently with completing your tax credit application.

Financial, Tax Advice. SHPO does not provide financial or tax guidance/advice for these projects; we recommend that you or your accountant review the Rehabilitation Credit info page and FAQ on the IRS website and reach out to the IRS with questions.

Review the NPS Instructions

National Park Service (NPS) and SHPO only accept electronic submissions for the Federal Historic Rehabilitation Income Tax Credit Program. Please review the NPS revised application forms and documentation requirements and contact the Montana SHPO’s Historic Architecture Specialist with any questions.

Before submitting digital documentation, MAKE SURE that each part of your final draft application adheres to the formatting and naming conventions required by the National Park Service (NPS). Working drafts do not need to adhere to these conventions, but SHPO will not forward your final draft to NPS until it is correctly formatted.

NPS Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentive Program (nps.gov)

Prepare Required Documentation According to the NPS Guidelines

Applicants submit a three-part Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit application to the SHPO for review and comment. SHPO forwards complete applications on to the NPS for their review.

Part 1 - Evaluation of Significance

Part 2 - Description of Rehabilitation

Part 3 - Request Certification of Completed Work

Amendment / Advisory Determination

Upload Application Materials

All application materials, including all drafts, revisions, and materials for NPS preliminary review, must be submitted to SHPO through the MCRD Portal. We will not accept applications submitted via email, the State File Transfer Service, or any other platform.

Upload request forms and supporting documentation by visiting the Montana Cultural Resource Database portal https://svc.mt.gov/adsams/ and clicking “Submit Data to SHPO.”
When prompted, select “Historic Tax Credit Application” as the submittal type.

Check your email for your SHPO Project Number. This is your confirmation that the upload was successful. Login with the email address used to submit documentation to track your submission status.

Kindly notify SHPO's Historic Architecture Specialist of your submittal.

Apply for Montana State Historic Tax Credit

Montana offers a state historic tax credit, equal to 25% of the rehab investment amount claimed under the federal program (i.e. an additional 5% of the total rehab amount). Your project must be certified for federal credits to be eligible for state credits. There is no application process for the state tax credit beyond the successful applicant’s own state income tax forms.

Investing in Montana: Montana's Historic Tax Credit Program (PDF)

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