Philadelphia Now Allows A Tax Credit for Hiring Veterans

Philadelphia Tax Breaks Involving Veterans

Philadelphia has recently amended its Business Privilege Tax (business income and receipts tax)  to allow a credit for employment of veterans of the Armed Forces.  This new Philadelphia tax law defines a “veteran” as a person who has received an honorable discharge, served a minimum of six months in active full-time duty within the past 10 years and has met the qualifications under the federal Vow to Hire Heroes Act of 2011. The period of eligibility for hired veterans is between July 1, 2012, and June 30, 2014.

The law requires that the veteran’s compensation is to other employees in the same position or, if a similar position does not exist, at an average hourly rate of at least 150% of the federal minimum wage.

The business will receive a credit of $2,000 for a full-time position, multiplied by the percentage of the tax year that the veteran worked for the business or $1,000 for a part-time position, multiplied by the percentage of the tax year that the veteran worked for the business.

The credit is available for a total of 24 months of employment, and the total amount of credit a business may receive for a full-time employee over all tax years is $4,000. For a part-time employee for the 24 months of employment, the total credit allowable for the business is $2,000.

This new law is the result of Bill No. 120491, City of Philadelphia, effective June 27, 2012