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Failure to file the Notice of Intent could be costly!
On an annual basis, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs publishes a ranking of all 159 counties in the State of Georgia. This annual ranking is based on certain economic factors, with the least-developed counties (and specially designated areas) receiving most favorable incentives and the most-developed counties receiving less favorable incentives.
Why do the tier rankings and special designations matter?
Based on the ranking and designations, qualification for the Georgia Job Tax Credit, the amount of potential credit, and how the credit may be used are impacted. A change in the ranking from one year to another can drastically reduce or eliminate the Georgia Job Tax Credit available to a company.
Who is impacted by the 2025 changes?
There are 11 Counties, 60 Less Developed Census Tracts, and 4 Military Zones that employers could be adversely affected by the new tier rankings and special designations. These include:
Counties with an adverse change in tier rankings include Appling, Bacon, Butts, Madison, Peach, Pickens, Berrien, Coffee, Irwin, Johnson, and Laurens.
Counties with certain census tracts that no longer are designated as Less Developed Census Tracts include Butts, Carroll, Chatham, Crawford, DeKalb, Effingham, Fulton, Gordon, Grady, Greene, Gwinnett, Henry, Jones, Liberty, Marion, Monroe, Oglethorpe, Paulding, Polk, Pulaski, Rockdale, Schley, Talbot, Walker, and Whitfield.
Counties with census tracts losing the designation as a Military Zone include Lowndes, Tattnall, Camden, and Columbia.
File a Notice of Intent to preserve a favorable ranking!
Georgia recognizes that an area’s change in designation could have an adverse impact to employers expanding in the community. To combat that result, the Georgia statute provides taxpayers with the ability to preserve their favorable ranking for three years after the new rankings are published.
However, to do so, the company needs to file a Notice of Intent with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs in a timely manner.
The Notice of Intent (NOI) form must be filed by March 31st, stating the company’s intention of retaining their favorable status and estimating the job growth over the three-year period. This form may be mailed (postmarked by March 31st) or filed electronically. Starting in 2026, electronic filing is the only option.
Failure to file the NOI can be a costly mistake. Let’s review what a change in the county rank impacts.
How is qualification impacted?
Regardless of tier or special designation, new jobs created for purposes of the Georgia Job Tax Credit meet the following criteria:
- Salary is at least an amount equal to the lowest county weekly wage in the state.
- The employee is a Georgia resident.
- The position is full-time (averaging at least 35 hours per week).
- The employer offers the employee health insurance (the employer is not required to pay for the health insurance and the employee is not required to accept the health insurance).
However, the minimum number of jobs needed to be created, and the employer’s industry differ based on county tier or special designation.
Only two new qualifying jobs need to be created in a Tier 1 county or in a zone designated as an Opportunity Zone or Military Zone. That threshold jumps to ten new jobs in Tier 2, making qualification much more difficult.
The rankings also impact the industries that qualify for the Georgia Job Tax Credit. In the 40 least developed counties in Tier 1 and the special zones (Opportunity and Military Zones), any company qualifies, regardless of industry. Elsewhere, the company must meet the definition of a Business Enterprise (as defined in the Georgia Code), limiting who qualifies.
The value of the credit also depends on the ranking!
The credit is worth $3,500 per new job in a Tier 1 county, Less Developed Census Tract, and the special zones. Each tier afterwards declines in the value on a per job basis; Tier 2 is $2,500 per job, Tier 3 is $1,250, and Tier 4 is $750.
The ranking impacts how the credit can be used against tax liability.
The Georgia Job Tax Credit, generally, is available to use against the company’s state income tax liability. Tiers 3 and 4 are limited to 50% of the company’s income tax liability, whereas the other tiers, Less Developed Census Tracts, and special zones can offset 100% of the company’s income tax liability. If a company in a Tier 1 county, Less Developed Census Tracts, or special zone exhausts their income tax liability with the Georgia Job Tax Credit, they may apply the excess credit against their Georgia Withholding Tax deposits.
Failure to file the Notice of Intent has consequences!
Picture this…
ABC Manufacturing added 8 new qualifying jobs in 2025. In 2024, they were in a Tier 1 county, but that county was ranked as a Tier 2 county in 2025. The company did not file a Notice of Intent to preserve the Tier 1 ranking. As they did not meet the minimum job growth for Tier 2, they will be ineligible for the Georgia Job Tax Credit in 2025.
Had they filed an NOI to preserve the Tier 1 ranking, the Job Tax Credit would be $28,000 for 2025. The failure to file the NOI isn’t just a $28,000 mistake, it is a $140,000 error if they maintain the 8 jobs because they can take the credit annually for 5 years.
What happens if the Notice of Intent is not filed?
Unfortunately, the taxpayer is out of luck and must meet the job growth requirements for the tier in which they experience job growth. There is no relief for missing the March 31st filing deadline of the Notice of Intent. That’s a harsh result, but understandable as the state is providing a unique opportunity to retain the favorable ranking.
“My CPA takes care of all these filings.”
That may be true for most of your tax filings, but the Notice of Intent is very niched. This form and filing are usually outside of the services provided by CPAs. Honestly, it is understandable if the CPA is unaware of the requirement to file the Notice of Intent considering what they need to stay on top of with federal and state taxes.
How can we determine if a Notice of Intent needs to be filed?
The easy way? Contact MPowered Incentives Group to do a search of your business locations to identify which locations would benefit from the filing of an NOI. There is no cost to you and there is no obligation to engage us if we determine you should file the Notice of Intent.
The hard way? Read the twenty-plus page memorandum from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs and then search your property for the proper tier, tract, or zone designation.
MPowered Incentives Group is here to be of service to you and your company. We have the team and technological tools to make the right determination regarding the filing of the Notice of Intent. We would love the opportunity to demonstrate the value we can add to reduce your tax liabilities.
