20% Federal Tax Credit for Historic Property Rehabilitation

Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives Program

The federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives encourage the private-sector rehabilitation of historic buildings. This program provides historic commercial or income-producing property owners a 20% federal tax credit on Qualified Rehabilitation Expenses (QREs). It is one of the nation's most successful and cost-effective community revitalization programs.

The Federal Historic Tax Incentives Program benefits California by:

• Generating jobs
• Preserving historic places that give cities, towns, and rural areas their special character.
• Creating moderate and low-income housing
• Reducing new construction waste
• Enhancing property values The National Park Service (NPS) and the Internal Revenue Service administer the program. The NPS works in partnership with State Historic Preservation Offices. The Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) is the point of contact for property owners interested in the tax credit. The OHP provides consultation and architectural review based on the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties (The Standards).

Before applying, please review these resources and guidelines from the NPS:

• 20% Tax Credit Basics
• Planning Successful Projects
• Before You Apply
• Application Process What have the Federal Historic Tax Incentives achieved for California?

Visit the What have the Federal Historic Tax Incentives done for California? page to see the financial impact this tax credit program has on California.

Requesting a Project Folder

As of August 2023, all applications and supporting documents must be submitted electronically. The OHP will provide each applicant with a secure project folder.

To request a project folder:

1. Email calshpo.tax@parks.ca.gov with the subject line " Request for project folder link.”
2. In the body of the email, include the
   • The project name, address, city and county
   • For existing projects, the NPS five-digit number and OHP project number
   • Include the email addresses of associates needing access to the folder

3. A hyperlink to the folder will be emailed back to the original sender within a few hours
   Note: First-time users will be prompted for a verification code. Click the "send code" button to receive a verification code by email. Fill in the code field of the first email with the code and click "continue."

4. Upload files. Keep in mind the following:

   1. NPS Naming Convention guidelines and
   2. New NPS Application forms and instructions dated "Rev. 6/2023". Previous forms will be returned.
   3. Include a Transmittal log in Microsoft Word or a compatible format, using the NPS Transmittal log example as a template.
   4. After all documents are uploaded, email calshpo.tax@parks.ca.gov to notify staff of the upload. The files are date-stamped in the order received and assigned to a reviewer.

The same project folder will be used for the entire application process.

If the link to the upload folder does not work, email calshpo.tax@parks.ca.gov, and a new link will be sent.

Related Pages

• Architectural Review
• Completed Federal Tax Incentive Projects
• Certified Districts
• Federal Tax Deductions - Easements
• State Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit
• Mills Act Program
• State Historical Building Code (SHBC)
• Federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits Benefit California
• State Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit (SHRTC) — Commercial Program

Office of Historic Preservation
1725 23rd Street
Sacramento, CA 95816

TEL: 916-445-7000
FAX: 916-445-7053

Staff Contact: calshpo.tax@parks.ca.gov

Check Project Status

You can track the status of your Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives Program through the NPS Check Project Status page.