New Jersey’s Angel Investor Tax Credit Program Now Providing Increased Benefits to Investors
Expanded Program Includes Larger Tax Credit, Diversity Bonus
TRENTON, N.J. (January 3, 2020) – The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) issued a reminder today that the expansion of the State’s Angel Investor Tax Credit Program went into effect on January 1, 2020.
New Jersey’s Angel Investor Tax Credit Program offers a refundable tax credit against New Jersey corporation business or gross income tax for qualified investments in an emerging technology or life sciences business with a physical presence in New Jersey that conducts research, manufacturing, or technology commercialization in the state. Businesses must have fewer than 225 employees to participate in the program, and at least three quarters of those employees must work in New Jersey. This figure represents the broadest definition of an “emerging business” compared to neighboring states. More than $530 million in investments have been leveraged through the Angel Investor Tax Credit Program since it began in 2013.
“Increasing the benefit investors receive for injecting capital into young companies is an important step in positioning New Jersey as a leader in innovation,” Governor Phil Murphy said. “New Jersey’s most precious asset is its people, and encouraging investment in minority- and women-owned businesses will help to create the most diverse and inclusive innovation economy in the nation.”
Over the summer, Governor Murphy signed legislation expanding the program. Changes to the program include an increase in the tax credit from 10 percent to 20 percent of a qualified investment, with an additional five percent bonus available for investments in a business located in a qualified opportunity zone, low-income community, or a business that is certified by the State as minority- or women-owned.
“With the enhancements to our Angel Investor Tax Credit signed into law by Governor Murphy, New Jersey now has one of the most progressive and potent tools of any state to encourage investment in early-stage innovative companies,” said NJEDA Chief Executive Officer Tim Sullivan. “With this tool in the toolkit, we will be able to attract and grow more of the growing companies that will inject new vitality into the Garden State economy.”
Debbie Hart, President and CEO of BioNJ and the Vice Chair of the Commission on Science, Innovation and Technology, sees the expansion of the Angel Investor Tax Credit Program as instrumental in strengthening New Jersey’s life sciences and technology ecosystem.
“New Jersey companies have long led the way in medical innovation and expanding the Angel Investor Tax Credit Program will enable them to attract even more investments and receive critical funding to further their life-saving and life-enhancing missions,” Hart said.
The investor community also hails the program’s expansion as key to the growth of the Garden State’s innovation economy.
“By expanding the Angel Investor Tax Credit Program, New Jersey is acknowledging and mitigating the inherent risk that comes with investing in early stage companies, which often take a long time to reach profitability,” said Stephanie Caravela, Managing Director of Jumpstart NJ Angel Network. “This expansion will have a profound and lasting impact on the innovation community for years and decades to come.”
All applications must be submitted within six months of the time the investment is made.
The Angel Investor Tax Credit Program is administered by the NJEDA, with the assistance of the Department of the Treasury’s Division of Taxation. More information can be found at www.njeda.gov/angeltaxcredit.
To learn more about resources available to New Jersey entrepreneurs and early-stage companies, visit https://www.njeda.gov/tls or follow @NewJerseyEDA on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
