How to Get a 31% Cash Rebate: The 2026 Guide to the Texas Film Incentive (TMIIIP)

Written By Shine Cine Camera Rentals

Texas just became one of the most generous places in the country to make a movie, a series, a commercial, or a game. In 2025 the Legislature passed Senate Bill 22, committing $1.5 billion to the Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program over ten years, and the Texas Film Commission rewrote the program guidelines in November 2025 to match. If you read about this program before last fall, most of what you read is out of date.

Here's the short version. Qualifying productions get a cash grant of 5% to 25% of their eligible Texas spend, and stackable bonuses can push the total to 31%. The top 25% rate now kicks in at $1.5 million of Texas spend instead of the old higher threshold, the Texas-resident crew requirement dropped from 55% to 35%, and there are seven bonus categories instead of a couple. The rules below apply to projects that start between September 1, 2025 and August 31, 2027.

This is the guide we hand producers who walk into the shop asking how it works.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

  • Funding is locked in. $300 million every two years through 2035, so the money is there when you apply, which was not always true in prior cycles.
  • The 25% tier is easier to reach. Film, TV, and animation projects hit 25% at $1.5 million in Texas spend. The middle tier of 10% covers $1 million to $1.5 million.
  • Residency dropped to 35%. Only 35% of your paid crew and cast need to be Texas residents through August 2027. That number steps up 5 points every two years until it reaches 50% in September 2031, so the next two years are the easiest window.
  • More ways to stack bonuses. Veterans, rural filming, historic sites, workforce partnerships, Texas heritage, faith-based content, and post-production all add to your base rate, capped at 31% total.
  • New guidelines and forms. The Texas Film Commission published revised Program Guidelines on November 21, 2025 and a new Veteran Resident Status form. Use those, not the older PDFs floating around.
  • Arlington now has its own film commission. Launched June 17, 2026, which means all three big DFW cities have a dedicated office to help you permit and scout. More on that below.

Who qualifies

To get into the program, a production has to clear four bars:

  1. Minimum Texas spend of $250,000 for film and television, or $100,000 for commercials, video games, reality TV, and XR.
  2. At least 60% of the production completed in Texas, measured in production days. If you shoot in Texas and out of state on the same day, you get partial credit for that day.
  3. At least 35% Texas residents. For film and TV it's 35% of paid crew and 35% of paid cast, including extras, counted separately. For commercials, video games, and reality it's 35% of crew and cast combined.
  4. Apply on time. No earlier than 180 days before your first day of production and no later than 5 p.m. Central on the fifth business day before day one. The application, a Texas-only budget, and your script or content document all go in together.

Eligible project types include feature films, TV series and pilots, MOWs, documentaries, webisodes, commercials, music videos, educational and instructional videos, reality and game shows, video games, animation, VFX, and AR/VR/MR.

The base grant tiers

Your base rate depends on project type and how much you spend in Texas.

Film and television, and animation or VFX for film and TV

  • $250,000 to $1 million: 5%
  • $1 million to $1.5 million: 10%
  • $1.5 million and up: 25%

Commercials, music videos, and reality television

  • $100,000 to $1 million: 5%
  • $1 million and up: 10%

Video games and XR

  • $100,000 to $1 million: 5%
  • $1 million to $1.5 million: 10%
  • $1.5 million and up: 25%

There is no per-project cap. Labor counts up to the first $1 million paid to each Texas resident.

The bonuses that get you to 31%

Each Additional Grant Award adds to your base rate. You can stack more than one, up to a total of 31%. Two things producers miss: you have to select the bonuses on your application, and they cannot be added after the fact.

  • Texas Resident Veterans adds 2.5%. At least 5% of combined paid crew and cast, including extras, are Texas resident veterans with a DD214 or equivalent.
  • Rural area adds 2.5%. At least 35% of production days in counties with a population of 300,000 or less.
  • Texas historic site adds 2.5%. Use historic sites in Texas as filming locations.
  • Workforce development adds 2.5%. Partner with a Texas college or university for industry training during production.
  • Texas heritage adds 2.5%. Project designated a Texas heritage project under the Commission's rules.
  • Faith-based adds 2.5%. Project designated a faith-based project under the Commission's rules.
  • Post-production adds 1%. At least 25% of your eligible Texas spend goes to post work done in Texas, including editing, sound, music, VFX, and compositing.

A DFW-specific note on the rural bonus. Tarrant, Dallas, Denton, and Collin counties are on the excluded list, so days in Fort Worth, Dallas, Arlington, Plano, or Denton don't count toward the 35%. But Parker, Johnson, Hood, Wise, Ellis, and Kaufman counties all qualify, and they're a 30 to 60 minute drive from our prep bay. If your story can live on a ranch, a small-town square, or open highway for a third of your schedule, that's an extra 2.5% for shooting where Texas looks like Texas.

What the math looks like

Say you're producing a feature with $2 million in qualified Texas spend, and you hire enough veterans to hit the 5% mark and finish post in Dallas.

  • Base rate at $1.5 million or more: 25% = $500,000
  • Veteran bonus: 2.5% = $50,000
  • Post-production bonus: 1% = $20,000
  • Total grant: 28.5% = $570,000 cash back

Add a rural bonus by shooting 35% of your days in Parker or Johnson County and you're at the 31% ceiling, or $620,000 on that same budget.

For a $600,000 regional commercial campaign, the base is 5%, or $30,000, plus whatever bonuses you elect. Not life-changing, but it's real money that most agencies leave on the table because nobody filled out the form.

What counts as Qualified Texas Spend

Three buckets:

  • Wages paid to Texas residents for work done in Texas, up to the first $1 million per person. Every resident fills out a Declaration of Texas Residency form, and their ID has to have been valid 120 days before day one.
  • Vendor invoices paid to Texas-based companies: rental houses, studios, caterers, hotels, transportation, post facilities.
  • Petty cash spent in Texas and documented.

Out-of-state vendors don't count, and neither does shipping gear in from Los Angeles. That's the quiet argument for sourcing locally, and it's a bigger deal than most line producers realize. Every dollar you spend with a Texas rental house is a dollar that both qualifies for the grant and avoids freight.

On top of the grant, Texas productions get sales tax exemptions on qualifying purchases and rentals, hotel occupancy tax exemptions for stays of 30 days or more, and refunds on state fuel tax for fuel used off-road, like generators. Those are up-front savings, not a rebate you wait on.

How the process works, start to finish

  1. Submit an Incentive Inquiry Form on the Texas Film Commission site. The incentives team sends you a link to the application. Links expire in 7 days.
  2. Apply between 180 days and 5 business days before your first day of production. Elect your bonuses now.
  3. Sign the grant contract within 45 days of your award letter, and hold a kickoff call with the Commission's incentives team and your accountant.
  4. Confirm your start of production by email within 5 business days of day one. Missing this can disqualify you.
  5. Collect residency forms from every paid Texas resident, and veteran forms if you're claiming that bonus. Keep call sheets and production reports, because those prove your 60% and your rural days.
  6. File quarterly status reports at the end of November, February, May, and August.
  7. Submit final documentation within 60 days of your last Texas expenditure. If you're doing post in Texas, that clock starts after your last post invoice.
  8. Put the Texas Film Commission logo in your end credits and get it approved.
  9. Audit, then payment. The Commission reviews your submission and pays the grant as a cash award.

The one piece of advice we give everybody: bring your accountant into this before you apply. The paperwork is not hard, but it is relentless, and a payroll company that already knows the Texas format saves you weeks.

Tip: let the city film commissions do your scouting

The Texas Film Commission runs the money. The city film commissions run the ground game, and all three DFW offices will scout for you for free.

Fort Worth Film Commission has supported more than 1,000 projects and $1 billion in economic impact since 2015, and it's the office behind 1883 and Landman landing here. Their Locations Library covers everything from the Stockyards to the Cultural District to working ranches west of town, and they'll walk you through City of Fort Worth permits and drone rules. Email film@fortworth.com.

Dallas Film Commission is the central point of contact for the east side of the metroplex. Register your project with them first, then use their locations and venues database and permit guidance, which also covers DFW International Airport. Call (214) 571-1050.

Arlington, TX Film Commission is the new kid, launched June 17, 2026 and already an AFCI member. Permits for city-owned spaces run through FilmApp, a free online tool, and their Location Highlights page is a good starting point for stadium, entertainment district, and lakefront looks. Email film@arlingtontx.gov.

For statewide scouting, the Texas Film Commission keeps a searchable locations database that all three cities feed into. Tell them what the script needs and they'll send you options with photos before you spend a dime on a scout day.

Rent local, hire local, and get paid for it

Everything in the section above about Qualified Texas Spend comes down to this: the more of your budget that lands with Texas companies and Texas residents, the bigger your check.

Gear. Renting your camera, lens, lighting, and grip packages from a Texas rental house counts as vendor spend. Shipping an Alexa in from L.A. does not, and you pay freight both ways for the privilege. Shine Cine is a Texas-based vendor in Fort Worth with cameras, lenses, grip trucks, and lighting under one roof, public pricing, and prep bays where your AC can build before day one. Every invoice from us is Qualified Texas Spend.

Crew. The 35% residency requirement is easy to clear in DFW, because the crew base here has been sharpened by a decade of studio series and national commercials. Where to find them:

And ask us. We work with DFW camera, G&E, and AC crews every week and know who shows up early, who owns their own kit, and who's good on a 14-hour day. Tell us what you're shooting and we'll make introductions.

FAQ

How much is the Texas film incentive in 2026?

Up to 31% of qualified Texas spend. The base grant is 5%, 10%, or 25% depending on project type and spend, and Additional Grant Awards of 1% to 2.5% each stack on top, capped at 31% total.

What is the minimum spend to qualify for TMIIIP?

$250,000 in Texas for film and television projects, and $100,000 for commercials, music videos, reality TV, video games, and XR.

What percentage of the crew has to be from Texas?

35% of paid crew and 35% of paid cast, including extras, for film and TV. For commercials, reality, and games it's 35% of crew and cast combined. That rises to 40% in September 2027, 45% in 2029, and 50% in 2031.

Does Fort Worth count as rural for the 2.5% bonus?

No. Tarrant, Dallas, Denton, and Collin counties are excluded. Parker, Johnson, Hood, Wise, Ellis, and Kaufman counties do qualify and are within an hour of Fort Worth.

When do I apply?

Between 180 days and 5 business days before the first day of production. Bonuses must be elected on the application and can't be added later.

Is it a tax credit or cash?

Cash. TMIIIP is a grant paid after the Commission audits your final documentation. Separately, Texas offers sales tax and hotel occupancy tax exemptions up front.

Do equipment rentals count toward the grant?

Yes, if the rental house is a Texas-based vendor. Rentals from Shine Cine in Fort Worth count as Qualified Texas Spend. Out-of-state rentals and shipping do not.

Is the Texas incentive funded?

Yes. Senate Bill 22 committed $1.5 billion over ten years, released as $300 million every two years through 2035.

Texas has diverse locations, deep crews, three city film commissions in DFW alone, and now the funding to back it up. If you're planning a shoot here in the next two years, you're catching the program at its most generous.

Bring us your script and your budget. We'll help you build a camera and G&E package that qualifies, introduce you to crew, and point you to the right film commission for your locations.

See cameras and pricing or get in touch.

Shine Cine Camera Rental House, Fort Worth, TX

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