Puerto Rico Film Industry Incentives and Tyler Perry
Puerto Rico offers film tax credits of up to 40%, yet a US$38 million annual cap limits them, as Tyler Perry reportedly plans to film on the island. The post Puerto Rico Film Industry Incentives and Tyler Perry appeared first on The Rio Times .
Puerto Rico's film industry is currently focusing on incentives following reports that US producer Tyler Perry purchased a $30 million home on the island and plans to film there. Perry stated in an interview with TODAY on September 14, 2026, that he would move to the island at the beginning of 2027 and take a break from work, while his Atlanta studios would remain operational.
The purchase and plans were reported by Metro Puerto Rico and El Nuevo Día, both of which sourced the information from TMZ. The article does not mention any specific Perry project, as none has been announced, and instead focuses on the rules that any such project would need to meet.
The island's Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC) issued a circular letter on April 7, 2026, outlining the rules for film projects with a tax-exemption decree. Under Act 60 of 2019, the Incentives Code, film projects can receive income taxed at a flat 4%, with dividends fully exempt. The decree also provides a 75% exemption from property taxes and a full exemption from municipal license tax.
Goods used for film work are exempt from excise and sales/use taxes, while payments to non-residents receive a preferential 20% withholding rate. The tax credit can be up to 40% of production spending in Puerto Rico, with an additional 15% credit for feature films, episodic series, and documentaries led by a domestic producer with key roles filled by island-based individuals.
The annual limit for film credits is $38 million per fiscal year, but this was raised to $100 million by Act 5 of 2023. However, as of December 31, 2025, the Puerto Rico Film Commission had about 67 pending decree applications totaling $170.4 million in credits, exceeding the yearly limit by more than four times. Ernesto Zayas García, who managed the DDEC business incentives office at the time, told El Vocero that the commission had approved over 17 decrees for projects ready to film, leaving it close to the credit cap for the current fiscal year and exacerbating the backlog.
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