West Virginia Strategic R&D Tax Credit
Supports West Virginia firms with strategic innovation tax credits for innovation planning.
Eligibility · United States · US-WV
West Virginia's Strategic Research and Development Tax Credit Act (W. Va. Code §11-13R-1 et seq.) provided a credit equal to the greater of 3% of annual combined qualified R&D expenditure or 10% of the excess of annual combined qualified R&D expenditure over a base amount. The credit could be applied against West Virginia business income taxes and carried forward. However, the act terminated on January 1, 2014 under a statutory sunset clause at W. Va. Code §11-13R-13: no credit entitlement arises from expenditures made on or after that date. Taxpayers that acquired entitlement from pre-2014 qualified investments retain that entitlement and may continue applying carried credits pursuant to the article's requirements and limitations.
For new R&D investment in West Virginia after 2013, the primary state tax incentives are the Economic Opportunity Tax Credit (W. Va. Code §11-13Q-1 et seq.), which rewards qualified investment in new or expanded facilities at credit rates of 10% to 30% based on new jobs created, and the High-Wage Growth Business Tax Credit (W. Va. Code §11-13II-1 et seq.), which provides a refundable credit capped at $100,000 per taxpayer for high-wage new jobs created after July 1, 2020. The West Virginia Tax Department administers these active credits and publishes annual guidance in TSD 110 (West Virginia Tax Credits), most recently updated in October 2025.
A new instrument, the West Virginia First Small Business Growth Program, was signed into law in February 2026 (SB 1, 2026 Regular Session) and authorises $100 million in capital investment tax credits to licensed growth funds (RBICs and SBICs) that invest in West Virginia small businesses with fewer than 250 employees. That program is administered operationally by the WV Department of Commerce, with tax credit processing by the WV Tax Department. Businesses seeking active R&D-focused state incentives in West Virginia should review the current Economic Opportunity Tax Credit and the 2026 growth program rather than the sunset Strategic R&D credit.
Covers West Virginia's suite of business investment and job-creation tax credits, including the now-sunset Strategic R&D Tax Credit and active successors such as the Economic Opportunity Tax Credit and the 2026 WV First Small Business Growth Program.
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