DTF-621: Claim for QETC Employment Credit (2024)
New York · NY DTF · Used for tax years 2024
Form DTF-621 is used to claim New York’s qualified emerging technology company (QETC) employment credit. It documents business eligibility, compares average full-time employment in New York State with a three-year base period, and calculates the credit.
Who files this form
Use Form DTF-621 to claim the qualified emerging technology company (QETC) employment credit for 2024. The form also provides a place for partners, S corporation shareholders, and beneficiaries of estates or trusts to enter their share of the credit.
For a company to qualify under Schedule A:
- It must be located in New York State and have total annual product sales of $10,000,000 or less.
- It must meet the form’s R&D or emerging technology business activity tests.
- Its average full-time employment in New York State must be at least 101% of its three-year base-period average to continue to Schedule B.
What you'll need
Have the information needed for the parts of the form that apply to you:
- Your name as shown on your tax return, taxpayer identification number, and tax period.
- Annual product sales and, if applicable, R&D funds and net sales.
- A description of emerging technology products or services, plus the receipts, sales, or expenditure amounts requested from your federal return.
- New York State full-time employee counts for the current tax year and three-year base period, using the quarterly dates shown in the form’s tables.
- Names and Social Security numbers of each employee used to calculate the current-year average on line 17.
- Your share of the credit and the business name and taxpayer identification number of the partnership, S corporation, estate, or trust, if applicable.
- Tax and other credit amounts requested in Schedule D, if it applies to you.
How to file
File Form DTF-621 with Form CT-3, CT-3-A, CT-3-S, IT-201, IT-203, IT-204, or IT-205, as applicable.
Enter your tax period and mark whether this is the first, second, or third tax year for which you are claiming the credit. Corporate partners claiming the credit must mark box B.
Follow Schedule A’s eligibility questions and directions. If eligible, calculate the credit in Schedule B and complete Schedule C. Schedule D calculates the credit limitation for Article 9-A filers only.
The supplied form does not state a mailing address or provide e-filing directions.
Common mistakes
- Do not continue past Schedule A, Part 1 if the company is not located in New York State or its total annual product sales exceed $10,000,000. The form says the company does not qualify for the current tax year.
- If you have R&D funds but zero net sales, skip lines 6a and 6b and mark Yes on line 7.
- If line 10 is zero, skip to line 13 rather than calculating the sales percentage on line 11.
- Do not treat exactly 50% as passing the emerging technology tests on lines 12 or 16. The form requires greater than 50%.
- If line 19 is less than 101%, do not complete Schedule B. The form directs you to the instructions.
- On line 20, include only employees listed on page 3.
- If the credit limitation calculation on line 32 is less than zero, enter 0.
Questions people ask
How much is the credit per employee?
Schedule B lists a credit of $1,000 per employee. It calculates the current-year credit by subtracting the base-period average on line 21 from the current-year average on line 20, then multiplying the difference by $1,000.
Can a company with R&D funds but no net sales qualify as a QETC?
Yes. Line 5 says that if you have any R&D funds but zero net sales, you are a QETC. It directs you to skip lines 6a and 6b and mark Yes on line 7. Other eligibility requirements still appear in Schedule A.
Where do I enter a credit passed through to me?
Partners, S corporation shareholders, and beneficiaries of estates or trusts enter their share on line A. The form also asks for the business name and taxpayer identification number of that entity.
Do I need to list employees individually?
Yes. Page 3 asks for the name and Social Security number of each employee used to calculate the average number of full-time employees on line 17.
Does the form provide for unused credit?
Yes. Schedule D has lines for unused credit to be refunded and unused, nonrefunded credit to be applied as an overpayment to the next year’s tax return. These lines refer to instructions, which were not supplied, for further details.