For more information on 

the tax incentives and the 

ADA, visit the Awithss Connection on ada.gov or call the 

Department’s ADA Information 

Line at 800-301-0514 (voice) 

or 800-514-0383. 

U.S. Department of Justice

Civil Rights Division

Disability Rights Section

Expanding

Your Market

Tax Incentives for Businesses

Businesses can take advantage of two Federal tax incentives available to help 

cover costs of making access improvements for customers with disabilities:

 • A tax credit for small businesses who remove access barriers from 

 their facilities, provide accessible services, or take other steps to 

 improve accessibility for customers with disabilities

 • A tax deduction for businesses of all sizes that remove access 

 barriers in their facilities or vehicles

A business that annually incurs eligible expenses to bring itself into

compliance with the ADA may use these tax incentives every year. The

incentives may be applied to a variety of expenditures; however, they may 

not be applied to the costs of new construction. All barrier removal must 

comply with applicable Federal accessibility standards.

Tax Credit

Small businesses with 30 or fewer employees or total revenues of $1 million 

or less can use the Disabled Access Credit (Internal Revenue Code, Section 

44). Eligible small businesses may take a credit of up to $5,000 (half of 

eligible expenses up to $10,250, with no credit for the fi rst $250) to offset

their costs for access, including barrier removal from their facilities 

(e.g., widening a doorway, installing a ramp), provision of accessibility

services (e.g., sign language interpreters), provision of printed material in

alternate formats (e.g., large-print, audio, Braille), and provision or 

modifi cation of equipment. 

Tax Deduction

Businesses of all sizes may take advantage of this tax deduction. Under 

Internal Revenue Code, Section 190, businesses can take a business expense 

deduction of up to $15,000 per year for costs of removing barriers in facilities 

or vehicles. 

Tax Incentives in Combination

These two incentives can be used together by eligible businesses if the 

expenditures qualify under both Sections 44 and 190. If a small business’

expenses exceed $10,250 for the maximum $5,000 tax credit, then the 

deduction equals the difference between the total spent and the amount of the 

credit claimed. 

Tax Incentives Forms and Publications 

Visit the Internal Revenue Service website at www.irs.gov 

or call 800-829-3676 (voice); 800-829-4059 (TTY)

to order the necessary business forms and publications: 

Form 8826 (Disabled Access Credit) 

and Publication 535 “Business Expenses” (tax deduction). 

More than fi fty 

million Americans 

with disabilities make 

up a huge, nearly 

untapped market for 

businesses of all types 

and sizes. To help 

businesses 

welcome customers 

with disabilities, the 

IRS offers two tax 

incentives to remove 

access barriers. 

For more information about 

these tax incentives and the 

ADA, call the Department 

of Justice ADA Information 

Line at: 

 800-514-0301 (voice)

 800-514-0383 (TTY)

or visit the ADA Business 

Connection at:

www.ada.gov. November 2005