The Work Opportunity Tax Credit is a program set up by the federal government as an incentive for employers to hire disadvantaged groups of individuals who have a hard time finding work. This employer tax credit can help an ex-offender to get hired. Using tax credits will help both the employer and yourself once you make this fact known to the prospective employer.

How much is the employer tax credit worth? Here are the guidelines:

• $2,400 for each new hired adult
• $9,000 for each new long-term family assistance recipient hired during a two year period

The qualification for an ex-offender to use the tax credit to get hired is simple. You must be convicted of a felony and have a hiring date within one year of being convicted or released from prison.

There is a minimum employment and retention period you should be aware of. In order for an ex-offender to use the tax credit to get hired, they must first work a minimum of 120 - 400 hours before the employer can use the tax credit. The tax credit for employers is set at 25% of the qualified first year earnings for people employed in the 120 - 400 hour range and up to 40% for people over 400 hours.

What benefits should you as an ex-offender sell to the employer to use the tax credit to get hired?

If you are willing to show a real willingness to work, do any of the following to help the process along:

• Have a copy of the paperwork available at the interview
• Have the address or location of the nearest Department of Labor office, or their website written down
• Offer to get the information to the employer

While this may seem overly eager to get hired, using the tax credit as an ex-offender is an effective way to get into a paying job. If you show the employer how the tax credit can help both them and yourself gain financially, it will show three things to the employer:

• You are willing to put effort into finding work
• You are thinking of benefits to the employer
• You will do what it takes to be a responsible individual