Preceptor Tax Credits and Incentives by State

If you precept students, your state may reward the time you spend teaching them. A preceptor tax credit lowers your state income tax when you teach NP, PA, medical or nursing students without pay, and a few states pay preceptors of nursing students directly. We checked every program below on the state’s own website in October 2026. These programs change often, so confirm the current rules on your state’s page before you claim a credit.

TL;DR

• As of October 2026, eight states offer a preceptor tax credit: Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Carolina.
• Virginia and Washington pay preceptors of nursing students directly. Arizona’s grant for APRN preceptors took its last applications in June 2026.
• Every state credit requires an unpaid rotation, and nearly every program requires a student from a school in that state.
• Georgia’s program says registration is paused, and Maryland extended its nurse practitioner credit through June 30, 2030.
• As a Clinical Match Me preceptor, you’ll earn $1,000+ per rotation. That’s pay for precepting, so a rotation you precept with us likely won’t qualify for a credit that requires unpaid teaching.

Which states offer a preceptor tax credit?

As of October 2026, eight states offer one. Each credit requires an unpaid rotation, and each state sets its own rules for who qualifies, how many hours count and how to apply.

Alabama Preceptor Tax Incentive Program

Alabama’s Preceptor Tax Incentive Program (APTIP) rewards unpaid preceptors whose rotations take place in medically underserved rural areas of the state.

• Status: active as of October 2026. The Alabama Department of Revenue says the credit began with the 2024 tax year and expires September 29, 2031.
• Who qualifies: nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, certified registered nurse anesthetists, physician assistants, physicians, dentists and optometrists who precept students from eligible Alabama programs.
• What it’s worth: $425 per 160-hour rotation for NPs, other APRNs and PAs, up to $5,100 a year. Physicians, dentists and optometrists earn $500 per rotation, up to $6,000. Hours from all your students count toward each 160.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. The program says that if you receive payment to teach students from any source, you aren’t eligible.
• How to apply: register once with the Alabama Statewide AHEC, by December 15 of the year you want credit for. Your students’ programs report your hours, and AHEC issues a credit certificate that you submit through My Alabama Taxes before you file.

Colorado Rural and Frontier Health Care Preceptor Tax Credit

• Status: active as of October 2026. The Department of Revenue has posted its 2026 form, and a 2022 law extended the credit to tax years that begin before January 1, 2033.
• Who qualifies: professionals licensed in Colorado in a primary health care field who practice in a rural or frontier area, including advanced practice nurses, physician assistants, physicians, registered nurses, pharmacists and several behavioral health professions. Your students must be enrolled at an accredited Colorado college or university.
• What it’s worth: $2,000 for each preceptorship of at least four working weeks, up to three a year ($6,000). Only 300 preceptors can claim the credit each year.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. Colorado defines a preceptorship as “an uncompensated mentoring experience.”
• How to apply: have the school or your regional AHEC office certify Form DR 0366, then email it to the Department of Revenue. The department issues credits in the order the emails arrive.

Georgia Preceptor Tax Incentive Program

A 2025 law, HB 144, raised the credits in Georgia’s Preceptor Tax Incentive Program (PTIP) starting with the 2026 tax year and extended the program through December 31, 2030.

• Status: registration paused as of October 2026. The program’s FAQ says, “Registration is paused at this time; a new registration link will be provided soon.” Its 2026 notice says preceptors must now register every year, during a June 1 to August 31 window.
• Who qualifies: Georgia-licensed APRNs, PAs, physicians and dentists who precept students from Georgia APRN, PA, medical and dental programs in community-based settings.
• What it’s worth: $750 per 160-hour rotation for APRNs and PAs, up to 10 rotations ($7,500) a year. Physicians and dentists earn $1,000 per rotation. Credits statewide are capped at $6 million a year.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. When you claim the credit, Georgia’s law asks you to certify that no one paid you to train medical, APRN or PA students during that tax year.
• How to apply: register with the Statewide AHEC Network Program Office at Augusta University. Your students’ programs report your hours, and the office sends you a Tax Credit Certification Letter by January 31 to claim on your Georgia return.

Hawaii Preceptor Tax Credit

• Status: active as of October 2026. The program’s site asks new preceptors to register by December 1.
• Who qualifies: Hawaii residents licensed in Hawaii as APRNs, physicians or pharmacists who practice primary care in the state and precept students from approved Hawaii programs, including NP students.
• What it’s worth: $1,000 for each rotation of at least 80 hours of supervision, up to five credits ($5,000) a year. The program certifies up to $1.5 million in credits a year, and you can carry unused credit forward.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. Payment for the teaching from any source, such as the student’s school or a stipend or bonus from your employer, makes a rotation ineligible.
• How to apply: register on the program’s site. The school confirms your hours, and the Department of Health mails your certification by January 30 of the following year.

Maryland Preceptor Tax Credit Programs

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) runs separate credits for preceptors of NP, PA, medical, RN and LPN students.

• Status: active as of October 2026 for preceptors of NP students. A 2025 law (Chapter 416) extended the nurse practitioner and physician credits through June 30, 2030 and lowered the hours for an NP rotation from 100 to 90. The PA credit’s law was set to end June 30, 2026. MDH’s FAQ, revised August 2026, still lists it, so ask MDH before you count PA rotations. The next application window runs from December 1, 2026 to January 5, 2027.
• Who qualifies: NPs and physicians who precept NP students, and physicians, PAs and NPs who precept PA students. You need at least three rotations in the tax year, at a practice site in a health care workforce shortage area, such as a health professional shortage area or a rural area.
• What it’s worth: $1,000 per rotation, up to $10,000 a year. NP rotations need at least 90 hours each, and PA rotations need at least 100 hours in family medicine, general internal medicine or general pediatrics. MDH approves credits first come, first served, up to the funding available, and notes that credits aren’t guaranteed.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. You must precept each rotation “without compensation.”
• How to apply: submit MDH’s application during the window, with proof of preceptorship from each student’s school. If MDH approves it, you’ll receive a certificate to include with your Maryland return.

Missouri Community-Based Faculty Preceptor Tax Credit

• Status: active as of October 2026. The next application cycle opens July 1.
• Who qualifies: Missouri-licensed physicians and PAs who precept students in Missouri medical or PA programs. The credit doesn’t include nurse practitioners.
• What it’s worth: $1,000 for each core preceptorship of at least 120 hours in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry or obstetrics and gynecology, up to three ($3,000) a year.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. The application asks you to state that you didn’t and won’t accept payment in any form for the preceptorship.
• How to apply: apply to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) by January 31 after the tax year. DHSS sends approved preceptors a certification by March 1 to file with their return.

Oklahoma Preceptor Tax Credit Program

• Status: active as of October 2026. The Health Care Workforce Training Commission is taking applications for 2026, and the law covers tax years 2026 through 2035.
• Who qualifies: Oklahoma-licensed APRNs, PAs and physicians who provide primary care and precept students in Oklahoma programs.
• What it’s worth: for a 160-hour rotation with APRN or PA students, $165 each for your first three rotations and $340 each for up to seven more. Rotations with medical students or residents earn $290 each for the first three and $590 each after that. The commission awards credits first come, first served, while funds last.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. The law defines preceptorship training as “uncompensated training.”
• How to apply: complete the qualifying questionnaire on the commission’s website. The commission reviews your rotations before it submits them to the Oklahoma Tax Commission.

South Carolina preceptor tax credit

• Status: active as of October 2026. A 2024 law extended the credit through the 2029 tax year.
• Who qualifies: nurse practitioners, PAs and physicians who precept students enrolled in South Carolina schools and complete at least two 160-hour rotations a year. The law also requires a Medicaid-participating provider with at least 100 Medicaid and Medicare patients combined, or a free clinic.
• What it’s worth: $1,000 per rotation, up to $4,000 a year, plus a deduction for up to six more rotations. You claim half of the credit in the year you earn it and half the next year.
• Unpaid rotation required: yes. The law, section 12-6-3800, defines a preceptor as someone who “is otherwise not compensated” for the teaching.
• How to apply: claim the credit on your South Carolina return with Form TC-62, and keep your documentation in case the Department of Revenue asks for it.

Which states pay preceptors directly?

Virginia and Washington pay preceptors of nursing students through incentive and grant programs instead of a tax credit. Both pay only for students at schools in their state, and both say the payments can be taxable income. If you precept RN or LPN students, our guide explains what a nurse preceptor is and what the role involves.

Virginia Nurse Preceptor Incentive Program

• Status: active as of October 2026. A 2026 law moved the program from the Virginia Department of Health to the Virginia Nursing Workforce Center, which accepts applications for precepting hours completed on or after July 1, 2026.
• Who qualifies: Virginia-licensed APRNs, RNs and LPNs who have lived in Virginia for at least a year and precept students at Virginia nursing schools. The program’s web page also lists physicians and physician assistants.
• What it’s worth: a set amount per semester based on your total hours, from $500 for 25 to 70 hours up to $5,000 for 206 to 250 hours. Priority goes to sites in shortage areas.
• Unpaid rotation required: not listed. The August 2026 guidelines don’t mention it, and the Department of Health’s 2024 guidelines said other compensation, including stipends, didn’t disqualify a preceptor.
• How to apply: apply online with a verification form signed by each student’s school. The program accepts no applications in June and reopens July 1.

Washington State Student Nurse Preceptorship Grant

• Status: active as of October 2026. The Washington State Board of Nursing is accepting submissions for the fall 2026 cycle until January 12, 2027.
• Who qualifies: Washington-licensed ARNPs, RNs and LPNs who precept students from approved Washington nursing programs. For ARNPs, the student can be in any clinical term. Students from out-of-state programs don’t qualify, even when the hours take place in Washington.
• What it’s worth: $500 per student at the current rate, for at least 80 hours with the same student, for up to two students per term.
• Unpaid rotation required: not listed. The board describes the grant as funding for nurses who volunteer to precept, and it suggests checking with your employer before you accept a payment.
• How to apply: register for a Statewide Vendor Number, then submit the preceptor hours form by the cycle deadline. The nursing program sends the board its own verification of your hours.

Arizona APRN preceptor grant (closed)

Arizona funded $1,000 grants for volunteer APRN preceptors of Arizona graduate students through the Arizona Nurses Association. As of October 2026, the association’s page says the grant ran until June 2026 or until its funds were used up, and applications had to arrive by June 30, 2026. Check that page in case the state funds another round.

Can you claim a preceptor tax credit if you’re paid to precept?

Usually not. Every state credit above requires an unpaid rotation, and two states set a broader rule. Georgia’s law asks you to certify that no one paid you to train medical, APRN or PA students during the tax year. Alabama’s program says that if you receive payment to teach students from any source, you aren’t eligible.

As a Clinical Match Me preceptor, you’ll earn $1,000+ per rotation. That honorarium is pay for precepting. Where a state requires an unpaid rotation, a rotation you precept through Clinical Match Me likely won’t qualify for its preceptor tax credit, and in Georgia or Alabama it may affect the other rotations you claim that year. The payment programs in Virginia and Washington don’t list an unpaid rotation among their requirements, though both pay only for students at in-state schools.

South Carolina looks at each rotation separately. In a 2020 ruling, its Department of Revenue said that precepting out-of-state students for pay didn’t stop a preceptor from claiming the credit for unpaid rotations with South Carolina students. Keep a record of which rotations were paid, and ask the program office how it treats them before you claim a credit. A tax professional can tell you how the rules apply to you.

What else do you gain from precepting?

Precepting offers more than a credit or a payment. It’s a great way to improve care in your specialty, and it can count toward your certification. ANCC’s renewal requirements, for example, include a category for 120 hours spent precepting students in an academic program related to your certification specialty. If you’re new to precepting, our guide to NP preceptor requirements explains what schools ask of you.

Teaching also fits into a busy clinic day. The One Minute Preceptor model gives each case presentation a quick structure, and our guide on how to be a good preceptor covers the rest of the role. To see how schools, employers and placement services pay preceptors, read our article on clinical preceptor salary and why it’s changing.

Preceptor tax credit questions

Do NP and PA preceptors get paid?

It depends on the arrangement, and many preceptors teach students without pay. State credits like the ones above exist to reward that unpaid teaching. As a Clinical Match Me preceptor, you’ll earn $1,000+ per rotation. Set your own preceptor pay: the standard $1,000 flat fee, a higher flat fee or an hourly rate. Browse our open preceptor jobs to see where students need a preceptor.

Is there a federal preceptor tax credit?

One has been proposed. The PRECEPT Nurses Act (H.R. 392 and S. 131), introduced in January 2025, would create a $2,000 federal credit for nurse preceptors who precept at least 200 hours in a year in a health professional shortage area. As of October 2026, congress.gov shows both bills referred to committee in January 2025, with no later action.

Who’s eligible for the Maryland preceptor tax credit?

NPs and physicians who precept NP students are eligible if they complete at least three unpaid rotations of 90 hours or more in a tax year, at a site in a health care workforce shortage area. Separate Maryland credits cover preceptors of medical, PA, RN and LPN students. Each qualifying rotation earns $1,000, up to $10,000 a year.

How do you claim a preceptor tax credit?

Start with the office that runs your state’s program. Alabama, Georgia and Hawaii require you to register with the program. In every state except South Carolina, the student’s school confirms your hours and the program office certifies your credit, which you then claim on your state income tax return. In South Carolina, you claim the credit directly on your return. Several programs cap the credits they award each year and approve them first come, first served, so apply as soon as you’re eligible.

How often do the rules change?

Often. Since the start of 2025, Georgia raised its credits and moved to yearly registration, Maryland extended its NP credit and lowered the hours per rotation, Oklahoma’s credit began, and Virginia moved its incentive program to a new agency. Check your state’s page each year before you count on a credit. We’ll update this guide as programs change.

Precept NP and PA students with Clinical Match Me

If you’d like to be paid for precepting, you’ll earn $1,000+ per rotation with Clinical Match Me, and we pay your honorarium when your student starts the rotation. Review placement requests from NP and PA students on your own schedule. You decide which students to send offers to and how many to take. We handle the affiliation agreement with the student’s school using their existing template.

Clinical Match Me is non-exclusive, so you can keep any other precepting arrangements you have, including unpaid rotations you claim for a state credit.

If you manage a practice, it can become a clinical rotation site for NP and PA students instead.

Learn how to become a preceptor with us, or sign up free and start receiving placement requests today.