Building Materials Exemption Certificate (BMEC)
Illinois Department of Revenue certificate that exempts qualifying building materials from sales tax when used in projects certified under Enterprise Zone, RERZ, HIB, REV, MICRO, AIM, or Quantum Enterprise Zone programs. The project or business must first be certified by the applicable agency (DCEO or local zone administrator).
Check an Address — Free Snapshot
Compare the geocoded point for a Chicago address with the boundary used to screen Building Materials Exemption Certificate (BMEC). A match is a location signal; review the current program source for the boundary's role and remaining criteria.
Published criteria — confirm with Illinois Department of Revenue
- Project certified under Enterprise Zone, RERZ, HIB, REV, MICRO, AIM, or Quantum EZ
Building Materials Exemption Certificate (BMEC) is administered at the state level. Depending on the program, eligibility may depend on the specific location, property type, or business activity rather than a single drawn boundary.
Boundaries are precise and change over time, so whether a specific address falls inside a mapped zone always depends on that exact address. The fastest way to check is to run a free snapshot for the parcel you have in mind — mapped coverage is a location signal, not an eligibility determination.
Range on file · Sales tax exemption on eligible building materials
Current published terms as of 2026-08-09
- +Sales tax exemption on eligible building materials (typically 6.25% state, plus local where applicable)
- +Certificate is issued per project and tied to the certified underlying program
- 1First obtain the underlying program certification (DCEO Enterprise Zone, REV, MICRO, HIB, AIM, Quantum, or RERZ designation)
- 2Apply through the Zone Administrator for the zone where the project is located, or through the High Impact Business / DCEO Certified Entity project manager — not directly to IDOR
- 3Provide BMEC number to contractors/suppliers for tax-exempt material purchases
- 4File annual reporting: the online system opens February 1 each year for the preceding calendar year
Call IDOR at 1-800-732-8866 after underlying program certification is in hand
- Underlying program certification (DCEO or zone administrator)
- Project description and material list
- Contractor information
This page is a starting point, not eligibility, legal, or tax advice. Verify current requirements, deadlines, and boundaries with the administering agency before applying or spending money — program rules and funding change over time.
- Underlying program certification — DCEO or local Enterprise Zone Administrator
BMEC cannot be issued without project-level certification by DCEO or the relevant zone administrator.
- Quarterly IDOR reporting — Illinois Department of Revenue
- Phone
- 1-800-732-8866
- Web
- Visit site ↗
Last verified 2026-08-09
Federal Opportunity Zone incentive: investors who reinvest capital gains through a Qualified Opportunity Fund into a designated zone receive tax reductions scaled to how long the investment is held. Illinois' current zones remain active for investment; a new round of IL-nominated zones takes effect January 1, 2027 under OZ 2.0.
Illinois Enterprise Zones offer state and local tax incentives to stimulate economic growth in economically depressed areas, including sales tax exemptions on building materials, utility tax exemptions, and investment tax credits.
The Economic Development for a Growing Economy (EDGE) program provides Illinois income tax credits against state withholding for businesses that create or retain jobs. Amended by HB2755 / P.A. 104-0006 (June 2025) to expand withholding-credit elections and require 10-day public posting of EDGE agreement terms.
REV Illinois (Reimagining Electric Vehicles in Illinois) provides project-by-project tax credits for businesses in the electric vehicle and renewable energy supply chain. Negotiated with DCEO across four investment/job tiers.