Port of Virginia Economic and Infrastructure Development Grant (EID Grant)

Applicants must meet the definition of a qualified company, which is defined as a business entity that meets the following criteria:

• Locates or expands a facility within the Commonwealth.
• Creates at least 25 new, permanent full-time positions at a facility within Virginia from commencement of the project through the first full year of operation or during the year when the expansion occurs.
• Is involved in maritime commerce or exports or imports manufactured goods through The Port of Virginia.
• Is engaged in one or more of the following: distribution, freight forwarding, freight handling, goods processing, manufacturing, warehousing, crossdocking, transloading, or wholesaling of goods exported and imported through The Port of Virginia; shipbuilding and ship repair; dredging; marine construction; or offshore energy exploration and extraction.
• Pays a minimum entry-level wage rate per hour of at least 1.2 times the federal minimum wage or the Virginia minimum wage, as required by the Virginia Minimum Wage Act (§ 40.1-28.8 et seq.), whichever is higher.

A qualified company that has received an EID Grant may be eligible for a second EID Grant if it meets all of the following three criteria:

• Locates or expands an additional facility in a separate location, as determined by the Virginia Port Authority, within the Commonwealth.
• Creates at least 300 new, permanent full-time positions at the additional facility over and above those agreed upon in the company's original MOU with the Virginia Port Authority.
• Increases cargo volumes through The Port of Virginia by at least 5% from the additional facility, not including any volume increase resulting from the original grant.

An otherwise qualified company that claims employees for the Major Business Facility Job Tax Credit or International Trade Facility Tax Credit or a grant form the International Trade Facility grant program may not receive an EID Grant for those previously claimed jobs.

• The Virginia Port Authority will serve as the responsible agency for administering the Economic and Infrastructure Development Grant Program through the evaluation of applicants and disbursement of funds at its discretion. 
• An eligible qualified company must pre-apply to the Virginia Port Authority between September 1 and October 31st in the year preceding the general application period by submitting a pre-application form found on the Port of webpage: https://operations.portofvirginia.com/grants
• Within 45 days of the close of the pre-application period, each pre-application form must be reviewed and scored by the Incentive Grant Review Committee (IGRC) 
• The pre-application scoring is considered against the following criteria and description: 
  1. Infrastructure Investment - Grant applications from companies making substantial infrastructure investments in the Commonwealth, such as the development of new port-related facilities or upgrades to existing ones, will be prioritized for their potential to catalyze economic growth, enhance logistical capabilities, and improve the competitiveness of the Commonwealth’s transportation network. 
  2. Job Creation - Grant applicants demonstrating the ability to create new, permanent, full time job opportunities within the port ecosystem will be prioritized for their contribution to long-term economic vitality and community welfare. 
  3. Anticipated Volume Increase - Grant applications from companies that show the largest absolute increase in cargo volumes will be prioritized for their substantial contribution to port activity and economic growth. Emphasis will be placed on the absolute magnitude of the volume increase, irrespective of percentage growth. 
  4. Ongoing Volumes - Grant applications from companies demonstrating consistent and sustained cargo volumes will be prioritized for their significant role in fostering continuous port activity and driving economic growth. 
  5. Letter of Recommendation or State Incentive Package - When evaluating grant applicants, customers who receive a letter of recommendation from Virginia International Terminals or a State Incentive Package from a sister agency, will be prioritized for their demonstrated commitment to contribute to the economic growth of the Commonwealth and their efforts to increase international trade activities, bolster the resilience and competitiveness of the Port of Virginia, and solidify its status as a key economic gateway through increased cargo throughput.  The recommendation letters are given at the sole discretion of a senior leadership, non-committee member of the Virginia International Terminals, in recognition of specific projects which strongly align with the above-mentioned goals of the program. 

• In any given year, IGRC will deploy metric aggregators to identify the baseline of the tiered scoring proportionately for each category based on that year’s pool of applicant’s information. Every application year, the data provided by the applicants will be queried and a new baseline will be established and recorded. 

• At the completion of the due diligence process, no later than December 31 of the pre-application year, an applicant will be notified of either pre-approval or renunciation. 
  1. Pre-approval means - the applicant/qualified company will be directed to complete the general application process when the program commences on January 1. 
  2. Renunciation means – the applicant/qualified company was not directed to complete the general application as a result of unfulfilling the program’s anticipated qualifications. 
  3. Failure to complete a pre-application as mentioned above, results in an awarding disqualification of this program’s funds for the year intended to apply. 
  4. Failure to submit a general application by the deadline forfeits opportunity to be eligible to receive an award. 
• The general application period begins January 1; or the year immediately following the location or expansion of a facility within the Commonwealth; or the calendar year of which eligibility has been established and pre-application. Submission of the general grant application shall be made by March 31st. 
• General application guidelines include: 
  1. Submission of a completed general application through the Cargo Verification Portal found on the Port of Virginia’s webpage http://tax.portofvirginia.com/ via an upload, or by email or standard mail to the address listed in the general application instructions; 
  2. Providing the portal verification of the qualified company’s uploaded cargo details of eligible cargo volume moved through the Port of Virginia facilities during the first year of operation or the year the company expanded. The total TEUs listed on the validation summary will become a part of the application. 
     • The minimum cargo amounts to be considered an importer/exporter are 10 TEUS or 75 non-containerized tons a year.
     • If the company is involved in maritime commerce such as ship building and ship repair, dredging, marine construction, or offshore energy exploration and extraction, the applicant shall provide a statement of the impact the facility has on growth at The Port of Virginia in lieu of cargo verification

c. Providing quantity and affirmation of qualifying full-time employee information on Schedule A; 

d. Applicant signatures; 

e. An upload of the company’s W-9; and 

f. Any additional identifying company information requested including, but not limited to: 

• Three years of historical financial statements covering the three years prior to the application, and three years of pro forma financial statements, covering the three years following the application; 

• If the qualified company has been in business less than three years, it may be asked to provide the historical financial statements that is available; or 

• Other satisfactory evidence of a qualified company’s financial stability. 

• Submission of an executed application shall be a declaration that the applicant has met the definition of a qualified company, including the Virginia minimum wage requirement, as defined in Section I.

EID Program Policy

EID Grant Memorandum of Understanding

Code of Virginia – Section 62.1-132.3:2.2  

Pre-Application 

How are awards calculated?

The amount of the grant is calculated by the following formula:

• 25–49 new jobs: $1,000 per job
• 50–74 new jobs: $1,500 per job
• 75–99 new jobs: $2,000 per job
• 100+ new jobs: $3,000 per job

EID Grants are subject to the availability of funds and appropriations.

How does a company apply?

An eligible qualified company must pre-apply to the Virginia Port Authority between September 1 and October 31st of the year preceding the general application date by submitting a pre-application form found on the Port of Virginia webpage: portofvirginia.com.  

No later than December 31 of the pre-application year, an applicant will be notified of either pre-approval or renunciation of their pre-application.    

Companies receiving pre-approval should submit their general grant application by March 31st in the year immediately following the location or expansion of a facility within the Commonwealth; or the calendar year of which eligibility has been established and pre-application made.

What is a new job?

A new job is a job of indefinite duration, created by the company as a result of operations within the Commonwealth. It requires a minimum of 35 hours of a qualified full-time employee’s time per week for the entire normal year of the company’s operations. A normal year consists of at least 48 weeks, or a position of indefinite duration that requires a minimum of 35 hours of a qualified full-time employee’s time per week for the portion of the taxable year in which the qualified full-time employee was initially hired for the company’s facility within Virginia.

What positions do not qualify as new jobs?

Seasonal or temporary positions, or jobs created when a position is shifted from an existing location in the Commonwealth to the company’s new facility, do not count as new, permanent full-time positions.

Other positions that are ancillary to the principal activities performed by the employees at the qualified company's location within the Commonwealth do not count as new jobs.

Building and grounds maintenance at the company’s location within the Commonwealth of Virginia do not count as new jobs.

How long must the jobs be maintained at the facility?

The new jobs created in the EID Grant must be maintained without interruption during the performance period as documentation in the MOU.

How is Commencement date defined for this program?

For the purpose of this grant, Commencement date shall mean the following:
1. For a new warehouse or manufacturing center location, refer to the date the qualified company receives its first international container through the Port of Virginia facilities; evidenced by the bill of lading.
2. For an expanded warehouse or manufacturing center, refer to the date of the qualified company’s formal public announcement of said expansion.