RALEIGH — The U.S. Treasury has certified 204 North Carolina census tracts as Opportunity Zones effective Jan. 1, 2027, activating a decade of federal tax incentives intended to attract long-term investment.
The North Carolina Department of Commerce said the final designations reach 93 counties. Each eligible county received at least one tract, 103 additional tracts were allocated based on population, and eight were allocated using development potential and economic need in rural Tier 1 counties.
The certification gives developers, businesses, investors and local governments a final map for planning projects that may use federal Opportunity Zone tax treatment. It does not award a project, guarantee private investment or establish that jobs or construction will follow in any particular tract.
The final count is two higher than the 202 tracts North Carolina initially expected to nominate. Commerce said six additional eligible tracts were identified in September, increasing the statewide eligible pool to 813 and raising the nomination cap to 204.
Treasury said all 6,576 nominated tracts across the country were designated, including 2,594 rural tracts. The federal government said the new designations will remain in effect for 10 years and that the Opportunity Zone incentive was made permanent under federal law.
For North Carolina, the change from nomination to certification is the operative business milestone. Investors and project sponsors can now evaluate the approved tracts against financing, property and operating plans for the 2027 start date, while communities can use the final boundaries in economic-development and redevelopment strategies.
Businesses and investors still must determine whether a specific property and investment structure meet federal requirements. Certification establishes geographic eligibility for the incentive; it does not replace tax, legal or project-level due diligence.