Wisconsin’s Rural Veterinarians May Receive New Tax-Exempt Loan Repayment Grants

Emmerson Mirus , Mikaela Steckelis | 05.06.26

To bolster Wisconsin’s rural veterinary workforce, the Wisconsin State Legislature recently established the Veterinary Loan Repayment Grant Program. Enacted on April 4, 2026, 2025 Wisconsin Act 177 provides grants to repay the education loans of new veterinary graduates and final-year veterinary students who commit to practice in rural counties. The definition of ​“rural county” for the Veterinarian Loan Repayment Program is the same as for Wisconsin’s Teacher Loan Program. For a list of counties considered ​“rural” in both programs, see Teacher Loan Program: Rural County List (last accessed 04/24/2026). The legislation creates an income tax subtraction for amounts from the Program received by eligible veterinarians for taxable years after beginning after December 31, 2024. Therefore, it first applies to veterinarians who graduated with a doctor of veterinary medicine degree in 2025.

To be eligible for the Program, an applicant must: 

• Be in their final year of veterinary medicine school or have received their veterinary medicine degree within the past seven years;
• Have an outstanding education loans of at least $25,000;
• Secure full-time employment for at least one year in a rural county; and
• Provide (or commit to provide) at least 50% of their employed veterinary care to farm animals.

For each year they remain eligible, veterinarians may receive the lesser of the outstanding balance of the loans incurred in connection with their veterinary medicine degree or $25,000 in loan repayment grants from the Program, with the total grant award capped at $100,000. Current or soon-to-be veterinarians with questions about the Veterinary Loan Repayment Grant Program should contact the authors or call Boardman Clark at (608) 257‑9521 to speak with one of our business or tax attorneys.

• Taxation