Gov. Matt Meyer's office has published the 25 census tracts Delaware nominated for Opportunity Zone 2.0, chosen from 61 eligible tracts after 237 community nominations. Thirteen are in New Castle County, five in Kent and seven in Sussex. Twelve of the 25 are federally designated rural tracts, including all of the Kent and Sussex picks, up from nine rural tracts under Delaware's original zones, according to the state. The release says the nominations have been submitted for Treasury certification; certified tracts take effect January 1, 2027.
The list. A September 28, 2026 release from Gov. Matt Meyer's office names all 25 census tracts Delaware nominated, by 11-digit GEOID and county. The state says it picked them from 61 eligible tracts after receiving 237 unique community nominations through a statewide process run by the Division of Small Business. That process opened March 4 and, per the release, closed to submissions May 15.
By county. According to the release, New Castle County has 13 of the 25 tracts, Kent County 5 and Sussex County 7. The listed Kent tracts are 10001041300, 10001041400, 10001041803, 10001042500 and 10001043300. Each nominated tract appears in the tract table on our Delaware zone page, linked to its own tract page; you can also look one up with the census tract lookup or check an address on the OZ map.
Rural share. The state says 12 of the 25 are federally designated rural census tracts, including all five Kent and all seven Sussex nominations, and that this is up from nine rural tracts under Delaware's original Opportunity Zones. That matters for investors: under the 2027 rules described in the release, investments held five years get a 10% basis increase, or 30% through a qualifying rural Opportunity Zone fund.
How Delaware chose. The release says the Division of Small Business and the Office of State Planning Coordination analyzed all 61 eligible tracts on poverty rates, median family income, brownfield sites, Downtown Development Districts and other factors, aiming for places where “need and investability intersect.” Several picks overlap Downtown Development Districts in Dover, Wilmington, Seaford, Georgetown, Laurel, Milford and the City of New Castle. Under Executive Order 18, the state says qualifying projects financed with Qualified Opportunity Fund money can be eligible for its JobsFirst Permitting Accelerator.
What happens next. The release says Delaware's nominations “have been submitted for certification” and that the tracts are not Opportunity Zones until Treasury completes certification; if certified, they take effect January 1, 2027. Treasury's review runs under Rev. Proc. 2026-14. Delaware is listed as filed on our nomination tracker. To model the step-up on a deferred gain, see our OZ tools.
Original reporting by Sarah Whitfield for Opportunity Zone Invest, an independent OZ 2.0 research site. Facts are drawn from the primary sources cited above per our editorial standards. Nothing here is tax, legal, or investment advice.
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