Since 2007 the UK Film Tax Relief has encouraged productions into the country – with blockbusters including The Bourne Ultimatum, Gravity, The Dark Knight Rises, The Martian,Fast & Furious 6 and Star Wars:The Force Awakens all making use of the UK's world-class industry.

Tax reliefs announced in 2013 and 2014 offer the same benefits to high-end television, animation for broadcast, and video games.

In 2015 the film tax relief was broadened, and reliefs for children's television made more accessible.

If you're a producer looking to film in the UK and wondering if you can qualify to benefit from this great incentive and access the skills, locations and studio space offered by the country, we've got all the information you need.

There are five Creative Industries tax reliefs available:

How much

Each tax relief enables a production company with an eligible project to claim 25% of qualifying expenditure back.

There is no cap on the amount of tax relief that can be claimed.

All reliefs are capped at 80% of the total production budget.

How to qualify

You can only access the tax relief if your project:

  • Qualifies as British – either by passing the relevant BFI Cultural Testor by qualifying as an official co-production.
  • Reaches a minimum UK core expenditure of 10-25% (dependent on the tax relief you are claiming). This includes projects made as official co-productions
  • To access the high-end television, children's and animation reliefs, your project must be intended for broadcast (television or internet), while film projects must be intended for theatrical release
  • Apply to access the relief through HMRC