Audiovisual Ireland, a screen industry organisation linked to Ibec employer’s group, has urged the government to raise the tax relief rate for lower budget projects to 40 percent, matching a recently introduced UK initiative. The call comes after former UK prime minister Rishi Sunak in March introduced a 40 percent tax credit for productions with a budget of less than £15 million (€18 million).
In Ireland, Section 481 currently provides a 32 percent tax credit, leading to concerns that the UK’s more generous incentive could entice international film and television projects away from Ireland. There are also worries that Irish-made productions might consider relocating to the UK.
The suggestion from Audiovisual Ireland is that Section 481 should provide a 40 percent relief for feature films, television dramas, animations, and creative documentaries with a global production budget of less than €20 million per project. The aim is to encourage localised and smaller productions.
For projects focused solely on visual effects (VFX) completed within Ireland, a 40 percent rate should also be applicable if the Irish expenditure is under €10 million per project.
Additionally, there was a call for increased investment in regional skills development and production, with an interim funding solution necessary until an alternative to the former regional uplift to Section 481 can be implemented.
Introduced by the 2018 Finance Act, the original regional uplift offered an additional 5 percent tax credit on top of the 32 percent against corporate tax until its expiration at the end of 2023.
Audiovisual Ireland also recommended that the government should consider introducing an uplift for productions based in Gaeltacht regions. As Torlach Denihan, director of Audiovisual Ireland said, “The Irish screen sector has had noteworthy success in the past ten years. Currently, we have a unique chance to elevate that success even further.”
To foster a lasting and flourishing industry that showcases Irish competence to local and worldwide viewers, we must augment fiscal incentives, nurture regional expertise and production, and champion Irish language-oriented content. According to Audiovisual Ireland, the launch of the Audiovisual Action Plan in 2018 saw considerable advancements, which include an uptick in Screen Ireland’s funding and a rise in the eligible expenditure ceiling under Section 481 from €70 million to €125 million. However, they opine that further efforts are required to leverage the recent progress fully and assure a dynamic future for the Irish screen industry.