Written by on Aug 21, 2015. Posted in Incentive News

UK gets European approval to boost filming incentive support

The UK has been given approval by the European Union (EU) to boost its filming incentive programme. Productions will now get a 25% tax credit on all their eligible UK spending, in a move that could help attract more shoots on the scale of Star Wars and 24: Live Another Day.

Previously, productions filming in the UK got the 25% tax credit only on the first GBP 20 million of spending, after which the filming incentive dropped to 20%. The government announced the uniform 25% rate back in May and the change has now been approved by the EU.

“This is great news for the film industry and for the wider UK economy,” said Adrian Wootton, Chief Executive of the British Film Commission and Film London.

“Much has been written about the benefits of global filming incentives and the UK Film Tax Relief is exceptional in combining a generous financial incentive with transparency, inclusivity and reliability.

“When you couple this with the UK’s world-class talent, cutting-edge infrastructure and stunning locations you have a truly unbeatable offer, and one that creates thousands of UK jobs and generates billions for the country’s economy.”

While the UK’s filming incentive continues to thrive, the TV tax credit also had a huge economic impact in its first full year. The incentive delivered GBP 400 million in production spending, compared to just GBP 50 million the previous year, according to figures from the British Film Institute.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (above) is among the biggest movies currently filming in the UK. Based at Pinewood Studios in London, it's the first in a series of standalone additions to the rebooted Star Wars franchise.

Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, the first in a planned franchise that expands the Harry Potter universe, also started filming this week at Warner Bros Studios Leavesden in north-west London.

(Image: Lucasfilm)