UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FILMING INCENTIVES

Virginia Motion Picture Tax Credit

Overview

Type of incentiveTax Credit
Qualifying formats
  • - Feature film - fiction (theatrical)
  • - Feature film - documentary (theatrical)
  • - TV Film or TV series - fiction
  • - TV Film or TV series - documentary
  • - Commercials (TV, theatrical, online)
  • - Music videos
Qualifying productions
  • - National productions
  • - Foreign productions
  • - Co-productions

Specifics

Benefit as a % of spend15.00
Financial cap per production-
Do I have to register/set up a company?Optional
Does foreign cast/crew paid in their home country/region qualify as expenditure? No
Do foreign cast/crew have to pay tax in the host country/state/region? Yes
Does travel to/from country/region qualify as expenditure? No
Can a production qualify for other national incentives such as cultural programmes if it qualifies for this incentive? Yes
Criteria to access the benefit
  • - Minimum percentage of the film that must be shot in the region: 50.00%
  • - Minimum spend 250000 (in local currency)
  • - TV Broadcast or theatrical distribution contract required
When will the benefit/incentive be received?
  • - On submission of audited accounts
  • - State approx. number of months after completion of audited accounts
Additional incentives or advantages
  • - VAT / GST /Sales Tax recoverable
  • - Rece tour assistance, location finding service
  • - An additional 5% tax credit is available if the production is filmed in an economically distressed area of the Commonwealth. The production company is allowed an additional credit of 10-20% of aggregate payroll for Virginia residents employed in connection with the motion picture production. For companies that spend at least $250,000 in total production costs in the Commonwealth, but not more than $1 million, the credit will equal 10 percent of the total Virginia resident aggregate payroll. For companies that spend over $1 million in total production costs in the Commonwealth, the credit will equal 20 percent of the total aggregate Virginia resident payroll. Many expenses incurred in the purchase of production-related supplies or equipment are exempt from the state's 4% sales and use tax. In most cities, hotel rooms are exempt from state hotel taxes after a 30-day stay. Film office staff will provide more information, and will work with productions to secure the best possible hotel rates for film crews. A CPA review of production expenses is now required. Also, a pass-through entity must notify the Virginia Film Office in writing at the time the final application is submitted if it wishes to claim the credit at the entity level rather than allocating the credit to its individual members or owners.-It is possible to assemble most crew locally. There is a VA production directory available on-line.

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