Compare film & TV incentives before you commit
The incentive decides a large part of where a production can afford to shoot. This free comparison puts the schemes of 16 European countries and regions side by side, with the fine print that changes the outcome: net value, caps, funding risk and timing.
Open to everyone, no sign-up. Figures checked against the funds in August 2026. Looking for the places themselves? See our film & TV locations guide.
Compare incentives side by side
Search for a country or region, select one to three, and see them next to each other: the incentive, what it is worth on your spend, the conditions and the small print. Enter your total budget and the spend you expect in the location and the tool applies the headline rate, tiers, caps and (for the UK) the tax on the credit, so you compare net value instead of the marketing number.
Select one to three countries or regions to compare
No country matches your search. Missing one? Suggest it below.
Indicative only. The tool assumes that all of your local spend qualifies and that the scheme's conditions (cultural test, local company, application timing) are met. Caps in other currencies are converted at approximate rates. Always confirm with the fund or your local partner before you budget on it. Figures checked on 31 August 2026.
All schemes at a glance
| Location | Scheme | Rate | Minimum local spend | Cap per project | Funding and payment | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United KingdomGBP | Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit (AVEC) Tax credit |
34%Net: 25.5% after tax | At least 10% of core spend in the UK; high-end TV at least £1m per broadcast hour | No cap; qualifying spend limited to 80% of core expenditure | EntitlementStatutory credit, no annual budgetPaid: After the corporation tax return | The credit is taxable, so 34% is worth 25.5% net. 39% for animation, children's TV and UK VFX work (VFX is exempt from the 80% cap). 53% for independent films with a budget up to £15m. The old film and HETV reliefs close on 1 April 2027. BFI |
| IrelandEUR | Section 481 Film Tax Credit Tax credit |
32% | €125k eligible spend and €250k total production cost | €125m eligible spend per project (about €40m credit) | EntitlementPayable credit, no annual budget; up to 90% can be claimed in advancePaid: Up to 90% in advance, balance on completion | Credit is paid untaxed. 40% for feature films under €20m (Scéal) and 40% on the first €10m when at least €1m is spent on Irish VFX. Cast and crew of any nationality qualify when working in Ireland. Runs to end 2028. Screen Ireland |
| NetherlandsEUR | Netherlands Film Production Incentive Cash rebate |
Up to 35% | Feature: €1m total cost and €150k Dutch spend; series: minimum budget per broadcast minute | €3m per project and per company per year | Budget-limitedCompetitive rounds, ranked on points (€20m for film and €9.5m for high-end series in 2026)Paid: 30% on signing, balance after audit | Selective: applications are ranked, so a strong project can still miss out when a round is oversubscribed. A Dutch producer or co-producer is required. International co-productions are served first in 2026. Next film deadline: 26 October 2026. Netherlands Film Fund |
| BelgiumEUR | Belgian Tax Shelter Tax shelter |
38-40% net effect | No statutory minimum; tax shelter money limited to 50% of the budget | €15m certificate value per work | Investor-basedDepends on investor appetite via intermediaries, no state budgetPaid: Up front: it is financing, not a rebateForeign spend qualifies: partly | Not a rebate but private financing with a tax break for the investor. The producer's net benefit is typically 38 to 40% of eligible Belgian spend. Money arrives before the shoot. Requires a Belgian (co-)producer and a European work. Screen Flanders |
| GermanyEUR | DFFF I / DFFF II / GMPF Cash rebate |
30% | DFFF I: €1m total cost and 25% German spend; DFFF II: €20m budget and €8m German spend; GMPF series: €30k per minute | €5m (DFFF I) to €25m (DFFF II) per project; series up to €20m per season | Budget-limitedFirst come, first served (€250m a year from 2026); intake for 2026 shoots closed in August 2026Paid: In instalments during production | 30% since February 2025 across all three schemes. The pot runs out: as of August 2026 no more applications are accepted for shoots starting in 2026; the 2027 window opens in November 2026. Public aid is capped at 50% of the total cost. FFA |
| FranceEUR | Tax Rebate for International Production (TRIP / C2I) Tax credit |
30% (40% VFX-heavy) | €250k French spend and 5 shooting days in France | €30m credit per work | EntitlementStatutory credit, no annual budgetPaid: After the fiscal year, via the French line producer | 40% when at least 15% of the shots are digitally treated and French VFX spend exceeds €2m. Pay of non-European performers now qualifies (capped at 30% of the budget). Extended to end 2028. Film France |
| Spain (mainland)EUR | Tax deduction for international productions (Art. 36.2) Tax credit |
30% / 25% | €1m Spanish spend (€200k for animation and post) | €20m per film, €10m per episode | EntitlementStatutory deduction, no annual budgetPaid: Through the tax position of a Spanish service company | 30% on the first €1m of Spanish spend, 25% above that. Claimed by an ICAA-registered Spanish service company and passed on through the service contract. Regional schemes go higher: Navarre 35%, Bizkaia up to 60%. Spain Film Commission |
| Canary Islands (Spain)EUR | Art. 36.2 with Canary Islands uplift (REF) Tax credit |
50% / 45% | €1m Canary Islands spend (€200k for animation and post) | €36m per film, €18m per episode | EntitlementStatutory deduction, no annual budgetPaid: Through the tax position of a Canary Islands service company | 50% on the first €1m, 45% above that (54% on the first €1m when Canary spend exceeds €1.8m). Requires a production or service company resident in the Canary Islands and a regional certificate. Tenerife Film Commission |
| ItalyEUR | Tax credit for international productions Tax credit |
40% | €250k Italian spend | €20m per company per year (2024 rules; the 2026 reform introduced further caps) | Budget-limitedClosed annual budget since 2026 (€100m for international productions)Paid: Offset against Italian tax or sold to a bank at a 5 to 15% discountForeign spend qualifies: partly | Transferable credit granted to the Italian executive producer. The July 2026 reform kept 40% for international productions but moved to a closed annual budget, excluded AI-related costs and tightened documentation. Above-the-line costs of non-EEA persons qualify at 30%. Screen Daily |
| PortugalEUR | SCRI.PT cash rebate (RIPAC) Cash rebate |
30% / 25% (up to 40% in low-density regions) | €500k eligible spend (medium track), €2.5m (large track) | €6m per work, €3m per episode (large track) | Budget-limitedFirst come, first served; €50m a year for 2026 to 2029Paid: In stages during production | New scheme since June 2026, replacing the old cash rebate. Large track: 30% on the first €2m, 25% above. 40% in the interior, Madeira and the Azores. Cultural test and a local executive producer required. Portugal Film Commission |
| MaltaEUR | Malta Cash Rebate Cash rebate |
30% to 40% | €100k Malta spend and a budget above €200k | No per-project cap; above-the-line costs capped | EntitlementNo published annual budgetPaid: 10% advance, balance after final audit | 30% base, 35% when Malta plays Malta or Malta Film Studios are used, 40% when local crew and department targets are met. Crew of any nationality qualifies. Scheme valid to October 2028. Screen Malta |
| HungaryHUF | Hungarian Film Incentive Cash rebate |
30% (up to 37.5% with foreign costs) | No published minimum; cultural test | No per-project cap; annual envelope HUF 70bn (2026) | Budget-limitedAnnual envelope; registration reopened without limits on 1 July 2026 after a pause, with a backlogPaid: After audit, in HUFForeign spend qualifies: partly | Non-Hungarian costs may make up to 25% of the eligible spend, which lifts the effective rebate to 37.5% of Hungarian spend. Principal photography must start within 6 months of registration. Paid in forint, so budget the currency risk. National Film Institute Hungary |
| Czech RepublicCZK | Czech production incentive (Audiovisual Fund) Cash rebate |
25% (35% animation and VFX) | CZK 18m per feature, CZK 7.5m per series episode | CZK 450m (about €18m) per project | Budget-limitedAnnual budget; new intake halted in March 2026 and reopens 1 September 2026Paid: After settlement, in CZK; can take up to 2 yearsForeign spend qualifies: partly | 25% since 2025 (up from 20%), 35% for animation and VFX-only projects, plus 66% of the withholding tax paid by foreign cast and crew. Payment may be delayed up to two years under the 2026 rules. Czech Film Commission |
| PolandPLN | Polish cash rebate (PISF) Cash rebate |
30% | 75% of the financing secured at application; cultural test | PLN 15m per production, PLN 20m per beneficiary per year | Budget-limitedFirst come, first served until the annual pot is usedPaid: After completion, in PLN | Rolling applications until the annual budget is exhausted, with at least 10% reserved for animation. Requires a Polish producer, co-producer or service company. Polish Film Institute |
| IcelandISK | Reimbursement of film production costs Cash rebate |
25% (35% for large productions) | None | No cap | EntitlementOpen-ended, no annual budgetPaid: After completion and audit, in ISKForeign spend qualifies: partly | 35% when the production spends at least ISK 350m in Iceland over 30+ working days with 50+ crew. If more than 80% of the total cost is incurred in Iceland, costs elsewhere in the EEA also qualify. Extended to end 2028. Film in Iceland |
| NorwayNOK | Norwegian Film Production Incentive Selective fund |
Up to 25% | NOK 25m feature budget or NOK 10m per series episode; at least NOK 4m Norwegian spend and 30% non-Norwegian financing | Set per project by the annual award (NOK 84.7m for five projects in 2026) | SelectiveOne competitive round a year, heavily oversubscribedPaid: After completion, in NOK | Ranked selection against a small annual envelope: 18 applicants asked for NOK 288m in 2026 and five were funded. Parliament has asked for a more competitive scheme from 2027. Norwegian Film Commission |
Rates apply to eligible local spend, not to the total budget. "Entitlement" means every qualifying project gets the credit; "Budget-limited" and "Selective" mean the money can run out or your project can be turned down. Sources are the funds themselves or, where their pages were not reachable, trade press. Spotted a change? Use the form below.
Is your country or scheme not listed? Suggest it
Missing a country or region in this table? Tell us which one and we will add it with verified figures. Film commissions and funds are welcome to submit their own scheme, and corrections to existing entries are just as welcome: the schemes change every year and we would rather hear it from you than from a footnote.
How to compare locations properly
The headline percentage is the least useful number on the page.
Two locations can both advertise 30% and end up € 1m apart on the same shoot. The differences sit underneath the rate:
- Gross or net. The UK's 34% is a taxable credit and is worth 25.5% in your pocket. Ireland's 32%, France's 30% and the Dutch 35% are paid untaxed. Belgium's "38 to 40%" is not a rate at all but the net outcome of investor financing.
- What counts as spend. Most schemes only credit money spent in the country, and several cap the qualifying base at 80% of the budget (UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Czech Republic). Some exclude parts of the budget altogether, such as above-the-line costs or fees above a threshold.
- Entitlement or pot. The UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Malta and Iceland pay every qualifying project. The Netherlands ranks applications against a fixed budget. Germany's pot for 2026 was empty by August. Norway funded five projects in 2026. A 30% rate is worth nothing when the money has run out.
- Caps. The Dutch incentive stops at € 3m per project, Poland at PLN 15m, Portugal at € 6m. On a large shoot the effective rate drops fast. The UK, Ireland (in practice), Malta, Hungary and Iceland have no cap.
- When the money arrives. Belgium's tax shelter is financing and lands before the shoot. The Netherlands pays 30% on signing. Ireland lets you claim 90% in advance. The UK and France pay after the tax return, often a year or more after the spend, so budget for interim financing. The Czech rebate can take two years.
- Local structure. Every scheme needs a local company: a co-producer, a service producer or your own SPV. That comes with fees, rights conversations and sometimes a cultural test.
- Currency. The UK, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Iceland and Norway pay in their own currency. Fix the rate, or carry the risk in the contingency.
The honest comparison is therefore not "30% versus 35%" but a full budget per location: local rates, travel and accommodation, the incentive on the spend that actually qualifies, the timing of the cash, and the cost of the structure that unlocks it.
Beyond the incentive
The incentive gets the shortlist started. These three decide whether a location actually works for your production.
Crew and rates
Depth of the local crew base, union agreements and overtime rules, day rates by department, language on set, and how many productions are competing for the same people in your shooting window.
Infrastructure and logistics
Stages and backlots, equipment and post houses, permits and location fees, travel time from your base, weather windows, and how much of the crew, kit and cast has to fly in.
Money and timing
Exchange rate and how you fix it, when the incentive actually pays out, whether you need cash-flow financing to bridge it, the fees of the local partner, and what happens to the plan if the fund is oversubscribed.
Run the same budget for every location
Two or three scenarios, side by side, before you commit
Once the shortlist is down to a few countries, the real comparison is a full budget per location: local rates, travel, the incentive on the spend that qualifies, currency and the co-producer's share.
In Tubes you keep multiple budgets per production, work in multiple currencies, allocate costs to co-producers and compare versions side by side. When the decision is made, that scenario becomes the working budget and the cost report follows from it, without rebuilding anything.
Tubes does not apply for incentives for you. It makes the numbers behind the location decision reliable, and keeps them reliable once the shoot starts.
Frequently asked questions
Which country has the highest film incentive?
On paper the Canary Islands (50% on the first € 1m, 45% above), Malta (up to 40%), Italy (40%) and Ireland's 40% for feature films under € 20m lead the table, with the UK's 53% independent film credit worth 39.75% after tax. In practice the answer depends on what qualifies, the cap and whether the fund still has money. Select the candidates above with your own spend to see the net value side by side.
What is the difference between a cash rebate, a tax credit and a tax shelter?
A cash rebate is a grant paid to the production after the spend is audited (Netherlands, Germany, Malta, Hungary). A tax credit is settled through the tax position of a local company and paid out or offset after the tax return (UK, Ireland, France, Spain); Italy's is transferable and usually sold to a bank at a discount. A tax shelter (Belgium) is private financing: investors put money into the production in exchange for a tax break, so the money arrives before the shoot.
Why is the UK's 34% worth 25.5%?
The Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit is treated as taxable income of the production company and taxed at 25% corporation tax. 34% minus a quarter leaves 25.5%. The same applies to the 39% rates (29.25% net) and the 53% independent film credit (39.75% net). Most other schemes pay their rate untaxed.
Do I need a local production company?
Yes, in every scheme on this page. Some want a local co-producer with a share of the rights (Netherlands, Belgium, Germany), some accept a local service company that claims on your behalf (Spain, Italy, France, Hungary), and some expect your own local company or SPV (Ireland, the UK). Budget for the fees and the time this takes.
How reliable are these figures?
Every entry was checked against the fund's own pages or, where those were not reachable, trade press, in August 2026, with the source linked in the table. Schemes change every year (four European schemes changed in 2026 alone), so treat the table as a starting point and confirm the current rules with the fund or your local partner before you budget on them.
Can I suggest a location or correct an entry?
Yes. Use the "Suggest it" form on this page. Tell us the country or region and, if you have it, the scheme name or a link, and we will add or correct it with verified figures.
Does Tubes apply for the incentive for me?
No. Tubes is production management software: budgeting, planning, cost control and reporting. It lets you build a budget per location scenario, in the right currency, compare the scenarios side by side and then track the actual costs against the one you choose. The application itself goes through the fund and your local partner.
Compare the whole budget, not just the rate
See how Tubes keeps location scenarios, currencies and co-producer shares in one place, from the first comparison to the final cost report.