Film and television tax credit

The film and television tax credit is for eligible corporations that produce eligible film or video productions in British Columbia (B.C.). The credits are for domestic productions with qualifying levels of Canadian content.

If you don’t meet the eligibility requirements for the film and television tax credit, you may qualify for the production services tax credit program.

On this page

• Components of the film and television tax credit program
• Regional and distant location tax credits for animation productions
• Claiming the credits
• Applying for a certificate
• Filing deadlines
• Legislation

Components of the film and television tax credit program

The film and television tax credit program consists of six tax credits with the following tax credit rates:

• Basic tax credit (35%)
• Regional tax credit (12.5%)
• Distant location regional tax credit (6%)
• Film training tax credit (30% of payments made to trainees or 3% of qualifying B.C. labour expenditures, whichever is less)
• Digital animation, visual effects and post-production (DAVE) tax credit (16%)
• Scriptwriting tax credit (35%)

To calculate the amount of tax credit you are eligible for, multiply your qualified B.C. labour expenditure by its applicable tax credit rate.

Regional and distant location tax credits for animation productions

Subject to the approval of the legislature, Budget 2025 proposes to restore the regional and distant location tax credits for animation productions where:

• Principal photography begins on or after January 1, 2025
• Production takes place in a physical office in a regional or distant location
• The production corporation incurs BC labour expenditures in respect of services provided by B.C.-based individuals working in the physical office for at least 50% of their time spent working on the animation production for the taxation year

Animation productions that began principal photography between June 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024 are not eligible for the regional and distant location tax credits.

For more information on these changes, see the Frequently asked questions page. 

Animation productions that began principal photography before June 1, 2024 have different eligibility criteria and different calculations that determine if they are eligible for the regional and distant location tax credits. 

Inspectors from the certifying authority may visit the corporation’s offices and inspect or copy records to verify an animation production is eligible for the regional or distant location tax credits. Non-compliance with the requirements may result in the denial or revocation of the production corporation’s eligibility certificate and require repayment of film and television tax credits paid.

Claiming the credits

You can claim the credit(s) by:

1. Completing the British Columbia Film and Television Tax Credit form (T1196)

2. Attaching the certificate you received for your production from Creative BC. This is either the:
   • Eligibility certificate (if production is not yet complete), or
   • Completion certificate (if production was completed in the tax year)
3. Submitting the T1196 and certificate with your T2 Corporation Income Tax Return to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)

A separate T1196 and certificate is required for each production. Enter the total amount of credits from all productions you are claiming on line 671 on Schedule 5, Tax Calculation Supplementary - Corporations.

Applying for a certificate

Creative BC may require up to 6 months to process certificate applications.

We strongly encourage you to apply for an eligibility certificate as early as possible in the pre-production or production stage and no later than 12 months from the end of the tax year in which principal photography began.

Creative BC recommends you submit completion certificate applications at least 6 months before the filing deadline.

For applications submitted later, Creative BC cannot guarantee these will be processed in time for you to file with the CRA before the deadline, which may result in denied claims.

Filing deadlines

For tax years beginning on or after February 19, 2020:

• You must claim the credit no later than 18 months after the end of your corporation's tax year 

For tax years beginning before February 19, 2020:

• You must claim the credit no later than 36 months after the end of your corporation’s tax year

You can use Creative BC’s FIBC Deadline Calculator to determine your production’s certificate and tax credit claim deadlines.

The credit is fully refundable, but must first be applied against total income tax payable. There are no carry-back or carry-forward provisions.

Legislation

The following legislation applies to the film and television tax credit program:

• Income Tax Act (B.C.) Part 5
• Film and Television Tax Credit Regulation