By Canadian Press

B.C. boosts tax incentives to support film and television production

Dec 12, 2024 | 2:03 PM

The British Columbia government is increasing tax incentives for both local and international film and TV projects in an effort to attract more major productions to the province.

Premier David Eby says the tax credit for international projects made in B.C. will jump from 28 to 36 per cent, while an incentive for Canadian-content productions will increase from 35 to 36 per cent.

Speaking at the Martini Town studio in Langley, Eby says tax incentives are the province’s “competitive advantage” and increasing them will help the industry that has been battered by the pandemic, labour disruptions and changes to industry practices.

A government statement says the incentives begin with productions that have principal photography starting Jan. 1, 2025, and projects with costs of greater than $200 million in B.C. will receive a two per cent bonus.

Foreign film and TV work makes up an average of 80 per cent of total production spending in B.C., and the government says maintaining strong international relationships is critical for the industry to continue to thrive.

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The government says it also intends to restore regional and distant location tax credits for companies with a bricks-and-mortar presence outside of Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and Whistler and Squamish.

Just days after Eby unveiled his new cabinet in November, a delegation from the province that included Finance Minister Brenda Bailey and Arts and Culture Minister Spencer Chandra Herbert travelled to California to make a pitch for B.C.’s film and TV industry.

“B.C. is a motion-picture powerhouse with spectacular locations, world-class crews, studios and outstanding creative talent that major productions rely on,” says Chandra Herbert in a statement.

“These changes will help us land more top-tier projects, fuel economic and job growth, and showcase everything we love about B.C. to the world,” he says.

The government says the film industry generated $2.7 billion in GDP in 2022 — roughly one per cent of provincial GDP — and $2 billion in 2023, a year affected by strike action and a decrease in global production

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2024.

Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press