Support for the Czech Film Production

The Czech Republic is known as a film-friendly country. A number of large film productions have taken advantage of the Czech Republic’s picturesque countryside and historical landmarks. To enhance this reputation, the Czech Film Industry Support Program is being launched for 2012. The Czech Film Industry Support Program offers a 20% rebate on any qualifying Czech expenditure and 10% on qualifying international expenditures. Costs which qualify as Czech expenditures are goods and services provided in the Czech Republic and paid to companies or individuals registered to pay income tax in the Czech Republic. Costs paid to individuals who pay withholding tax in the Czech Republic but are not registered to pay income tax may qualify as international expenditures. To qualify for the rebate, projects must pass a cultural test for European cultural and production criteria. Projects must reach a minimum expenditure of CZK 15m (approximately EUR 600,000) for cinematic feature films and TV films or CZK 3m (approximately EUR 120,000) for cinematic documentaries. Eligible expenditures may not exceed 80% of a project’s total budget. Eligible costs are those connected exclusively to the project and do not include the purchase and depreciation of assets, costs associated with the development of a storyline, expenses related to intellectual property rights, financing expenses, distribution and marketing, per diem allowances for foreign crew, customs duties or VAT. The support program has CZK 100m (approximately EUR 4m) available to disburse in 2012. Grants are awarded to qualifying projects on a first-come, first-served basis. There is no cap on the amount of grant per project. Rebates are issued at the end of production upon submission of audited statements of costs incurred and paid out in the form of cash grants. Only registered Czech income tax payers with a place of business in the Czech Republic may apply for the grant in the final stage. International producers may partner with a Czech co-producer (which becomes the applicant) or establish and apply through a Czech subsidiary.

Author: Milos Fiala, milos.fiala@ecovis.com
ECOVIS blf s.r.o., Prague, Czech Republic
http://www.ecovis.com/...