FPC40030 - Qualifying films: British film

CTA2009/S1197

Only films that have been certified as a British films are eligible for Film Tax Relief (FTR). Such certification may either be interim, if the film has not been completed, or final, if it has.

Certifying authority

A British film is one which is certified as such by the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport under Schedule 1 to the Films Act 1985.

The Secretary of State certifies films on the advice of the BFI Certification Unit, and any enquiries concerning this should be directed to them at

Certification Unit
BFI
21 Stephen Street
London W1T 1LN
Tel 020 7173 3214
email: anna.mansi@bfi.org.uk

Qualifying conditions

There are three ways in which a film can qualify as British. It may:

  • satisfy the cultural test inserted into Schedule 1 to the Films Act 1985 by SI2006/3430 (the Films (Definition of a British Film) (No. 2) Order 2006);
  • meet the terms of one of the United Kingdom’s bilateral co-production treaties; or
  • meet the terms of the European Convention on Cinematic Co-Production.

In all cases, the film must be formally certified to qualify for FTR. It is not sufficient for the film production company merely to assert that it meets one of the three tests set out above. 


Interim and final certificates

The onus is on the production company to ensure that the relevant qualifying criteria with regard to the film are met. If a film is treated as a British production on an interim basis and does not receive a final certificate, any expenditure credits received will be withdrawn.

Where an interim claim for FTR has been paid by HMRC to the production company, the production company must apply for a final certificate from the BFI once the film has been completed. The final certificate must be submitted to HMRC with the claim for the completion period (the period in which the production is completed). If the production company does not submit a final certificate, then any FTR paid on the basis of the interim certificate is no longer due and will have to be repaid to HMRC by the production company. The only exception to this is where the film is abandoned. In that instance, an interim certificate is still required, but not a final certificate.