The section 481 relief is available in respect of qualifying films, to film producer companies on particular expenditure provided certain conditions, as laid out in statute and regulations, and as specified in the film certificate issued by my Department, are met. There is no annual cap on the credit though there is a “per project” cap of up to 32% (or 37% where regional film development uplift applies) of the lowest of eligible expenditure; or 80% of the cost of production; or €70 million. The incentive applies to feature films, television dramas, animations and creative documentaries. All claims in respect of section 481 are now on a self-assessment basis and subject to Revenue’s Code of Practice for Revenue Audit and other Compliance Interventions. Under the self-assessment basis, the administration of the film corporation tax credit has been separated into two steps: The first step involves the certification of a film as a qualifying film by my Department while the second step involves the producer company making a claim for credit relief through Revenue’s Online Service.
To support an application to my Department, the Regulations require submission of an undertaking that in producing the film, the producer company and the qualifying company (“the companies”) shall provide quality employment, and training and skills development opportunities. This is known as the ‘TAB M Undertaking’ and in the event that the application for certification of the film is successful, the TAB M Undertaking commits companies to: comply in all material aspects with all applicable laws, including employment law; be responsible for compliance with all statutory requirements of an employer; have written policies and procedures in relation to grievances, discipline and dignity at work; and provide details of any Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) decisions in relation to the companies or other companies in the film group, and where those decisions are a finding against such a company, confirmation that the finding has been followed or an explanation where the finding has not been followed. It is a standard condition of section 481 Certificates that both the producer company and qualifying company shall continue to comply with the conditions of the TAB M undertaking while producing the certified film and to have available, as part of the compliance report required under Regulation 10 of the Film Regulations 2019, any Work Place Commission decisions in relation to any company in the film group.
The WRC is a statutorily independent office of the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation. It is tasked, inter alia, with the adjudication of employment rights and complaints of penalisation pursuant to the Protected Disclosures Act. The decisions of the WRC and its appellant body, the Labour Court are publically available. The WRC does not comment on individual cases and it would not be appropriate for me to comment on cases that are currently before the WRC.
