What’s new – Film and media tax credits

Stay up-to-date with the latest news and information related to the Film and Media Tax Credits (FMTC). Updates are organized by date.

[2024-09-20]

Creative BC has introduced a deadline calculator for the BC Production Services Tax Credit and BC Film and Television Tax Credit programs, integrating eligibility, pre-certification notice, and filing deadlines. The deadline calculator will assist claimants by improving their ability to effectively plan and understand the necessary deadlines for successful certification applications with Creative BC and timely tax credit claims with the CRA.

[2023-04-01]

Under section 85 (1) of the Income Tax Act of British Columbia, corporations filing a claim for the British Columbia film and television tax credit (BCFTTC) must submit a Completion Certificate with their T2 corporation income tax return if the production was completed in the related tax year.

The CRA’s one-year transition period, which gave corporations time to adapt to this filing requirement, ended on March 31, 2023.

As of April 1, 2023, the CRA is no longer accepting an Eligibility Certificate alone for final-year claims. Corporations submitting final-year claims must obtain a Completion Certificate within the legislated time period that applies:

The CRA encourages corporations to apply for a Completion Certificate with Creative BC as soon as possible to avoid delays and reduce the risk of losing tax credits for which they may otherwise be eligible.

[2022-12-15]

Under section 84.1 of the Income Tax Act of British Columbia, corporations filing a claim for the British Columbia production services tax credit (BCPSTC) must submit a pre-certification form to Creative BC within a required period of time after incurring their first accredited BC labour expenditure (ABCLE). If the pre-certification form is submitted late, ABCLE incurred before the date of submission cannot be claimed. Legislative measures will be brought forward as part of the BC Government’s Budget 2023 for production corporations that first incurred an accredited BC labour expenditure (ABCLE) between July 1, 2020 and February 21, 2022.

The new proposed measures will allow ABCLE incurred up to 120 days prior to the date of the pre-certification form submission to be claimed, regardless of how late the pre-certification form was filed. ABCLE incurred more than 120 days prior to the date the pre-certification form was filed will not be eligible. Examples of how this will impact corporations can be found on the BC Government’s PSTC webpage and Frequently asked questions webpage.

The CRA will administer these proposed legislative measures effective immediately. If you have been denied a portion of your BCPSTC by the CRA under the current rules, you can request an adjustment to your T2 Corporate Tax return to apply the new rules. For more information, see Requesting a reassessment of your T2 return.

[2022-06-22]
Under section 85(1) of the Income Tax Act of British Columbia, corporations filing a claim for the British Columbia film and television tax credit (BCFTTC) must submit a Completion Certificate with their T2 corporation income tax return if the production was completed in the related tax year. To make sure that claimants receive the tax credit to which they are entitled, an Eligibility Certificate alone will no longer be accepted for the tax year a production is completed.

Going forward, a Completion Certificate will be required for productions that are completed in a tax year. To help applicants adjust to the new process, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has implemented a transition period.

Transition period

The CRA is offering the transition period until March 31, 2023, to give BCFTTC claimants time to adapt to this filing requirement. During this period, the CRA will accept either an Eligibility Certificate and/or a Completion Certificate for BCFTTC claims for the tax year a production is completed. However, if a final-year claim is processed with only an Eligibility Certificate, the production must still get a Completion Certificate within the legislated time period that applies:

The CRA encourages corporations to apply for a Completion Certificate with Creative BC as soon as possible to avoid delays and reduce the risk of losing tax credits for which they may otherwise be eligible.

[2022-03-01]
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is resuming its requirement to submit certificates (for example, Eligibility, Accreditation and Completion certificates) when applying for the FMTC. You can submit your certificates to the CRA using a new feature available on My Business Account. You can also submit the certificates by fax, regular mail or at the time of filing your T2 corporation income tax return through EFILE.

[2022-03-01]
A new feature is now available on My Business Account (MyBA) for claimants without a case or reference number (note that a case or reference number is usually provided by the CRA when you are asked to submit additional documents to support a previous submission). This new feature allows MyBA registrants to voluntarily submit documents to the Film and Media Tax Credits Program in a secure and convenient way.

You can select one or more of the following tasks from a picklist if you have documents to submit:

Example

If you do not have a case or reference number and you want to submit Form T2029 Waiver in respect of the normal reassessment period or extended reassessment period, follow these steps:

  • Sign in to MyBA.
  • Select Submit documents.
  • Choose the No case or reference number? option.
  • Choose the Film and Media Tax Credits (FMTC) option from the picklist.
  • Choose the T2029 waiver forms for late-filed Part B applications at CAVCO task to upload your T2029 waiver form.
  • Once your documents are successfully submitted, you will receive a confirmation number and a reference number. Take note of these and keep them in a safe place for future reference.

For more information, visit Submit documents online.

[2021-11-16]
Film and media tax credits - COVID-19 topics can help address questions about COVID-19 related expenditures for the FMTC.

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