The system of tax shelters for companies investing in film productions in Belgium attracted 150 million Euro in investment in the country’s film industry last year.
Since 2003, the tax shelter scheme has attracted a total of 600 million Euro in extra private investment in the Belgian film industry. Private companies investing in film productions receive tax breaks of 150%.
Since its introduction, the tax shelter scheme has become the biggest source of income for the Belgian film industry. The number of Belgian films produced has tripled in the nine years since the tax shelter scheme was launched.
The CEO of the biggest raiser of tax shelter funding uFund, Jeremy Burdek, said that since 2004, 879 companies have used the system. “We raised 47 million Euro in the period up to 2011. This allowed us to co-produce a record 25 films.” “In times of crisis investors have sought a safe haven in the tax shelter.
The Flemish Oscar nominee ‘Rundskop’ and the French-language film ‘Hiltler à Hollywood’ were financed through the tax shelter scheme.
A number of international productions such as the Golden Globe winner ‘The Artist’ and the thriller ‘The Expatriate’ also benefited from Belgium’s system of tax shelters for those investing in films.
