british film certificates

Anyone wanting to claim UK film tax relief needs to have their film certified as a British film. UK co-producers of films made under international co-production treaties, whether or not eligible for film tax relief, must also have their films certified as British.

Where should I send my application?

Applications for British film certificates that pertain to the new film tax relief should be sent to the Certification Unit at the UK Film Council both for the cultural test and for international co-productions; and
Applications for Television Co-Productions produced after 2006 should also be sent to the Certification Unit at the UK Film Council. The UK’s film tax relief cannot be claimed for television productions.
However the following applications should be sent directly to DCMS (and further details are below); all applications that pertain to S.42 & S.48 Tax Relief, and all applications for Television Co-Productions that began production prior to 2007; and requests for copies of certificates. See below for information about the 30 September 2007 and 31 March 2008 cut-offs for film tax relief.

top

30 SEPTEMBER 2007 CUT-OFF FOR S.48 FILM TAX RELIEF

30 September 2007 was the cut-off in the Finance Act 2006 for acquiring a film that completed before 1 January 2007 and claiming relief on that acquisition, i.e. acquisition expenditure incurred after that date will not count: see further information on our tax relief page:

For a film entirely made between April to December 2006, and that is expected to pass both the 32-point cultural test of 2006 and the "maker test", applications for certificates should be made directly to DCMS. Application forms and further details of the test are available on request from: thalia.baldwin@culture.gsi.gov.uk.
For a film entirely made before 2007, and which started filming before April 2006, and that is expected to pass the "old" Schedule 1 (which included the 70% tests and the "maker test" and pertains to S.42/48 film tax relief), applications for certificates should be made directly to DCMS. Application forms and guidance notes are available on request from thalia.baldwin@culture.gsi.gov.uk. There is only a hardcopy form available, applicable to all genres of films, and which cannot be sent via e-mail.

top

31 MARCH 2008 CUT-OFF FOR S.42 FILM TAX RELIEF

Films that had begun principal photography but were unfinished at 1 January 2007, and that fail the 31-point cultural test of 2007, also remain in the rules for the 32-point cultural test of 2006 (without the maker test) and on that basis can continue to claim for production expenditure under S.42 film tax relief. For these films only, the 30 September 2007 deadline was extended to 31 March 2008: i.e. a person acquiring such a film can claim for any acquisition expenditure incurred by then. But an application for a certificate should be made in the first instance to the UK Film Council who will check the correct way forward for it.

top

CHECK THE CHANGES TO THE SYSTEM FOR 2006 AND 2007

For your film, it is important to know which certification rules apply, which office to apply to for a certificate, which tax reliefs apply and the cut-off dates for the film old tax reliefs. These can all be checked in the chart Transitional arrangements for domestic films PDF (11kb).

If your film is an international co-production film, see the further information about the tax cut-off on our co-production page.

The address for sending completed applications to DCMS is:
Film Certification Officer
Media Directorate
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
2-4 Cockspur Street
London
SW1Y 5DH

top

Notes

The UK Film Council may be contacted at: certification@ukfilmcouncil.org.uk
Further information on film tax relief is available on our tax relief page.

To obtain a British film certificate as an international co-production film, see our co-production page.

EC Certificates of Nationality may be granted for opportunities to exhibit a film in Europe (and are not relevant for claims to film tax relief).

top