Film and Television Tax Credit

To be eligible for the 22% tax credit rate, the production must:

• have total production costs of at least $499,999 (Canadian funds, excluding GST)
• be a new production. Repackaging of previously completed productions is not eligible.
• have a portion of principal photography or key animation completed in Alberta (Note: all references to principal photography in the Program Guidelines includes key animation, if not explicitly stated)
• apply to the FTTC program no more than 120 days after commencing principal photography in Alberta. Productions that started Alberta principal photography before June 7, 2024 are not eligible for the expanded 120-day application window. If Alberta principal photography has not started as of the date that an Authorization Letter has been issued, it must start within 6 months after the Authorization Letter issuance date.

A production is defined as a segment of content intended for broadcast, distribution, or streaming, and may include a single production or a series of related productions that are produced or aired over a common period.

• news, current events, or public affairs programming, or a program that includes weather or market reports;
• talk shows;
• professional/franchise sporting events or activities (a production that consists of live or pre-recorded coverage of a professional game, match, competition or tournament or pre and post-game shows for sports events or activities);
• a gala presentation or awards show (a production that consists of live or pre-recorded coverage of a gala or awards show, or pre and post-game shows for galas or awards shows);
• a production that solicits funds;
• pornography/adult entertainment;
• advertising;
• a production that consists of all or substantially of scenes recorded on private or public authority surveillance equipment, including programming commonly known as “court television” or “surveillance television” or other similar formats;
• a production that consists of all or substantially of the recording of official legal, government, or other similar proceedings;
• a production produced primarily for industrial, corporate, or institutional purposes;
• a production, other than documentary, that consists of more than 25% stock footage;
• video games;
• a production for which financial support would, in the opinion of the Minister, be contrary to public policy.*

*Productions deemed contrary to public policy may include, but are not limited to those productions that incite hatred against an identifiable group or have a dominant characteristic of undue exploitation of sex, violence involving one or more of crime, horror, or cruelty.

To be eligible, a corporation must:

• be primarily engaged in film, television, and/or digital media production
• be incorporated in Alberta under the Business Corporations Act, registered as an extra-provincial company in Alberta, or continued as an Alberta company through a Certificate of Continuance
• not be exempt from paying taxes under the Alberta Corporate Tax Act (or be controlled by a corporation that is)
• have not received project funding from the Alberta Production Grant or the Alberta Screen-Based Production Grant
• have a valid commercial distribution plan for the final project
• have secured at least 50% of its production financing before applying

To be eligible for the 30% tax credit rate, applicants must meet the criteria described in the 22% tax credit rate section above and must also meet the following additional requirements:

• the eligible corporation be owned (at least 50%) by Alberta-based shareholders (refer to calculating the proportion of ownership section in the “Definitions” Appendix I of the Program Guidelines for more information)
• the production must have at least one Alberta-based producer with a single card credit recognition. Where multiple Alberta-based producers are engaged, it is acceptable for the Alberta-based producers to share a credit
• the production’s copyright must be held, at least in part, by an Alberta-based individual partnership or corporation at the time of application and for a minimum of 10 years following the completion of production
• at least 60% of the total production costs must be eligible production costs or at least 70% of the total labour costs must be made up of eligible Alberta salary or wages

Inter-provincial co-productions must meet all eligibility criteria above for the 22% or 30% tax credit rate, as applicable.

International treaty co-productions may be eligible for a 30% tax credit certificate if they meet the criteria described in the 22% tax credit rate section above and the following additional requirements:

• the production must have at least one Alberta-based producer with a single card credit recognition. Where multiple Alberta-based producers are engaged, it is acceptable for the Alberta-based producers to share a credit
• at least 60% of the total production costs must be eligible production costs or at least 70% of the total labour costs must be made up of eligible Alberta salary or wages.

To be eligible for the 30% tax credit rate for rural and remote filming, applicants must meet the criteria described in the 22% tax credit rate section above and complete at least 75% of Alberta principal photography days in a rural or remote location(s). Refer to the 'Map of Rural and Remote Filming Locations' Appendix II in the Program Guidelines for more information on the defined boundaries for rural and remote, which includes underutilized areas outside of Edmonton and Calgary.

Applications to the program may be submitted by a parent corporation or related corporation on behalf of an eligible corporation that will be established in the future. Indicate in the application if this is the case and provide Articles of Incorporation for the eligible new corporation within 30 days of incorporation. We strongly recommend establishing the eligible corporation prior to application if the production schedule permits.

An Authorization Letter will only be issued to an eligible corporation that meets all criteria above (for more information on Authorization Letters, refer to 'After You Apply' section in the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines).

Additional eligibility requirements can be found in the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.

Eligible production costs include eligible Alberta:

• costs
• salary or wages
• service contract expenditures
• tangible property expenditures and
• parent-subsidiary amounts

For an expenditure to be eligible, a corporation and production must meet the program eligibility requirements and the expenditure must be:

• reasonable in the circumstances and not exceed fair market value
• considered an essential cost incurred as normal course of business
• directly attributable to the portion of production that occurs in Alberta
  • for goods and services purchased directly from businesses located in Alberta, goods or services cannot be purchased from an Alberta company that has sub-contracted the procurement of the goods or services to out-of-province individuals or organizations
• incurred and fully paid in Alberta during the eligibility period by the eligible corporation and
• paid to eligible individuals (an individual, other than a trust or estate, who resides in Alberta on December 31 of the one of the three years immediately preceding the year in which Alberta principal photography begins)

For documentaries, eligible production costs can also include non-Alberta:

• salary or wages
• service contract expenditures
• travel expenditures

For an expenditure to be eligible for a documentary with a portion of principal photography that occurs outside of Alberta, the expenditure must be:

• reasonable in the circumstances and not exceed fair market value
• considered an essential cost incurred as normal course of business
• directly attributable to the principal photography that occurs outside of Alberta
• incurred and paid in full during the eligibility period by the eligible corporation and
• paid to eligible individuals

Eligible production costs incurred for documentary and non-documentary productions by a parent corporation on behalf of a wholly owned subsidiary that is an eligible corporation may be eligible for a tax credit certificate, provided the parent corporation has been reimbursed by the subsidiary.

Invoices or proof of payment for all production costs must be retained for seven years and provided to the program upon request.

Additional eligibility criteria for salary and wage costs, production cost limitations, and related party transactions are outlined in the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.

Successful applicants will receive an Authorization Letter advising them of the maximum tax credit amount they may be eligible to receive (this is a preliminary tax credit amount). If the applicant chooses to receive multiple tax credits, preliminary tax credit amounts will be listed for each taxation year, in addition to the total maximum tax credit amount.

Applicants must respond within 14 days of receiving the Authorization Letter to indicate their acceptance of the letter and to provide any documentation requested in the letter.

Unsuccessful applicants will be notified in writing of the result. Applicants are permitted to make one additional application within 12 months of receiving notification that their initial application was declined, even if it is more than 120 days after Alberta principal photography has started.
 

Productions can apply to the FTTC program up to 120 days after commencing principal photography in Alberta. The applicant must begin Alberta principal photography on the production no later than 6 months after the date of issuance of the Authorization Letter. The production must be completed, and final deliverables provided to the program, within 42 months from the date Alberta principal photography begins, as outlined in the Authorization Letter.
 

Applicants are required to notify the FTTC program of changes to their production within 30 days of the change occurring, including information on why the change was made.

Failure to inform the program in the allotted timeframe may result in the revocation of the Authorization Letter, see the “Changes in Production Plan” section of the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.
 

Applicants may request a revised Authorization Letter if there have been changes to the production plan and information in the application. Applicants must request a revised Authorization Letter within 30 days after the change occurs. A Revised Authorization Letter must be obtained prior to submitting the final tax credit certificate request for applicants in the Single Tax Credit steam or prior to submitting the first tax credit certificate request for applicants in the Multiple Tax Credits stream. See the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines for further details.

Detailed information on the documentation that a production must submit to the FTTC program before requesting a tax credit certificate are outlined in the “Supporting Documentation and Other Deliverables for the Tax Credit Certificate Request” section of the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.

Applicants are required to fulfill a number of recognition requirements in order to receive a tax credit certificate.

More information on recognition requirements can be found in the “Recognition Requirements” section of the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.
 

Once a tax credit certificate has been approved, applicants will receive a letter notifying them that their request for a tax credit certificate was processed.

The applicant is responsible for filing the tax credit certificate as part of their taxes. Please refer to Alberta Corporate Tax Act for more details.

A corporation may request that its corporate income tax refund be redirected to its lender as security for bridge financing of its Alberta film or television production. This can be done by including a letter with the corporation’s AT1 return for the respective taxation year that includes:

• the name and address of the recipient
• an acknowledgment that the redirection of the refund does not affect the legal rights of set-off in favour of Alberta Treasury Board and Finance, Tax and Revenue Administration (TRA)

Alberta-owned productions that receive a 30% tax credit certificate are required to have an Alberta-based individual, partnership, or corporation own, at least in part, the copyright of the production, for 10 years after completion of production.

More information on the holding requirement can be found in the “Copyright Holding Requirement” section of the Film and Television Tax Credit Program Guidelines.