APC40030 - Qualifying animations: british programme

S1216CB, S1216CC Corporation Tax Act 2009

Only programmes that have been certified as a British programmes are eligible for Television Tax Relief (TTR). Such certification may either be interim, if the programme has not been completed, or final, if it has.

Certifying authority

A British programme is one which is certified as such by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport under the TTR rules.

The Secretary of State certifies animations on the advice of the BFI Certification Unit, and any enquiries concerning this should be directed to them at:

Certification Unit
BFI
21 Stephen Street
London W1T 1LN
Tel 020 7173 3214

email: anna.mansi@bfi.org.uk

It is also possible to apply for a certificate online:

Interim and final certificates

In all cases, the programme must be formally certified to qualify for TTR. It is not sufficient for the Television Production Company (TPC) merely to assert that it meets the requirements.

The onus is on the TPC to ensure that they meet the TTR criteria with regards to the animation. If a programme is treated as an animation on an interim basis and does not receive a final certificate, any TTR received will be withdrawn.

Where an interim claim for TTR has been paid by HMRC to the TPC, the TPC must apply for a final British animation certificate from the BFI once the programme has been completed. The final certificate must be submitted to HMRC with the company tax return for the completion period.

If the TPC does not submit a final certificate for a completed animation, then any TTR paid on the basis of the interim certificate is no longer due and will have to be repaid to HMRC by the TPC. This is only not the case where the production is abandoned and the programme is not completed. In that instance an interim certificate is still required.