The UK’s creative industries received more than £1.1 billion in sector-specific tax reliefs in the last year, according to the latest research.
The finding forms part of a new analysis published by the Treasury this month.
According to the report, which looks specifically at reliefs available to the arts and creative industries, businesses were able to make some £1.1 billion in tax savings in the 12 months to April 2019.
The film industry led the way in relief claimed, making savings of £595 million over the period recorded. This was followed by the high-end television sector (£246 million), video games (£103 million) and the theatre industry (£78 million).
In total, 705 films, 210 high-end TV productions and 535 videogames benefited from industry reliefs in 2018/19.
And for the first time, museums and galleries exhibition tax relief helped to showcase 300 exhibitions across the UK.
Commenting on the report, Jesse Norman, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said: “The arts and creative industries make a vital contribution to the UK economy. These tax reliefs have helped support some astonishing and exciting work again this year, celebrating the very best of British culture.”
Amanda Nevill, CEO at the British Film Institute (BFI), which administers cultural tests for the screen sector tax reliefs, added: “The BFI’s Screen Business report ‘How screen tax reliefs power economic growth across the UK’ demonstrated how they are helping to drive one of our fastest-growing sectors, creating jobs across the UK, investment in innovation and delivering a strong return on investment to the UK economy with close to £8 billion spent annually on production.”
The creative and arts sectors are entitled to a variety of reliefs, including the film tax relief, various television tax reliefs, and video games tax relief, among others. To qualify, productions must pass either a British cultural test or qualify as an official co-production.
Each relief aims to promote the sustainable production of British film and media by allowing creators to make an enhanced tax deduction on qualifying expenditure.
