Irish film and television companies have expressed disappointment at the exclusion from last week’s budget of an enhanced tax break for regional productions, two years after the Government phased out the original scheme.
Aimed at bringing more productions to areas outside of Dublin and Wicklow and boosting capacity, the regional uplift to the section 481 tax credit was in place from 2019 to 2023.
Screen Producers Ireland (SPI), the lobbying group for the independent production sector, had called in its pre-budget submission for a new enhanced rate to be introduced. It wants the scheme to be in place on a longer-term basis than the first measure, which was also tapered in each year of its operation.
Less than 30 per cent of film and television productions in the Republic last year took place outside of Leinster, according to SPI’s calculations. Big budget productions also tended to be concentrated in Leinster, adding to the economic imbalance.
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While a new regional uplift was excluded from Budget 2026, Minister for Culture Patrick O’Donovan said last week that he would like to revisit it.
In a new study commissioned by Film in Limerick and conducted by international consultancy Olsberg, the film office serving the midwest region warned that the loss of the incentive has slowed momentum in regional hubs. It has called for a dedicated replacement to encourage growth and protect existing jobs.
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Paul Ryan, film commissioner and regional film manager at Film in Limerick, told The Irish Times: “We’re disappointed not to see a focus on the regions.
“The way we see it is that the Irish industry has just been incredibly successful, and everybody wants to sort of film Ireland.
“But it’s been concentrated in Dublin, Wicklow, and there’s an opportunity there to grow that beyond the capital. There is more crew in the regions and here, in the midwest, than ever before.”
However, Mr Ryan said there needs to be a “level playing field” to incentivise a greater number of productions.
SPI chief executive Susan Kirby said the regional uplift to the section 481 tax credit would help producers address the costs associated with filming in the regions, which are typically higher due to the reduced availability of crew and infrastructure.
“We appreciate that Government agencies are investing money into crew and infrastructure across the country, and SPI believes [that] for this investment to be harnessed successfully, it has to be backed up with additional financial support to bring the productions outside Dublin and Wicklow,” she said.
Last week, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe announced an enhancement to the section 481 tax relief for the film industry, specifically aimed at the State’s growing visual effects (VFX) industry.
The rate of relief will increase from 32 per cent to 40 per cent for the sector, to a minimum of €1 million of eligible expenditure and a maximum of €10 million.
At a post-budget press conference last week, the culture and communications minister said VFX was an area he wanted to specifically address in Budget 2026.
However, Mr O’Donovan added that the regional uplift is something he would like to address in the future.
“I have intimated to [the] Minister [Paschal Donohoe] that I would like to come back and revisit the issue of the regional uplift,” he said.
