MIB announces sops for foreign film shoots, co-productions in India
The two schemes, Incentive Scheme for Audio-Visual Co-production and Incentive Scheme Shooting of foreign films in India are aimed at unleashing the potential of the Indian media and entertainment industry
PremiumUnion minister of information and broadcasting Anurag Thakur announced a series of schemes for foreign film shoots and co-productions to take place in India, as he inaugurated the India Pavilion at the Cannes Film Market ‘Marche du Film’. The two schemes, Incentive Scheme for Audio-Visual Co-production and Incentive Scheme Shooting of foreign films in India are aimed at unleashing the potential of the Indian media and entertainment industry, a statement from the ministry said.
Under the Incentive Scheme for Audio Visual Co-production, for all qualifying projects, the Indian co-producer can claim a payable cash reimbursement of up to 30% on qualifying expenditure in India subject to a maximum of Rs. 2 crore. However, reimbursement shall be divided among the producers as per their respective share of financial contribution towards the project. The project must have been granted ‘co-production’ status by the I&B ministry and the participating country(ies), under one of India’s official bi-lateral co-production treaties on Audio-Visual Co-production, the statement said.
Under the Incentive Scheme for Shooting of Foreign Films in India, apart from the 30% reimbursement incentive, an additional 5% bonus up to a maximum of Rs. 50 lakh can be claimed, with the latter being granted for employing 15% or more manpower in India. To avail this scheme, international productions that have been granted shooting permission by the ministry of information and broadcasting and ministry of external affairs (for documentaries only) after 1 April, 2022 shall be eligible.
“The incentives will be disbursed in two stages, interim and final. The final disbursement claim can be made once the project is complete in India. Incentives will be provided on the recommendation of a special incentive evaluation committee. Moreover, incentives can be claimed under either of the schemes and not for both," the statement said.
The Incentive Scheme shall be executed through Film Facilitation Office (FFO) under the aegis of National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).
“We have a strong intellectual property regime, and the digital medium now complements the other more established modes of consumption and dissemination such as theatres and movies. This has brought about democratisation of consumer choice like never before, and our government is intent on preserving this via support to creative industries," Thakur said at Cannes.
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