Tax Credit for Video Game Creators
Tax credit for video game creators. Allows companies in the video game sector to maintain their production in France. The scheme covers costs incurred up to 31 December 2031. Amount indicated in the catalogue: a tax credit of up to 30% of the video game production costs incurred during the financial year, capped at €6 million per financial year, set against corporation tax from the first financial year closed after provisional approval; any excess is a receivable on the State and is refunded. Check the current rules, availability and dates before any application.
The video game tax credit can support studios and companies producing a game intended for actual commercial release that meets the scheme’s cultural criteria. The DGE describes a credit of 30% of eligible costs, capped at €6 million per financial year, with a minimum development cost of €100,000. The company must check the tax rules in force and the CNC approval procedure before building its financing plan.
Funded by Centre National du Cinéma (CNC), Ministère de la Culture, Ministère de l’Economie, des Finances et de la Souveraineté Industrielle, Energétique et Numérique
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Who can apply
Development studios, independent or subsidiaries of publishers, that produce video games and are subject to corporation tax. A video game creation company is one that carries out the artistic and technical production of a video game and initiates and incurs the costs needed to create it. Several companies acting jointly can be recognised as such.
Eligibility conditions
Beneficiaries must: comply with the social legislation in force; incur a video game development cost of at least €100,000; intend the game for actual commercial release to the public, and complete it as a first version ready to be duplicated for sale or made available online; obtain approval for the game from the Director General of the Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée (CNC) — provisional and final approval applications are submitted to the CNC by the video game creation company and, for a joint creation, each company must apply for approval for the costs it plans to incur or has incurred; make the game mainly with authors and creative collaborators who are French, nationals of another EU member state or of an EEA state that has signed a tax agreement with France including an administrative assistance clause against fraud or tax evasion (other foreign nationals resident in France are treated as French citizens); and contribute through the game to the development and diversity of French and European video game creation, notably through the quality, originality or innovative nature of the concept and the level of artistic spending.
What the scheme covers
Creation of video games that either develop an adaptation of a pre-existing work of European cultural heritage from a screenplay written in French, or develop an original concept meeting a criterion of quality and originality and contributing to cultural diversity and European video game creation (assessed on the quality and originality of the content, screenplay, gameplay, navigation, interactivity and visual, sound and graphic components); games intended for an adult audience. A video game is any leisure software made available to the public on physical media or online, including artistic and technological creative elements, offering one or more users a series of interactions based on a scripted storyline or simulated situations, expressed as animated images with or without sound. Eligible costs: depreciation of fixed assets created or acquired new and used directly to create the game; pay of authors who took part in creating the game under a contract assigning exploitation rights, and related social charges; staff costs for employees directly assigned to creating the game, and related social charges; salary costs of technical and administrative staff contributing to creating the games; other operating costs, for the share allocated to creating the game (materials, supplies and equipment; building rents; building maintenance and repairs; travel; technical documentation; postal and electronic communication costs); costs of creating a video game entrusted to other companies or bodies, up to €2 million per financial year. These are costs incurred by the video game business to make the first version of the game ready to be duplicated for sale or made available online. Note: the only costs that qualify for the tax credit are those incurred in the 36 months before the final approval is issued, relating to operations carried out in France, in another EU member state or in another EEA state that has a tax treaty with France containing an administrative assistance clause to combat tax fraud or evasion, and that are deductible from taxable profit under ordinary rules. Excluded: depreciation of buildings; video games with pornographic or extremely violent sequences likely to seriously harm users’ physical, mental or moral development.
Amount and funding terms
A tax credit of up to 30% of the video game production costs incurred during the financial year for which the credit is calculated, capped at €6 million per financial year. The credit is set against the corporation tax due for the first financial year closed after the provisional approval given at the start of the project, then against the corporation tax due for each financial year in which eligible costs were incurred. It is set against the tax due after non-discharging withholdings and non-refundable tax credits. Any excess credit is a receivable on the State for the same amount; this receivable cannot be sold or transferred, except under Articles L. 313-23 to L. 313-35 of the French Monetary and Financial Code (the beneficiary can assign or pledge it to a credit institution). Public grants received for costs giving entitlement to the credit reduce the calculation base. Where the tax reduction for a financial year exceeds the tax due, the excess is refunded to the company.
How to apply
Before any commitment, check the application date, eligible costs, combination with other aid, supporting documents and the official application channel. The current date and status must be confirmed with the managing body.
Timeline
Timetable to be confirmed on the official page and in the rules in force. Do not treat a catalogue page as proof that the scheme is open.
Key facts
- Funder
- Centre National du Cinéma (CNC), Ministère de la Culture, Ministère de l’Economie, des Finances et de la Souveraineté Industrielle, Energétique et Numérique
- Type of funding
- Tax exemption
- Status
- Open
- Maximum amount
- €6,000,000
- Automatically extracted — check the official source
- Funding rate
- 30%
- Automatically extracted — check the official source
- Closes
- 31 December 2031
- Geographic scope
- All of France
Frequently asked questions
What is the purpose of the tax credit for video game creators?
Allows companies in the video game sector to maintain their production in France. The scheme covers costs incurred up to 31 December 2031.
Who can apply for the tax credit for video game creators?
Development studios, independent or subsidiaries of publishers, that produce video games and are subject to corporation tax. A video game creation company is one that carries out the artistic and technical production of a video game and initiates and incurs the costs needed to create it. Several companies acting jointly can be recognised as such.
How much can be obtained with the tax credit for video game creators?
A tax credit of up to 30% of the video game production costs incurred during the financial year, capped at €6 million per financial year, set against corporation tax from the first financial year closed after provisional approval; any excess is a receivable on the State and is refunded.
What should be checked before applying for the tax credit for video game creators?
Beneficiaries must in particular comply with social legislation, incur a development cost of at least €100,000, intend the game for actual commercial release and complete a first version ready for sale or online release, and obtain CNC approval (provisional and final approval applications are submitted to the CNC by each creation company).
Official source
No official URL is available in our data for this grant.
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