INFORMATION

The audiovisual production support system, so-called “incentives” is regulated by the Act on financial support for audiovisual production and offers reimbursement of production costs incurred in Poland in the amount of 30% of Polish eligible costs. Funds allocated to support audiovisual production come directly from the state budget and are distributed throughout the year until they are depleted. At least 10% of the annual budget is intended to support animated productions. The system is operated by the Polish Film Institute.

Reimbursement is available for feature films, animations, documentaries and series, animated series and documentary series. The return is available for the production of Polish and international co-productions and services provided for foreign productions (line production). The cultural qualification test and minimum spending thresholds apply. Limits per project and applicant apply. A Polish partner or company registered in Poland is required to apply for support. There are no deadlines; applications are processed in order of submission until the funds for a given year are depleted. Financial support is paid after the presentation and positive verification of the final report on production or the stage of work covered by the support.

Please note, applications are submitted in Polish.

Learn more about incentives

Who can apply / Beneficiaries:

1. An entrepreneur who is a producer of an audiovisual work, a co-producer of an audiovisual work or an entity providing an audiovisual production service which:

  • has its registered office within the territory of Poland;
  • was a producer of an audiovisual work, a co-producer of an audiovisual work or provided an audiovisual production service in relation to at least one audiovisual work which was distributed in cinemas, broadcasted or presented at least at one international film festival accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF), or employs a person managing the entrepreneur or a person responsible for audio-visual production having experience in the field of audio-visual production or co-production of such an audio-visual work;
  • has concluded a contract for the co-production of an audio-visual work within the territory of the Republic of Poland or an agreement for the provision of audio-visual production services within the territory of the Republic of Poland before submitting an application for financial support;
  • meets the requirements set out in the provisions of law on state aid.

2. An entrepreneur who is a producer of an audiovisual work or a co-producer of an audiovisual work which has its registered office in another Member State of the European Union or in a Member State of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) - the party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area should it fulfill the following conditions jointly:

  • it has a branch within the territory of Poland;
  • the subject of financial support is an audiovisual work produced by this branch;
  • Polish branch has to fulfil the conditions applying to Polish entrepreneur set out above in 1.b, 1.c, 1.d.

3. Financial support may only be granted to an entity providing an audiovisual production service only if the producer of an audiovisual work or any of the co-producers of an audiovisual work is not based in Poland.

Which productions are eligible for the Polish cash rebate?:

Reimbursement is available for feature films, animations, documentaries and series, animated series and documentary series. The receipt of support is conditional on meeting the criteria for the minimum planned runtime of audiovisual works and exceeding the value of Polish eligible costs defined in the table below.

TYPE OF PRODUCTION MINIMUM RUNTIME SPEND TO BE EXCEEDED (PLN)
FEATURE FILM co-production 70 min. 2 500 000 (in 2019)
3 000 000 (in 2020 and in 2021)
4 000 000 (from 2022)
service 1 000 000
SERIES co-production 40 min. / episode 1 000 000 / episode
service 1 000 000 / season
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE co-production 40 min. 300 000
service 300 000
DOCUMENTARY SERIES co-production 150 min. / season 1 000 000 / season
service 300 000 / season
ANIMATED FEATURE co-production 60 min. 1 000 000
service 500 000
ANIMATED SERIES co-production 50 min. / 10 episodes / season 1 000 000 / season
service 500 000 / season
How to apply:

Financial support in the form of a refund of part of the Polish eligible costs is granted on the basis of the submitted application together with the required attachments.

Application for support:

  • an application for financial support may be submitted no earlier than 12 months before the start of the work to be covered by financial support and no later than before the start of this work;
  • the applicant is obliged to start works covered by financial support not later than 12 months from the date of submitting the application;
  • at least 75% of the costs of works to be covered and at least 75% of the total financing of the production must be confirmed by documents;
  • the fee for processing the application is 0.05% of the estimated financial support, no more than PLN 1,000;
  • applications are submitted in Polish;
  • all required attachments to the application must be in Polish or translated into Polish, including by a sworn translator: a copy of the co-production agreement or contract for the provision of services for audiovisual production and copies of documents confirming financing;
  • PISF processes the application within 28 calendar days.

In a separate procedure, you can obtain a certificate confirming that the project meets the criteria of the qualifying test and qualifies for a refund of some of the costs. The certificate serves informational purposes and does not guarantee the allocation of funds. The certificate is issued within a maximum of 28 days from submitting the application and is valid for 4 years. Applications for the certificate can be submitted throughout the year.

Qualification test:

A qualification test applies, which has the following criteria:

  • use in the audiovisual work of Polish or European cultural heritage;
  • location of the audiovisual work on the territory of Poland;
  • realization of an audiovisual work on the territory of Poland;
  • participation in the audiovisual production of Polish artists, crews and service providers;
  • use of Polish film infrastructure.
How to receive a refund:
  • the maximum support for one project is PLN 15 million;
  • the maximum support for one applicant during the year is PLN 20 million;
  • Polish eligible costs which form the basis for calculating financial support may not exceed 80% of the total audiovisual production costs;
  • only one financial support may be granted for audiovisual production of a given audiovisual work and it cannot be raised at a later time;
  • the maximum share of public funds together with the amount of support may not exceed:
    Domestic co-production 50%
    International co-production (UE, EFTA) 60%
    A difficult work, with limited commercial values and aimed at children under 12 years 70%
    A difficult work, promoting Polish historical or cultural heritage in the world, which eligible costs exceed twice the minimum required eligible costs 70%
Costs that are refundable:

Polish eligible costs shall be reimbursed, including:

1. Legitimate and necessary costs:

  • preparations for the production incurred as part of the search for shooting locations of audiovisual production;
  • realization of audiovisual production;
  • set design and costumes;
  • obtaining technical equipment for audiovisual production;
  • travel, accommodation and meals;
  • editing and post-production;
  • production of animations and special effects;
  • related to the involvement of people in the production of an audiovisual work, including income taxes and social security contributions;
  • copyrights and licenses for music and archival materials used in audiovisual production;
  • production of formats enabling access to an audiovisual work for disabled people, including audio descriptions and subtitles for the deaf.

2. Costs of goods and services purchased from entrepreneurs with a registered office or branch in Poland and costs of goods and services, including rental or lease of technical infrastructure, purchased or provided in Poland.

3. Fees, salaries and other benefits for creators and crew:

  • on the basis of contracts other than a contract of employment - if they are subject to tax liability within the meaning of tax regulations and fall within the catalogue specified in Article 54 (5) of Regulation No.651/2014.
  • on the basis of employment contracts - if they include the labor costs of the employees of the entrepreneur who has received financial support or its co-producers, or their subcontractors who are subject to unlimited tax liability in accordance with the Act of 26 July 1991 on personal income tax (Journal of Laws of 2018 item 1509, as amended3).
Costs that are not refundable

The Polish eligible costs do not include the tax on goods and services and costs related to running business by producers or co-producers, not directly related to audiovisual production or providing services for audiovisual production, which is the subject of financial support.

A simplified successful application workflow


Documents to download:

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