Screen Ireland has welcomed the Irish Government’s continued support for the Irish film industry in yesterday’s Budget 2024. Minister for Finance Michael McGrath (TD) announced an increase of the eligible expenditure cap of the Irish tax incentive, Section 481, to €125 million, subject to state aid approval.

Minister McGrath cited the Section 481 Tax Credit as the reason “top quality content is being made in Ireland”, and described these productions as “a tangible economic benefit to our country”.

The agency also announced plans to support new initiatives to facilitate production across the breadth of the country.   

Commenting on the announcement, Susan Bergin, Chair of the Board of Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, said: 

“In a landscape where global film and TV production budgets have reached an all-time high, the increase in the eligible expenditure cap will allow Ireland to attract a wider range of high-quality, larger scale production. It will also create opportunities in the growing area of VFX and post-production, whilst maintaining our well-regarded global reputation. This in turn will allow Ireland to build a depth of production crew, creating jobs and skills development opportunities throughout the creative screen industry, as well as driving increased cultural and economic opportunities for screen tourism.   

Funding for Screen Ireland and the Section 481 tax incentive have become the bedrock of the Irish screen sector’s success, supporting culturally Irish stories on screen, creating local and international job opportunities, increasing spend in the Irish economy and allowing for structured skills development for Irish crew. We are delighted to see the Government continue their support for the Irish screen sector with this announcement and would like to thank Minister Michael McGrath TD and Minister Catherine Martin TD for their continued commitment. Much of the success the industry has achieved to date is the culmination of the long-term investment in cultural and creative talent from sustained Government funding.”