The government doesn't pay the producer anything directly. The Tax Shelter, in Article 194ter of the Income Tax Code 1992, gives Belgian companies a tax break for putting money into eligible audiovisual works. The producer's benefit is that investor cash, minus what it costs to raise it. It has run since 2003 and was reformed on 1 January 2015; the numbers below come from the FPS Finance brochure published in 2024.
Three parties and one certificate
- The eligible production company is a Belgian company (or Belgian branch of a foreign one) whose core business is developing and producing audiovisual works, approved by the Minister of Finance. Broadcasters and companies linked to them are excluded, with limited exceptions.
- The investor is any Belgian company or Belgian establishment of a foreign company, other than a production company or broadcaster.
- The intermediary, also approved by the Minister, matches investors with projects and drafts the agreements for a fee paid by the producer. Several banks sell Tax Shelter deals to clients this way.
They sign a framework agreement. The investor pays within three months. The producer spends the Belgian budget, FPS Finance audits it and issues a Tax Shelter certificate, and the producer passes the certificate to the investor, who turns a temporary tax exemption into a permanent one.
Investors get no rights in the film. The Tax Shelter money comes out of the Belgian producer's share of the financing.
What sets the certificate's value
The certificate's tax value is 70% of qualifying production and exploitation expenses spent in the EEA, and it can't be more than 10/9 of the production expenses spent in Belgium. Those Belgian expenses have to be at least 90% of the certificate value, with at least 70% direct costs (crew, cast, sets, props and costumes seen on screen, equipment, lab, production insurance) and no more than 30% indirect (financing and legal fees, distribution costs, overhead). A producer's fee, investor-raising commissions, and general overhead together can't exceed 18% of Belgian direct expenses.
The certificate value for one work is capped at €15,000,000, and all investor payments into a work can't exceed 50% of its budget.
Worked example: the FPS Finance numbers, scaled to a $1,000,000 film
At the ECB reference rate for 11 September 2026 (EUR 1 = USD 1.1592), $1,000,000 is €862,664. The brochure's example is built on €900,000 of Belgian spend. Here it is halved to fit this budget.
| Step | Brochure | This film |
|---|---|---|
| Belgian expenses (70% direct, 30% indirect) | €900,000 | €450,000 |
| Direct Belgian expenses | €630,000 | €315,000 |
| Certificate value (10/9 of Belgian expenses) | €1,000,000 | €500,000 |
| EEA qualifying expenses needed (certificate value / 70%) | €1,428,571 | €714,286 |
| Investment raised (48.218% of certificate value) | €482,180 | €241,090 |
| Less: investor interest, 18 months | €61,334 | €30,667 |
| Less: intermediary fee | €57,862 | €28,931 |
| Less: insurance | €7,715 | €3,858 |
| Net to producer | €355,269 | €177,634 |
| Net as share of Belgian expenses | 39.5% | 39.5% |
Two checks for this film: the EEA spend of €714,286 fits inside the €862,664 budget, and the €241,090 investment is under 50% of the budget (€431,332). The brochure's interest figure used 12-month Euribor from the second half of 2023 plus 4.5%, and the fee was 12%. Your net moves with both.
The investor's side, briefly
In the year the framework agreement is signed, the investor exempts up to 421% of the sums paid from taxable profit, limited to 203% of the certificate's expected tax value, 50% of its reserved profits, and €1,000,000 per tax period. The exempt profits sit in a separate reserve. If the certificate is issued by 31 December of the fourth year after signing, the exemption becomes 203% of the certificate value and permanent. If not, the profit becomes taxable. Investors carry your completion risk until then, which is why the FPS Finance example includes an insurance premium.
Timeline for the producer
- Get approval as an eligible production company.
- Get the work recognized as a European work by the competent Community service (in Flanders, the Department of Culture, Youth and Media).
- Sign framework agreements and notify FPS Finance within one month of signing and before the work is complete.
- Collect investor payments within three months.
- Spend Belgian money between 6 months before and 18 months after signing (24 for animation). Pre-signing spend can't be more than half.
- Apply for the certificate within 9 months of completing the work, and credit the Belgian Tax Shelter in the end titles.
Watch-outs
- Missing the Belgian spend or the 70% direct share cuts the certificate value proportionally, and the investor's exemption drops with it.
- Transport and accommodation only count up to 25% of the pay lines.
- The figures here come from the FPS Finance brochure dated 2024. Ask the Tax Shelter Office at taxinvest@minfin.fed.be whether anything has changed before closing a deal.
Nearby options
Belgium also has regional funds such as Screen Flanders. On a Dutch-Belgian co-production, each partner works its own system: the Tax Shelter on the Belgian side and the Netherlands incentive on the Dutch side. France is the other neighbor to compare if the co-production is French-language. A foreign producer can only get in through a Belgian co-producer, and a co-production treaty is one of the routes for international works to qualify. How film tax credits work covers the more familiar credit model for comparison.