Corporation Tax Act 2009 section 1179AA

Qualifying companies and productions

Section 1179AA establishes the framework for determining which companies and productions qualify for the audio-visual expenditure credit regime, and how that qualification is assessed on a period-by-period basis.

• The special tax rules in Chapters 2 and 3 apply where there is both a qualifying production (a film, television programme or video game) and a qualifying company for that production.
• Whether a company qualifies, and whether the production itself qualifies, must be assessed separately for each accounting period, based on the facts at the end of that period and, where future events are relevant, on the company's reasonable expectations at that time.
• Once a qualifying company has elected to treat a qualifying production as a separate trade, no other company can subsequently become the qualifying company for that same production.
• The end-of-period assessment can be overridden in certain circumstances — for example, where events after the period end mean a production is no longer regarded as qualifying, or where a certification for the film, programme or game is submitted after the period end.