Tax credits: the Italian film industry awaits a further 80 million

A further allocation of at least 80 million euros for films and TV series, in addition to the funds already allocated to the national production tax credit under the first 2026 allocation decree. According to Il Sole 24 Ore, this is the figure that the film and audiovisual industry is reported to have indicated to the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of the Economy as necessary to fund the tax credit for Italian productions in 2026. The estimate of 80 million is said to have been put forward before the summer break and is now awaiting verification as activities resume, when the mosaic of incentives for the sector will need to be pieced back together, including new resources for the Film Fund, the window that has closed for international productions and the MIC’s recently published directorial decrees for cinemas.

A starting point – which has been welcomed by the sector – is the increase in funding decided upon before the summer recess. With the Senate’s final approval of the conversion of the Infrastructure Decree and the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), an additional 200 million has been allocated over the two-year period. Article 15-bis has increased the resources of the Cinema and Audiovisual Fund by 50 million in 2026, raising them from 610 to 660 million, and by a further 150 million in 2027, from 500 to 650 million. From 2028, the annual allocation will return to 500 million. It is within this framework that the debate over the distribution of resources is now unfolding. The guidance provided by the industry, as mentioned, aimed to drive home a key point: at least a further 80 million would be needed to support domestic productions. This figure becomes all the more significant given that producers are increasingly emphasising their need to know the availability and timing of incentives in order to plan investments and launch projects.

This is not a new request. Meanwhile, another window is closing which, depending on the funding requested, is expected – by those in the industry – to affect the resources that can be made available to Italian productions. Yesterday, at 11.59 pm, the deadline expired for submitting preliminary and final applications via the DGCOL platform for the 2026 tax credit aimed at attracting international productions to Italia. The application window opened on 3 June and applies to Italian production and post-production companies operating within Italy, using Italian labour, on projects commissioned by foreign production companies. Applications are assessed on the basis of the start date of production and, where applications are equal, in the order in which they were submitted. If funds prove insufficient, eligible applications that have not been funded will automatically be carried over to subsequent rounds. Also yesterday, the Directorate-General for Cinema and Audiovisual Media published two decrees on the tax credit for cinemas, setting out the results of the assessments relating to operating costs and investments (with reference to 2024).

All this whilst the industry, as it prepares for the 83rd Venice Film Festival, looks to new Cinema Act. The bill failed to reach the Chamber before the summer recess and is now due to be debated in the Chamber of Deputies, following amendments by the Budget Committee and assessments by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.