The Financing Program for the Audiovisual and Cinema Industry, named SCRI.PT, was approved last week in the Council of Ministers and has now been put forward for public consultation by the office of the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs.
The legislative document available online indicates that the government aims to implement a “new support model for the audiovisual and cinematographic industry,” with “adequate funds for incentives, ensuring timely payments, providing alternative financing options, and further supporting the internationalization of the sector.”
One of the measures proposed is to combine the current ‘cash rebate’ and ‘cash refund’ incentive mechanisms into a single program, to make “the best use of available resources” and generate “more critical mass.”
These two complementary incentive mechanisms, which are currently in place, aim to attract foreign film and audiovisual productions that involve Portuguese producers and incur expenditure in Portugal, based on criteria that vary according to the size of the projects.
The ‘cash rebate,’ with an annual allocation of 14 million euros, has been in effect since 2018 and is funded through the Tourism and Cinema Support Fund (FACT). However, the government warns that the current model is becoming “unviable,” as “reimbursements from beneficiaries of European funds” that have been financing it “are nearly exhausted.”
The ‘cash refund,’ to be implemented for the first time in 2024, has an annual allocation of 20 million euros for larger-scale film and audiovisual productions.
The government proposes to merge these two mechanisms into a new “Audiovisual and Cinematographic Production Incentive Scheme — RIPAC,” to be established by decree-law, with its management and execution assigned to Turismo de Portugal, which is part of the Ministry of Economy.
Another proposal of the SCRI.PT program is the creation of a 50 million euro production support credit line, managed by Banco Português de Fomento, “in coordination” with Turismo de Portugal and the Instituto do Cinema e do Audiovisual.
The government also intends for the SCRI.PT program to be integrated into another economic framework titled “Portugal Events – Support Program for the Organization of Events of Tourist Interest,” focusing on “events in the creative industries, audiovisual, and cinema sectors.”
To implement these initiatives, the executive projects an investment estimate of 250 million euros between 2025 and 2028, with 200 million euros allocated to RIPAC and 50 million euros to the credit line.
Regarding the 200 million euros in financing for RIPAC, detailed funding sources in the document include 88 million euros from the State Budget, 22 million euros from “reimbursements originating from European funds,” 40 million euros from the “reallocation of expenses from Turismo de Portugal,” 44 million euros from “Gaming Zone” revenues, and 6 million euros from Turismo de Portugal’s management balance.
“The strategic leadership of SCRI.PT will be under the responsibility of the government members overseeing the areas of media, tourism, and culture,” the document states.
The SCRI.PT program will be open for public consultation until June 16.
The PSD/CDS-PP government, led by Luís Montenegro, is currently in a caretaker capacity, limited to essential or unavoidable acts for the continuation of its activities, with legislative elections scheduled for May 18.
The elections were called in response to the resignation of the government, following the parliament’s rejection of the motion of confidence in the executive on March 11.
On March 19, 2024, the outgoing Socialist government’s Minister of Culture, Pedro Adão e Silva, approved a strategic plan for cinema and audiovisuals for 2024-2028, which included various measures such as creating working groups, revising financial support programs, and enhancing viewer access to Portuguese productions.
The document, still accessible on the official page of the Instituto do Cinema e do Audiovisual, outlines that the new strategic plan would launch in a “stable legislative and financial landscape,” with tax incentives benefiting Portuguese production.
