Calculate Video Games Tax Relief (VGTR) for UK game development companies. Find your 25% or 34% credit on qualifying UK expenditure.
Video Games Tax Relief (VGTR) is a UK corporation tax relief for companies developing video games for commercial release. It provides a 25% (standard) or 34% (enhanced) payable tax credit on qualifying UK core expenditure, capped at 80% of total core production costs. The relief is administered by the British Film Institute (BFI) and HMRC.
To qualify for VGTR, the company must be UK-resident and responsible for the game development. The game must pass the BFI's Cultural Test (scoring at least 16 out of 31 points for British cultural content). At least 25% of the core expenditure must be UK expenditure. The game must be primarily intended for general public release, not educational or gambling purposes.
The BFI Cultural Test for video games scores games on: British content (up to 16 points for settings, characters, dialogue), production company details (up to 3 points for UK HQ), cultural contribution (up to 4 points for British heritage, diversity), and UK resident crew (up to 8 points for UK-based team). A score of 16+ out of 31 qualifies. Many mainstream UK-developed games pass this test.
Core expenditure includes the direct costs of creating the game: game design, programming, testing, voice acting, music composition, motion capture, and art creation. It excludes: game distribution, marketing and advertising, game updates and patches after release, and overhead costs not directly attributable to game creation.
From 1 January 2024, VGTR was replaced by the Video Games Expenditure Credit (VGEC), which operates as a payable tax credit (above-the-line credit) at 34% of qualifying UK expenditure. Games in production before 1 April 2024 could continue under the old VGTR scheme until 31 March 2027. The new VGEC is more straightforward and generally more beneficial than the old relief.