Greece Audiovisual Sector Incentives

In 2017, Greece introduced incentives to promote the development of the audiovisual sector an in 2018 launched the National Center of Audiovisual Media and Communication (EKOME).  EKOME supports audiovisual productions as a one-stop-shop and has distributed over 300 million euro in incentives since its inception.  In an effort to attract foreign productions and support Greek film industry, EKOME has issued rebates to over 80 films and series. As the demand has grown exponentially, EKOME encountered issues funding the increasing requests for incentives.

In 2024, the Greek government reevaluated the structure of the agencies supporting the audiovisual sector and decided to merge EKOME with the Greek Film Center.  The agencies have joined forces to support the sector holistically and to better control the rebate scheme.  The new agency created by the Ministry of Culture is named Creative Greece.  The new law that was recently passed (Law 5105/2024) strengthens control over the rebates but the cash rebate percentage of 40% remains.  This rebate covers all production costs with the below requirements:
    Film (min. € 60000 for documentaries, € 45000 for short films, min. € 200.000 for fiction movies)
    Television (min. € 120.000 for limited fiction series (up to 16 episodes), min. € 25.000 per episode for documentary series and min. € 35.000 for season series (up to 150 episodes)
    Video Games (min. € 50.000 per production)
    Animation (min. € 80.000 for animation film and min. € 50.000 for series)
The maximum amount per project can reach € 12.000.000. Further information is found under law 5105/2024.

Creative Greece Mission 
The new agency’s mission will support:
    Preservation of audiovisual archives of Greek cinematography.
    Facilitation of education and training programs.
    Internationalization of the Greek film sector through attending foreign festivals.

Creative Greece is interested in attracting foreign productions, as well as foreign investment in the audiovisual infrastructure field given that Greece lacks sound stages, which significantly limits the ability to support larger productions.  The Ministry of Development is offering incentives for strategic investments to build and develop this infrastructure.

There is the need for vocational programs to train film industry professionals in Greece.  To address this need, the Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is designing a new curriculum for a technical film and audiovisual school.

Greece was named by the media the Hollywood of Europe a couple of years ago, when U.S. production companies started filming in country. The Greek government has expressed their continued interest in attracting U.S. audiovisual production companies. U.S. productions have a competitive advantage for various reasons, such as skilled professionals, advanced equipment and status.

If you are interested in learning more, please contact Irini.karajani@trade.gov.