Uruguayan producers and the Uruguayan Film & Audiovisual Agency are working together to create a tax rebate that could be launched later this year.

Uruguay is moving forward with the creation of a tax rebate for the audiovisual sector to complement its cash rebate program and attract larger productions to the country.

Santiago López

This was revealed on Wednesday during a panel moderated by C21’s Spanish-language sister publication Cveintiuno at Media Show Uruguay with producers from Cimarrón Cine, Tráiler Films and Navajo Charrúa.

As detailed during the discussion, advanced talks are currently underway between the local producers’ association, the Uruguayan Film & Audiovisual Agency (ACAU) and the Ministry of Economy for its implementation this year.

“The Uruguayan producers’ association is working with ACAU to make this happen in the short term. We’re talking about the possibility that, if everything goes well, by mid-year we’ll have tools that will significantly improve opportunities for Uruguay,” said Santiago López, partner at the Uruguayan production company Cimarrón Cine, part of The Mediapro Studio.

With a population of just three million, Uruguay has become an attractive audiovisual hub since 2020, drawing numerous international productions.

Behind this growth is the Uruguay Audiovisual Program (PUA), a cash rebate launched in 2019 with a fund of approximately US$12m, operating on an open-door basis until resources are exhausted. Indeed, since its implementation, Uruguay has quadrupled the number of weeks of filming, and Prime Video series such as Cromañón, Barra Brava, El Presidente, Iosi, el Espía Arrepentido, Porno y Helado, while Netflix titles like Senna and La Sociedad de la Nieve have chosen the country for their productions.

In addition to exempting production companies from VAT, the PUA stipulates that foreign production companies spending between US$300,000 and US$3m receive a 25% rebate on their investment in Uruguay (up to a maximum of US$750,000), and 20% for expenses exceeding that amount (up to a maximum of US$1m).

Several scenes from Senna were filmed in Uruguay

However, local producers agree that the PUA has been a victim of its own success: with an open-door system until funds are exhausted, many projects are unable to access it. This is compounded by the improvement and emergence of other regional incentives, such as those in Colombia, the Dominican Republic and now Mexico.

“Starting in 2020, there was a huge change. When I began working in 2010, I made one film per year. And in 2020 alone, I completed five projects. That was due to many factors, but the PUA was a key driver that gave us visibility, volume, and reputation,” said Cecilia Mato, founder of Navajo Charrúa, the local subsidiary of the Argentine company Navajo Films.

“But while the number of shooting days has increased, the fund hasn’t kept pace with that growth. Today, we have a lot of demand for projects, and we need to ensure that funds will be available, as we’ve always promised,” she added.

As explained, the new tax rebate would operate on a similar principle to that of Colombia, where foreign investors receive a transferable tax credit that they can sell in the local market to quickly recoup their investment. The idea is also to raise the rebate cap (currently US$1m) to attract larger productions.

“We are working together to develop this tool so we can compete with other regions and countries that offer very aggressive incentives. The goal is to attract multi-million dollar projects to Uruguay,” Mato added.

The tax rebate aims to attract more ambitious productions

According to Cveintiuno, the cash rebate could have between US$15 and US$30m in funding, and its implementation would be scalable over the years, as it proves successful and its funds are exhausted. It would also be “complementary” to the PUA.

“We want to have another tool, in addition to the cash rebate, which is Uruguay’s biggest success, that complements it and allows us to attract larger productions,” said López de Cimarrón, who is part of the producers’ association leading the negotiations with ACAU.

“The PUA has certain limits that make the playing field very small. What we are thinking about now is this complement to play on a larger playing field,” he concluded.

Uruguayan producers and the Uruguayan Film & Audiovisual Agency are working together to create a tax rebate that could be launched later this year.

Uruguay is moving forward with the creation of a tax rebate for the audiovisual sector to complement its cash rebate program and attract larger productions to the country.

Santiago López

This was revealed on Wednesday during a panel moderated by C21’s Spanish-language sister publication Cveintiuno at Media Show Uruguay with producers from Cimarrón Cine, Tráiler Films and Navajo Charrúa.

As detailed during the discussion, advanced talks are currently underway between the local producers’ association, the Uruguayan Film & Audiovisual Agency (ACAU) and the Ministry of Economy for its implementation this year.

“The Uruguayan producers’ association is working with ACAU to make this happen in the short term. We’re talking about the possibility that, if everything goes well, by mid-year we’ll have tools that will significantly improve opportunities for Uruguay,” said Santiago López, partner at the Uruguayan production company Cimarrón Cine, part of The Mediapro Studio.

With a population of just three million, Uruguay has become an attractive audiovisual hub since 2020, drawing numerous international productions.

Behind this growth is the Uruguay Audiovisual Program (PUA), a cash rebate launched in 2019 with a fund of approximately US$12m, operating on an open-door basis until resources are exhausted. Indeed, since its implementation, Uruguay has quadrupled the number of weeks of filming, and Prime Video series such as Cromañón, Barra Brava, El Presidente, Iosi, el Espía Arrepentido, Porno y Helado, while Netflix titles like Senna and La Sociedad de la Nieve have chosen the country for their productions.

In addition to exempting production companies from VAT, the PUA stipulates that foreign production companies spending between US$300,000 and US$3m receive a 25% rebate on their investment in Uruguay (up to a maximum of US$750,000), and 20% for expenses exceeding that amount (up to a maximum of US$1m).

Several scenes from Senna were filmed in Uruguay

However, local producers agree that the PUA has been a victim of its own success: with an open-door system until funds are exhausted, many projects are unable to access it. This is compounded by the improvement and emergence of other regional incentives, such as those in Colombia, the Dominican Republic and now Mexico.

“Starting in 2020, there was a huge change. When I began working in 2010, I made one film per year. And in 2020 alone, I completed five projects. That was due to many factors, but the PUA was a key driver that gave us visibility, volume, and reputation,” said Cecilia Mato, founder of Navajo Charrúa, the local subsidiary of the Argentine company Navajo Films.

“But while the number of shooting days has increased, the fund hasn’t kept pace with that growth. Today, we have a lot of demand for projects, and we need to ensure that funds will be available, as we’ve always promised,” she added.

As explained, the new tax rebate would operate on a similar principle to that of Colombia, where foreign investors receive a transferable tax credit that they can sell in the local market to quickly recoup their investment. The idea is also to raise the rebate cap (currently US$1m) to attract larger productions.

“We are working together to develop this tool so we can compete with other regions and countries that offer very aggressive incentives. The goal is to attract multi-million dollar projects to Uruguay,” Mato added.

The tax rebate aims to attract more ambitious productions

According to Cveintiuno, the cash rebate could have between US$15 and US$30m in funding, and its implementation would be scalable over the years, as it proves successful and its funds are exhausted. It would also be “complementary” to the PUA.

“We want to have another tool, in addition to the cash rebate, which is Uruguay’s biggest success, that complements it and allows us to attract larger productions,” said López de Cimarrón, who is part of the producers’ association leading the negotiations with ACAU.

“The PUA has certain limits that make the playing field very small. What we are thinking about now is this complement to play on a larger playing field,” he concluded.