Producer Offset changes to support iconic Australian drama

The Albanese Labor Government is supporting more Australian stories on screen with changes to the Producer Offset announced today.

The change introduces an additional minimum expenditure threshold so that more Australian drama series can benefit from the scheme.

The Producer Offset gives a tax rebate to producers for expenditure on eligible Australian films, television and other projects. Currently, a drama series must spend at least $500,000 per hour in qualifying Australian production expenditure – that is, expenditure incurred for goods and services used or provided in Australia.

With the new threshold, drama series that spend at least $35 million per season in qualifying Australian production expenditure will be eligible for the offset.

This change will benefit any drama series that films significant numbers of hours over a season but does not meet the per hour threshold – meaning more drama productions will be able to access the Producer Offset.

This means shows like Channel Seven’s Home and Away would be eligible, where they previously weren’t.

The new per season threshold will apply to drama series that commence filming on or after 1 July 2024.

Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said the changes would help industry professionals secure ongoing work and promote telling uniquely Australian stories.

“We want to see more Australian stories shown on screen. Backing in Australian drama is essential to that.

“This change will help to support more iconic Australian stories being told and shared by the people who know them best.”

The Producer Offset is a refundable tax offset for producers of Australian feature films, television and other projects that contain significant Australian content.

It provides a 40 per cent rebate for feature film and a 30 per cent rebate for productions on other platforms, calculated as a percentage of a production’s qualifying Australian production expenditure.

More information about the Producer Offset can be found here.