Nova Scotia Film Tax Credit

How Does Nova Scotia's Film Tax Incentive Work?

Nova Scotia offers a generous film production incentive through the Nova Scotia Film & Television Production Incentive Fund. The base provincial credit is 32% of eligible Nova Scotia expenditure, with bonuses that can push the rate to 42%. When combined with the federal 16% PSTC, Nova Scotia delivers some of the highest effective rates in Canada.

Provincial Credit Rates and Bonuses

• 32%: Base rate on eligible Nova Scotia labour expenditure
• +5% Frequent Filming Bonus: For productions that have previously filmed in Nova Scotia
• +5% Rural Bonus: For productions filming primarily outside Halifax Regional Municipality

The separate Digital Media Tax Credit can provide additional credits for VFX and animation work performed in Nova Scotia.

Federal Stacking

Nova Scotia's provincial credits stack with the 16% federal PSTC (Production Services Tax Credit) for service productions, or the 25% federal CPTC (Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit) for Canadian-content productions.

Why Productions Choose Nova Scotia

Atlantic Canadian locations. Rugged coastlines, fishing villages, historic Halifax, Cape Breton Highlands, and Peggy's Cove provide distinctive North Atlantic settings.

Cost advantage. Nova Scotia production costs are lower than Toronto or Vancouver, stretching budgets further.

Experienced crews. A growing local production workforce with experience on series like The Curse of Oak Island, Trailer Park Boys, and various feature films.

Time zone advantage. Atlantic Time Zone (GMT-4) offers overlap with both European and North American business hours.

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Nova Scotia Film Tax Credit: Key Facts

• Base provincial rate: 32% on eligible labour
• Max provincial rate: 42% with bonuses
• Federal stacking: +16% PSTC or +25% CPTC
• Credit type: Refundable tax credit
• Official resource: Nova Scotia Film