The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry extended the production incentives program until 2025, while maintaining its 50 % cash discount on the qualified expenditures.
This step continues in the momentum of Japan, which is highly promoted as a location, which was clear at the Tokyo International Film Festival last November.
VIPO and the Japanese Film Committee confirmed on Thursday that the incentives program, which chose 10 international products in 2024, including Apple TV+”Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Season 2″, will continue from March 27, 2025, to January 31, 2026.
The incentive applies to half of all qualified spending on production and post -production production costs in Japan after the official selection of the project. The program carries CAPE cells in 1 billion northern Yenward (about 6.6 million dollars) per production.
To qualify, international projects must meet one of three financial thresholds: direct production costs in Japan exceeding 500 million yuan ($ 3.3 million); The total production budget of more than 1 billion enlightening (6.6 million dollars) with at least 200 million Yabin (1.3 million dollars) that he spent directly in Japan; Or the projects specified for distribution in more than 10 countries with the minimum direct expenses of Japan worth 200 million yuan.
Applications must come through Japanese production companies or federations, as external entities cannot be applied directly. The program will accept the introductions in four rounds throughout 2025, starting from the first application window that was operated until April 10.
The initiative also states that qualified products should benefit the local content industry in Japan through local workers and the use of studio, and that “the scenes that were filmed in Japan are completely guaranteed.” Projects must also allow directors abroad to cooperate in strengthening photography sites.
An exception condition indicates that projects that fail to meet financial thresholds may still be eligible if they “greatly benefit from the Japanese economy and the local film industry”, with the decisions taken by the External Examination Committee.
The date of completion of the project must be determined within 90 days of completion of work or January 31, 2026, whichever comes first, with direct expenses related to the production of films in Japan qualified to obtain financing.
Applications will be processed by VIPO with the Japanese Film Committee that works as a program coordinator. The program may be concluded early if the allocated budget is exhausted before all the four application rounds are completed.