Definitions

1   (1) In this regulation, "Act" means the Income Tax Act.

(2) In this regulation and in Part 5 of the Act:

"approved training program" means a training program that

(a) is designated as an approved training program by the certifying authority,

(b) is intended to provide training in film and television production activities, and

(c) is

(i) provided under a signed apprenticeship agreement developed under section 14 (c) of the Skilled Trades BC Act,

(ii) instituted by a trade union recognized under the Labour Relations Code,

(iii) established by a society incorporated to advance the interests of one or more classes of individuals or companies in the film or television production industry,

(iv) provided by an institution or university as defined in the College and Institute Act or by any other institution that is authorized by or under an Act to grant baccalaureate degrees in arts or sciences, or

(v) provided by an institution that holds a certificate issued under section 7 of the Private Training Act;

"BC-controlled", in relation to a corporation, means a corporation that would be BC-controlled within the meaning of sections 26 (1), (2) and (6), 27 and 28 (2) of the Investment Canada Act (Canada) if each reference in those sections

(a) to Canada were a reference to British Columbia,

(b) to "Canadian" were a reference to,

(i) in the case of an individual, a Canadian who is an individual who, by reason of being an individual described in section 2 (1) (a) of the Act, is subject to tax under section 2 of the Act for the year preceding the year in which principal photography of the eligible production begins, or

(ii) in the case of a corporation, a corporation that is BC-controlled within the meaning of section 26 (1), (2) and (6) of the Investment Canada Act (Canada) as that section applies for the purposes of this definition of "BC-controlled",

(c) to "Canadian business" were a reference to an undertaking or enterprise that

(i) is capable of generating revenue,

(ii) is carried on in British Columbia in anticipation of profit,

(iii) has a place of business in British Columbia,

(iv) has an individual or individuals in British Columbia who are employed or self-employed in connection with that undertaking or enterprise, and

(v) has assets in British Columbia used in carrying on that undertaking or enterprise,

(d) to "Canadian-controlled" were a reference to BC-controlled,

(e) to "Minister" or "Director" were a reference to the certifying authority, and

(f) to "non-Canadian" were a reference to a person who is not a person described in paragraph (b) (i) or (ii);

"Canadian" means a person who is

(a) a Canadian citizen,

(b) a permanent resident within the meaning of the Immigration Act (Canada), or

(c) a corporation that is Canadian-controlled;

"Canadian broadcaster" means a corporation that holds a broadcasting licence for television markets, issued by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission under the Broadcasting Act (Canada);

"Canadian-controlled", in relation to a corporation, means a corporation that is Canadian-controlled within the meaning of sections 26 to 28 of the Investment Canada Act (Canada);

"complete", in relation to a film or video production, means that the production has been finished and is commercially exploitable;

"copyright", in relation to a film or video production, means the exclusive worldwide rights in the production for all commercial exploitation purposes for the 25-year period following the completion of the production;

"creative positions" means the positions referred to in section 2;

"designated Vancouver area" means,

(a) in the case of a film or video production for which principal photography begins before January 25, 2017, all that portion of the Metro Vancouver Regional District lying

(i) south of the line of latitude at 49°24'10" N, and

(ii) west of a line that

(A) commences at a point at 49°24'10" N latitude and 122°45' W longitude,

(B) runs in a southerly direction, in a straight line, from that point to the point of intersection with the 5L82 BC Hydro power line,

(C) runs in a southeasterly direction, following the 5L82 BC Hydro power line, to a point intersecting the end of the paved road at the northern boundary of Minnekhada Regional Park,

(D) runs in an easterly direction, in a straight line, to the western shore of the Pitt River,

(E) runs in a southeasterly, then southwesterly, direction, following the western shore of the Pitt River to the southern shore of the Fraser River near Douglas Island,

(F) runs in a southeasterly direction, following the southern shore of the Fraser River to the point where it intersects the longitude of 200th Street in the Corporation of the Township of Langley,

(G) runs in a southerly direction, in a straight line, from that point to the centreline of the most northerly point of 200th Street in the Corporation of the Township of Langley,

(H) runs in a southerly direction along the centreline of 200th Street to the centreline of the most southerly point of 200th Street, and

(I) runs in a southerly direction, in a straight line, from that point to a point on the southerly boundary of British Columbia, said point being at 122°40'03" W longitude, or

(b) in the case of a film or video production for which principal photography begins on or after January 25, 2017, all that portion of the Metro Vancouver Regional District lying

(i) south of the line of latitude at 49°24'10" N, and

(ii) west of a line that

(A) commences at a point at 49°24'10" N latitude and 122°45' W longitude,

(B) runs in a southerly direction, in a straight line, from that point to the point of intersection with the 5L82 BC Hydro power line,

(C) runs in a southeasterly direction, following the 5L82 BC Hydro power line, to a point intersecting the end of the paved road at the northern boundary of Minnekhada Regional Park,

(D) runs in an easterly direction, in a straight line, to the western shore of the Pitt River,

(E) runs in a southeasterly, then southwesterly, direction, following the western shore of the Pitt River to the southern shore of the Fraser River near Douglas Island,

(F) runs in a southeasterly direction, following the southern shore of the Fraser River to the point where it intersects the eastern boundary of the City of Surrey, as described in the Letters Patent for the City of Surrey approved July 9, 1993 (Order in Council 785/1993), and

(G) runs in a southerly direction, following the eastern boundary of the City of Surrey, to the point of intersection with the southerly boundary of British Columbia;

"excluded production" means a film or video production that is

(a) news, current events or public affairs programming, or a program that includes weather or market reports,

(b) a talk show,

(c) a production in respect of a game, questionnaire or contest (other than a production directed primarily at minors),

(d) a sports event or activity,

(e) a gala presentation or an awards show,

(f) a production that solicits funds,

(g) reality television,

(h) pornography,

(i) advertising,

(j) a production produced primarily for industrial, corporate or institutional purposes,

(k) a production, other than a documentary, all or substantially all of which consists of stock footage,

(l) a production for which public financial support would, in the opinion of the certifying authority, be contrary to public policy, or

(m) an animated or live action scene or series of scenes relating to a video game, whether included in or distributed with the video game or distributed separately,

(i) over which the user of the video game has limited or no control,

(ii) that is used to advance the plot or provide character development, background information, a story line, context or clues, and

(iii) for which principal photography begins on or after September 1, 2010;

"interprovincial co-production" means a film or video production that is jointly produced in more than one province in accordance with a co-production agreement between an eligible production corporation and one or more other Canadian-controlled corporations;

"principal photography" includes key animation if the film or video production is an animated production or contains animated segments;

"producer", in relation to a film or video production, means the individual who

(a) controls and is the central decision maker in respect of the production,

(b) is directly responsible for the acquisition of the production, story or screenplay and the development, creative and financial control and exploitation of the production, and

(c) is identified in the production as being the producer of the production;

"recognized person" means

(a) a Canadian broadcaster,

(b) a person to whom section 149 (1) (l) of the federal Act applies if the person has a fund that is used to finance film or video productions,

(c) a federal or provincial government agency the mandate of which is related to the provision of financing to film or video productions in Canada, or

(d) in respect of a film or video production, broadcasters that are not Canadian broadcasters if those broadcasters, in the aggregate, beneficially own not more than 15% of the copyright in the production;

"treaty co-production" means a film or video production the production of which is contemplated in a co-production treaty entered into between Canada and another country.

(3) For the purposes of section 80 (1.1) of the Act, control of copyright in a production must be determined having regard to all obligations, entitlements and agreements in respect of the production, including, without limiting this,

(a) entitlements to profits, revenues and subsidiary and ancillary rights,

(b) obligations to pay expenses,

(c) options, warrants or other rights granted to other parties, and

(d) agency or trust agreements or arrangements.

[am. B.C. Regs. 131/2001, ss. 1 to 3; 126/2003, ss. 1 and 2; 28/2006; 101/2006; 137/2008, s. 1; 25/2012, Sch. 1, s. 1; 13/2017; 77/2018, App. 4; 216/2019, s. 8; 253/2022, s. 5.]

Canadian content points based on creative positions

2   Subject to sections 4 and 5, the following Canadian content points are to be allotted for the purposes of the definition of "eligible production" in the Act:

(a) for a film or video production that is not an animation production, the following Canadian content points are to be allotted for each of the following individuals who is a Canadian:

(i) for the director, 2 points;

(ii) for the principal screenwriter, 2 points;

(iii) for the lead performer for whose services the highest remuneration was payable, one point;

(iv) for the lead performer for whose services the second highest remuneration was payable, one point;

(v) for the art director, one point;

(vi) for the director of photography, one point;

(vii) for the music composer, one point;

(viii) for the picture editor, one point;

(b) for a film or video production that is an animation production, the following Canadian content points are to be allotted for each of the following individuals who is a Canadian:

(i) for the director, one point;

(ii) for the lead voice for which the highest or second highest remuneration was payable, one point;

(iii) for the design supervisor, one point;

(iv) for the camera operator if the camera operation is done in Canada, one point;

(v) for the music composer, one point;

(vi) for the picture editor, one point;

(vii) if both the principal screenwriter and storyboard supervisor are individuals who are Canadians, one point.

Canadian content points based on location

3   Subject to sections 4 and 5, the following Canadian content points are to be allotted for a film or video production that is an animation production for each of the following if the place referred to in the following is in Canada:

(a) for the place where the layout and background work is done, one point;

(b) for the place where the key animation is done, one point;

(c) for the place where the assistant animation and in-betweening is done, one point.

Key content points if not animation

4   No Canadian content points are to be allotted under section 2 (a) to a film or video production that is not an animation production unless there are allotted in respect of the production at least

(a) 2 points under section 2 (a) (i) or (ii), and

(b) one point under section 2 (a) (iii) or (iv).

Key content points if animation

5   No Canadian content points are to be allotted under section 2 (b) or 3 to a film or video production that is an animation production unless there are allotted in respect of the production at least

(a) one point under section 2 (b) (i) or (vii),

(b) one point under section 2 (b) (ii), and

(c) one point under section 3 (b).

Interpretation

6   For the purposes of sections 2 to 5,

(a) a lead performer in respect of a film or video production that is not an animation production is an actor who has a leading role in the production having regard to the performer's remuneration, billing and time on screen,

(b) a lead voice in respect of a film or video production that is an animation production is the voice of the individual who has a leading role in the production having regard to the individual's remuneration and the length of time that the individual's voice is heard in the production, and

(c) the principal screenwriter of a production is deemed not to be a Canadian unless

(i) each individual involved in the preparation of the screenplay for the production is a Canadian, or

(ii) the principal screenwriter is an individual who is a Canadian and the screenplay for the production is based on a work

(A) authored by a Canadian, and

(B) published in Canada.

[am. B.C. Reg. 76/2022, s. 11.]

Fee recipient

7   (1) For the purposes of sections 86 (2) (a), 87 (2) (a) and 87.1 (2) (a) of the Act, Creative BC Society is prescribed as the person to whom the application fees, referred to in those sections, are to be paid.

(2) For the purposes of section 87.2 of the Act, Creative BC Society is prescribed as the person to whom the amount referred to in that section is to be paid.

[am. B.C. Regs. 131/2001, s. 4; 126/2003, s. 3; 77/2018, App. 3; 262/2020, Sch. 1.]

Prescribed amounts

8   For the purposes of the definition of "assistance" in section 79 (1) of the Act, the following are prescribed amounts:

(a) a payment received under the License Fee Program of the Canadian Television Fund;

(b) a payment received as a licence-fee top-up contribution from the Canada Media Fund.

[en. B.C. Reg. 77/2018, App. 2.]

Prescribed person

9   For the purposes of section 80 (1) (f) (i) and (i.2) (i) of the Act, Creative BC Society is a prescribed person.

[en. B.C. Reg. 131/2001, s. 5; am. B.C. Regs. 221/2012; 77/2018, App. 3.]

Prescribed digital animation or visual effects activities

10   (1) For the purposes of subsection (2) and the definition of "accredited production" in section 79 of the Act, prescribed digital animation or visual effects are animation or visual effects created primarily with digital technology, but do not include

(a) audio effects,

(b) in camera effects,

(c) credit rolls,

(d) subtitles,

(e) animation or visual effects all or substantially all of which are created by editing activities, or

(f) animation or visual effects created for use in promotional material for the production.

(2) For the purposes of sections 81.2 and 82.3 of the Act and section 10.1 of this regulation, activities undertaken to produce prescribed digital animation or visual effects, including designing, modeling, rendering, lighting, painting, animating and compositing, are prescribed digital animation or visual effects activities.

[en. B.C. Reg. 126/2003, s. 4; am. B.C. Reg. 84/2015, s. 1.]

Prescribed digital post-production activities

10.1   For the purposes of sections 81.2 and 82.3 of the Act, prescribed digital post-production activities are post-production activities carried out primarily with digital technology, but do not include the following:

(a) prescribed digital animation or visual effects activities referred to in section 10 (2) of this regulation;

(b) re-shooting of scenes;

(c) mass duplication of video recordings;

(d) activities relating to promotional material for the production.

[en. B.C. Reg. 84/2015, s. 2.]

Distant location

11   For the purposes of the definition of "distant location" in section 79 (1) of the Act, the area prescribed as a distant location is all of the area of British Columbia that is outside the designated Vancouver area except the following areas:

(a) the area of the Metro Vancouver Regional District that is outside the designated Vancouver area;

(b) in the case of a film or video production for which principal photography begins before February 19, 2014, the Capital Regional District;

(c) the District of Squamish;

(d) the Resort Municipality of Whistler;

(e) Electoral Area D of the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District;

(f) the City of Abbotsford;

(g) the City of Chilliwack;

(h) the Village of Harrison Hot Springs;

(i) the District of Hope;

(j) The Corporation of the District of Kent;

(k) the District of Mission;

(l) the portion of Electoral Area G of the Fraser Valley Regional District south of the Fraser River;

(m) the area of the Fraser Valley Regional District bounded on the north by the Fraser River, on the east by the District of Hope, on the south by Highway 1 and on the west by the City of Chilliwack.

[en. B.C. Reg. 137/2008, s. 2; am. B.C. Regs. 19/2014; 77/2018, App. 1; 216/2019, s. 9.]

Prescribed date — sections 81.2 (3) (a), 82.1 (6) (a) (ii) and 82.3 (3) (a) of Act

12   For the purposes of sections 81.2 (3) (a), 82.1 (6) (a) (ii) and 82.3 (3) (a) of the Act, the prescribed date is October 1, 2016.

[en. B.C. Reg. 183/2016.]

Prescribed percentage and date — section 81.2 (10) and (11) (a) (ii) (A) of Act

13   (1) For the purposes of section 81.2 (10) of the Act, the prescribed percentage is 5%.

(2) For the purposes of section 81.2 (11) (a) (ii) (A) of the Act, the prescribed date is October 1, 2016 in respect of the percentage referred to in subsection (1) of this section.

[en. B.C. Reg. 183/2016.]

Prescribed percentage and date — section 82.1 (11) and (12) (b) (i) of Act

14   (1) For the purposes of section 82.1 (11) of the Act, the prescribed percentage is 17%.

(2) For the purposes of section 82.1 (12) (b) (i) of the Act, the prescribed date is October 1, 2016 in respect of the percentage referred to in subsection (1) of this section.

[en. B.C. Reg. 183/2016.]

Prescribed percentage and date — section 82.3 (10) and (11) (a) (ii) (A) of Act

15   (1) For the purposes of section 82.3 (10) of the Act, the prescribed percentage is 5%.

(2) For the purposes of section 82.3 (11) (a) (ii) (A) of the Act, the prescribed date is October 1, 2016 in respect of the percentage referred to in subsection (1) of this section.

[en. B.C. Reg. 183/2016.]