BOI Tax Incentives for Creative Content in the Philippines Under the CREATE Act

Creative Content as a Registrable Investment Activity

Creative businesses in the Philippines are no longer operating solely within artistic or cultural frameworks. Film studios, animation teams, digital content producers, and media companies increasingly function as commercial enterprises with structured production pipelines, licensing arrangements, and regional distribution strategies.

This shift is reflected in how regulators now assess creative content under the CREATE Act. Certain creative activities may qualify for registration with the Board of Investments (BOI) and related tax incentives when they are structured as investment-ready projects with clear economic contribution. For studios planning to scale, these incentives can influence project viability, investor engagement, and long-term cost planning.

What we often see, however, is that creative businesses approach incentives after production decisions have already been made. By then, key elements such as ownership, revenue flow, or staffing models are already fixed, limiting the ability to align the project with incentive requirements.

BOI Registration for Creative Content Under the CREATE Act

Under the CREATE Act, incentives are granted to registered projects or activities listed in the Strategic Investment Priority Plan. For creative enterprises, registration typically focuses on a defined production activity rather than the creative brand as a whole.

In practice, this may involve an animation studio registering a recurring production service for foreign clients, a production company registering a slate of digital content developed for regional platforms, or a larger studio registering a long-term production or post-production operation in the Philippines.

What we often see is confusion between registering a company and registering a project. BOI incentives are project-based. Regulators assess whether a specific activity can be evaluated independently, monitored over time, and justified as an economic undertaking, not whether a business is broadly involved in creative work.

Structure Matters More Than Studio Size

A common assumption is that BOI incentives are accessible only to large production houses. In reality, structure matters far more than scale.

We frequently advise small and medium-sized creative enterprises that are well-positioned for incentives because their operations are clearly defined. Ownership of outputs is documented, revenue streams are traceable, and staffing arrangements reflect actual production needs. These businesses often qualify more smoothly than larger productions with fragmented ownership or informal collaboration agreements. In practice, many creative businesses reach a point where restructuring becomes necessary to support growth, incentives, or foreign participation. When done properly, this can often be approached through tax efficient structuring for creative projects, allowing enterprises to realign ownership or assets without triggering unnecessary tax exposure.

Conversely, we also see larger or well-funded projects encounter difficulty where IP ownership is spread across multiple collaborators, contracts are inconsistent, or financial flows do not align with the registered activity. Incentives tend to favor disciplined project design rather than production budget alone.

Foreign Participation and Cross-Border Creative Projects

The Philippines increasingly operates as a creative production hub within regional and global supply chains. Many projects involve foreign producers, streaming platforms, or international rights holders, with Philippine entities responsible for execution, animation, or post-production.

What we often see in foreign-backed projects is a disconnect between where production occurs and where value is legally captured. Philippine entities may perform substantial work, while IP ownership and revenue rights sit offshore. Without careful alignment, this can weaken an incentives application or create compliance risks during post-registration monitoring.

BOI incentives do not require all IP to be held locally, but they do require consistency between the registered project, contractual arrangements, and actual business operations. Foreign-backed projects are more defensible where the Philippine entity is positioned as a genuine production base rather than a purely cost-driven service provider.

IP Ownership and Licensing Are Central to Incentive Compliance

For creative enterprises, tax incentives cannot be separated from intellectual property strategy.

Registered projects must align with how IP is owned, licensed, and monetized. Where licensing arrangements, royalty structures, or related-party transactions do not reflect how the registered project operates, issues tend to surface during reporting or audit stages rather than at initial approval.

We often see incentives secured successfully, only for problems to arise later because IP planning was treated as a separate exercise. Incentives increase regulatory visibility. Businesses that integrate IP ownership, licensing, and tax planning early are better positioned to retain incentives as their projects scale or expand across borders.

Practical Considerations for Creative Founders and Producers

For creative studios and production companies, incentives under the CREATE Act are neither automatic nor limited to large enterprises.

What consistently matters is early planning. Businesses that treat creative projects as scalable commercial activities, align IP and revenue models with operational reality, and anticipate compliance obligations tend to navigate BOI registration with fewer disruptions.

Whether a studio employs a lean production team or manages multiple projects across jurisdictions, incentives are most effective when they form part of overall business design rather than a standalone tax strategy.

Advisory Support for Creative and Media Enterprises

AJA Law advises creative studios, production companies, and entertainment businesses on BOI registration and incentive-driven growth. Our work spans eligibility assessment, project structuring, alignment of IP and licensing models, and ongoing compliance support, including for foreign-backed and cross-border projects.

Our approach is practical and commercially grounded, focused not only on securing incentives, but on ensuring they remain defensible as creative enterprises evolve, scale, and engage with global partners.

Creative studios and production companies considering BOI registration or incentive-driven structuring often benefit from early, project-specific guidance. Whether you are assessing eligibility, aligning IP and licensing arrangements, or planning for foreign participation, a tailored approach can help avoid delays and compliance issues later on. If you would like to discuss how BOI incentives may apply to your creative project or production operations, you may reach out to our team through our contact form.