Greece’s 40% cash rebate disbursed €55m to local and international projects in the first six months of 2025, Creative Greece confirms in a defiant statement, following a pause in the program in May last year amid a backlog of repayments.
Despite delays in the cash rebate payments, they resumed in June this year with most of the backlog expected to be serviced by the end of this year.
Creative Greece was formed - combining EKOME and the Greek Film Centre - in April 2024 to streamline the operations of the country’s screen industries, including managing the incentives and encouraging international productions to film in the country.
The cash rebate went through a transitional period and is now operating under a new law and the ministry of culture (previously it was under the ministry of digital governance).
“Since payments resumed in mid-June, a total of 45 investment projects have been reimbursed with an overall amount of €36.4m,” Creative Greece said in its statement.
Adding that between 7 July and 24 July, 2025, additional payments totalling €19.2m were completed for 18 investment projects under the cash rebate program, consisting of five international and 13 domestic productions.
The total payments of €55m are the highest amount disbursed within a six-month period since the program’s inception.
In a strongly worded release, Creative Greece said: “Despite misleading narratives circulated by certain parties with undermining and petty political motives—narratives that tarnish the international image and progress of the Greek Film and Audiovisual Industry—we inform both the Greek and international public that from 2019 to the present, the Greek State has supported 1,220 individual productions through various funding tools, with a total aid amount of €208,475,038.89. Of these, 1,103 are domestic or minority co-productions, receiving a total of €103,356,648 in support.”
As part of recent changes, producers can also get real-time information on funds available on a new system on the Creative Greece website. This includes how much money has been "reserved" from the total yearly amount, according to the applications submited in the system, and how much money is left, according to how many projects have been approved.
Ionna Davi, a producer and co-founder at local production outfit Indigo View, is confident for the future of production in Greece. She tells TLG.com: "Greece has a lot to offer to international projects looking for unique locations, experienced crew and hospitable locals all securing a wonderful shooting experience. I am confident that through the new changes on the Cash Rebate and its evaluation procedures, approvals and payments will be faster minimising bureaucracy. Moreover, recurrent series of less than 16 episodes will be able to benefit of the scheme keeping in the country successful productions that do not need to look elsewhere for filming their next seasons."
International productions can also access Greece's 30% tax relief, which can be combined with the rebate, but each requires separate applications.
Major projects to film in Greece and apply for the incentives recently include Christopher Nolan’s epic The Odyssey, starring Matt Damon and Tom Holland, Amazon Prime Video’s big-budget biblical drama series House of David and Uberto Pasolini’s Homer-inspired drama The Return, starring Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes.
Matt Damon as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey. Courtesy of Universal
