Public funding for games in Belgium

A federal tax incentive, a game fund in each region, European grants and public investors. Most of it requires a Belgian presence; here is which scheme fits which partner.

Which scheme fits?

A foreign studio without a Belgian entity

Creative Europe MEDIA is open only to studios established in a Creative Europe MEDIA country and majority-owned by nationals of those countries, so a non-European studio or its Belgian subsidiary does not qualify.
Wallimage accepts EU/EEA producers, but a Walloon branch, subsidiary or co-signatory must be in place before the first payment.
The Tax Shelter is out of reach without one: the producer must be a Belgian company or the Belgian establishment of a foreign company (article 194ter/3 with article 227, 2° WIB 92), so a foreign studio needs a Belgian subsidiary or branch that leads production.

A studio with a Belgian subsidiary or branch

In Flanders or Brussels: the VAF Gamefonds.
In Brussels: the screen.brussels fund, once the office has been open for a year.
In Wallonia: Wallimage Gaming.
Anywhere: the Tax Shelter, stacked with a regional fund.

Co-producing with a Belgian studio

The VAF funds foreign-led minority co-productions with up to €125,000 of creation support; the Flemish or Brussels co-producer applies.
Wallimage accepts a Walloon co-signatory in place of a Walloon branch.

An investor

Belgian companies, and Belgian branches of foreign companies, that pay corporate tax can invest through the Tax Shelter, directly with the producer or through an intermediary approved by the Minister of Finance.
Equity goes directly into studios: the company directory lists who is building what.

Federal

One scheme applies across the whole country: the Tax Shelter, which turns Belgian corporate tax into production finance for games.

FPS Finance + CommunitiesTax incentive

Tax Shelter for video games

Belgian companies invest in a game in production and receive a tax certificate in return. The full explanation — eligibility, cultural test, process — is on the Tax Shelter page of this guide.

For the producer: Up to about 33.6% of the production budget, and at most €2.5 million in certificate value per game. The producer must be a Belgian company or branch.
For the investor: A provisional, capped 421% tax exemption on the amount invested, final once the certificate is issued; a net tax yield of 5.25% if the certificate is issued in full, plus Euribor + 4.5% for up to 18 months.
Spend: Production spending anywhere in the EEA counts; at least 70% must be direct production costs.

47 projects on record Official source

Regional

Culture and economy are run by the Communities and Regions, so each part of the country has its own game fund. All three need a Belgian presence: screen.brussels when you apply, the VAF and Wallimage by the time they pay.

VAFGrant

Gamefonds

The Flemish Audiovisual Fund supports games from prototype to promotion, for studios in the Flemish or Brussels-Capital Region.

Amounts: Prototype up to €25,000; creation (vertical slice, production, post-release) up to €400,000; promotion up to €75,000; at most €500,000 per game.
Aid intensity: Total State aid is capped at 50% of the creation budget. For difficult works, such as a studio’s first or second game: up to 80% for prototype and vertical slice and 70% for production (2024 rules; the 2026–30 agreement allows up to 80%).
Who can apply: A legal entity with its registered office or a permanent agency in the Flemish or Brussels-Capital Region. Foreign-led minority co-productions can get up to €125,000 of creation support with at least 50% of financing secured; the Flemish or Brussels co-producer applies.

385 projects · €23.4M on record Official source

WallimageInvestment

Wallimage Gaming

Wallonia’s audiovisual fund co-invests in games before work starts, against a share of revenue and co-ownership of rights.

Amounts: Pre-production (demo or vertical slice) up to €75,000; production up to €400,000 including pre-production, as a 10% convertible loan and 90% participation.
Conditions: At least 30% of the budget secured; public aid up to 50%, or 70% for difficult works; apply before work starts; the file is in French.
Who can apply: A producer based in Belgium or elsewhere in the EU/EEA. Before the first payment, a non-Belgian company needs a Walloon subsidiary, branch or permanent agency with at least one full-time employee, or a Walloon co-signatory.

9 projects · €290K on record Official source

screen.brusselsGrant

screen.brussels fund

The Brussels-Capital Region funds games as a “special format”, tied to spending in Brussels.

Amounts: Up to €500,000 per project and no more than 50% of the production budget.
Conditions: At least 60% of financing secured; at least €75,000 of eligible spend in Brussels, and at least as much as the amount requested.
Who can apply: A commercial company with operational offices in Belgium for at least one year. Three sessions a year.

Official source

European

The EU funds the development of games by experienced studios, on top of national and regional schemes.

Creative Europe MEDIAGrant

Video games and immersive content development

A European call for the development and pre-production of narrative games and immersive content.

Amounts: Up to €200,000 per project, as a lump sum at a 60% funding rate. The 2027 call has a €13.5M budget.
Who can apply: A studio established in a Creative Europe MEDIA country and majority-owned by nationals of those countries, which commercially released a game between 1 January 2024 and the deadline. Narrative games only; work-for-hire and Early Access titles don’t count; publishers are not eligible.
Next deadline: 2 February 2027, 17:00 CET.

7 projects · €1.1M on record Official source

Innovation and R&D tax

Generic federal R&D measures can apply to studios that build genuinely new technology. Routine content production does not qualify; check your case with an adviser.

FPS Finance + BELSPOPayroll tax

Withholding tax exemption for R&D staff

Employers keep part of the wage withholding tax for researchers working on a qualifying R&D project.

Benefit: Up to 80% of the withholding tax on qualifying researchers’ wages.
Conditions: Researchers with a qualifying degree; the project is notified to BELSPO first. For game studios it covers real R&D, not content work.

Official source

FPS FinanceCorporate tax

Innovation income deduction

Income from qualifying intellectual property, including copyright-protected software that results from R&D, is largely deducted from taxable profit.

Benefit: 85% of net innovation income, after the nexus ratio.
Fit for games: Depends on the case: whether a game’s income qualifies has to be checked with a tax adviser.

Official source

Loans, equity and acceleration

Public investors take stakes in or lend to game companies, and Flanders runs an accelerator for young studios. Regional R&D agencies — VLAIO in Flanders, Innoviris in Brussels — have generic instruments with no game-specific programme; ask them directly.

WallimageEquity

Wallimage Entreprises

Wallimage’s investment arm takes stakes in Walloon audiovisual and game companies.

Gaming portfolio: Eight active game companies as of March 2026; first investments in Aberratic (Liège) and Balio Studio (Mons) in 2025.

Official source

VRT + PMVLoans

Media Invest Vlaanderen

A Flemish media investment fund, backed by the public broadcaster and the regional investment company.

In games: Convertible loans to Cyborn and Cybernetic Walrus.

Official source

HANGAR K, FLEGA, Howest DAEAccelerator

Flanders Game Hub

A start-up hub for game studios, funded with €2M from the Flemish recovery plan 2023–26.

Programmes: SPARK and IGNITE; 17 start-ups coached, three of which raised more than €1M privately.

Official source

Combining schemes

Schemes stack, within limits. When a game uses the Tax Shelter, two ceilings apply. The European Commission's approval of the scheme (SA.54817) caps all public aid together — the Tax Shelter plus every regional and European grant — at 50% of the game’s final cost. The law itself (article 194ter/3 WIB 92) caps the Tax Shelter money: investors may pay in at most half of the game's budget, and the certificates are worth at most €2.5 million per game.

Each fund also sets its own limit. VAF rules cap total State aid at 50% of the creation budget; for difficult works, such as a studio’s first or second game, up to 80% for prototype and vertical slice and 70% for production (2024 rules; the 2026–30 agreement allows up to 80%). Wallimage caps public aid at 50%, or 70% for difficult works. screen.brussels funds no more than 50% of the production budget. When the Tax Shelter is part of the plan, the Commission's 50% ceiling on total public aid applies across all stacked schemes; the higher difficult-works limits only apply within a fund that allows them.

Secured financing is a condition in most funds — 30% for Wallimage, 50% for a VAF minority co-production, 60% for screen.brussels — so the order in which a financing plan is assembled matters.

Frequently asked questions

Can a foreign studio get public funding for a game in Belgium?

Yes, mostly through a Belgian presence. The VAF Gamefonds needs a registered office or permanent agency in Flanders or Brussels when it pays, screen.brussels an office in Belgium open for a year when you apply, and Wallimage a Walloon branch, subsidiary or co-signatory before the first payment. The VAF also funds foreign-led minority co-productions, through the Flemish or Brussels co-producer. See setting up in Belgium.

Can the Tax Shelter be combined with a regional fund?

Yes, within two ceilings. The law caps the Tax Shelter money itself: investors may pay in at most 50% of the game’s total budget. The European Commission’s approval of the scheme (SA.54817) caps all public aid together — the Tax Shelter plus every other grant — at 50% of the game’s final cost.

Who can invest in a game through the Tax Shelter?

Belgian companies, and Belgian branches of foreign companies, that pay corporate tax. Individuals cannot. Investors get a provisional 421% tax exemption on the amount invested, capped at €1,000,000 per tax period (at the 25% corporate tax rate) and final once the certificate is issued. More on the Tax Shelter page.

Sources

Last checked: November 2026. Amounts, deadlines and conditions change; confirm with the fund before applying. This page is a guide, not tax or legal advice.