TIGA initially secured Games Tax Relief in the March 2010 Budget. This was dropped by the Coalition Government in the June 2010 Budget. TIGA ignored the siren calls to give up and instead continued to wage a vigorous campaign for the introduction of Games Tax Relief.

After another 18 months of relentless work, TIGA successfully persuaded the Coalition Government in the March 2012 Budget to back Games Tax Relief. However, Games Tax Relief was then blocked by the EU Commission as it announced a formal investigation into the proposal in April 2013.
TIGA then submitted compelling evidence to the EU Commission, co-ordinating its efforts with the UK Government and its partners in the European Games Developers’ Federation (EDGF) to successfully assuage the EU Commission’s concerns. Finally, TIGA’s campaign for Games Tax Relief reached a successful conclusion in March 2014 when the EU Commission finally consented to its introduction in the UK.


Tax relief for the video games sector is increasing employment, innovation and investment in the UK video games industry and enabling us to compete on a more level playing field with our overseas competitors. This is a significant victory for the UK games development and digital publishing sector and will provide a powerful boost to the industry.
TIGA published a report in February 2021 evidencing the benefits of an increase in Video Games Tax Relief (VGTR) from 25 per cent to 32 per cent. The report, Boosting the UK Video Games Industry: Increasing Video Games Tax Relief (TIGA, 2021) analyses survey data from industry, data from the government and economic modelling. The report demonstrates that a 32 per cent rate of VGTR would result in more investment, greater headcount growth and larger tax receipts for HM Treasury.

