Museum & Galleries Exhibition Tax Relief
Specialist tax support for museums, galleries and cultural exhibition producersCreating an exhibition takes vision, planning and significant financial commitment. Curators, designers, conservators, technicians, researchers and venue staff all contribute to the development of a visitor experience that brings a collection or story to life. Museums and Galleries Exhibition Tax Relief provides a way to recover part of these production costs and support the long term sustainability of the sector.
The relief is available to both charitable and non profit organisations that stage qualifying exhibitions. It applies whether the exhibition is held in a large national museum, a regional cultural venue or a community based gallery. With the government confirming permanent rates for creative sector reliefs, now is an ideal moment to check whether your organisation is claiming the full amount it is entitled to.
Strengthens cultural programming
Exhibition Relief helps organisations invest in new displays and temporary exhibitions that attract wider audiences and support their educational objectives.
Supports touring and multi venue exhibitions
Productions that travel to more than one venue can secure higher relief, which improves the financial viability of touring content.
Creates a reliable funding source
Where the enhanced deduction creates a loss, that loss can be surrendered for a payable credit. This can provide valuable support during planning and installation phases.
What the relief is
Museums and Galleries Exhibition Tax Relief is part of the United Kingdom creative industry tax framework. It provides an enhanced Corporation Tax deduction for the company responsible for developing a qualifying exhibition. If the enhanced deduction creates a loss, that loss can be surrendered for a cash credit.
The relief applies to public exhibitions that present curated collections or objects. Exhibitions can be artistic, scientific, historical or educational in nature, and can be made up of physical objects, digital content or a combination of both. The key requirement is that the exhibition is designed for public viewing and is not created solely for promotional, training or fundraising purposes.
Who can claim
The relief is claimed by the company that is primarily responsible for producing the exhibition. In most cases, this will be the charitable company or trust that operates the museum or gallery. Where a non incorporated museum or community venue wishes to access the relief, a simple company structure can be established to act as the Exhibition Production Company.
The company must be within the United Kingdom Corporation Tax regime and must oversee the creative, financial and administrative aspects of the exhibition. We can help you assess whether your current structure is suitable or whether a minor adjustment would allow your organisation to claim.
What exhibitions qualify
A qualifying exhibition must be a curated public display that presents objects, works or information with an overarching theme or narrative. Eligible exhibitions include:
- Art exhibitions
- Historical or cultural collections
- Scientific, natural history or archaeological displays
- Contemporary or mixed media installations
The exhibition must be open to the general public, whether free or ticketed. Touring exhibitions and multi venue installations also qualify and can attract higher levels of relief. Exhibitions created mainly for promotional, training, fundraising or advertising purposes do not fall within the scheme.
What costs are covered
Exhibition Relief focuses on core expenditure that directly relates to creating the exhibition. This often includes:
- Research, curatorial planning and interpretation
- Design and layout of the exhibition
- Construction of sets, panels and visitor pathways
- Lighting, display cases and environmental controls
- Installation and technical work
- Conservation and object preparation
- Digital and interactive content development
General administration, permanent capital works and ongoing operational costs do not qualify. We assist in identifying and allocating production expenditure so your claim is accurate and well supported.
How the relief works
For each exhibition, the Exhibition Production Company identifies the core expenditure and determines how much of that expenditure relates to goods or services used or consumed in the United Kingdom. An enhanced deduction is then applied at 80 percent of the lower of total core expenditure or the UK portion.
Where this calculation creates a loss, the loss can be surrendered for a payable tax credit. Touring exhibitions receive a higher credit rate, which reflects the additional logistical and installation costs involved in multi venue displays.
How Davenports Can Help
Exhibition Tax Relief requires careful coordination between curatorial teams, finance teams and production staff. Our role is to guide the process and ensure every aspect of the claim is handled correctly.
We begin with a review of your structure, your planned exhibitions and your historical activity. This helps us confirm eligibility and identify exhibitions that may already qualify. We then work with your internal teams to gather the relevant information, allocate costs between exhibition development and general operations and prepare the enhanced deduction calculations.
Once the figures are confirmed, we prepare the supporting schedules and submit the claim through your Corporation Tax return. If HMRC request additional detail, we respond directly on your behalf.
Our ongoing service ensures that future exhibitions are planned and recorded in a way that makes claiming Exhibition Relief efficient and predictable.
Start with a complimentary eligibility review
If you are planning an exhibition or reviewing recent activity, we can help you determine whether relief is available.
Our complimentary eligibility review identifies qualifying exhibitions and outlines the next steps clearly.