AIM calls on museums to send feedback to treasury on its Exhibition Tax Relief consultation

From April 2017 there will be a new Exhibition Tax Relief, enabling museums and galleries in the UK to claim a tax relief (likely to be 20 per cent) on the costs of creating new temporary and touring exhibitions. Although the relief, announced in George Osborne’s March Budget is claimed through corporation tax which charities don’t pay, museums and galleries that are incorporated will still be able to benefit. This is in addition to any VAT that the museum or gallery might be able to reclaim.

However, AIM say the restriction mentioned in the consultation document to temporary and touring exhibitions means that only a handful of museums and galleries will benefit as most don’t a business model based on significant temporary exhibitions, or even space for them. This restriction will concentrate benefit on the nationals in London and means that the public outside London or other large urban centres, will get little benefit.

“We see no reason why all exhibitions shouldn’t be included in the tax relief and believe this would better enable the tax relief to achieve the aims stated for it in the consultation document,” said AIM. “The consultation document includes sensible and welcome proposals for the operation of the tax relief, which would work equally well for exhibitions of any length. Most museums only undertake the creation of new exhibitions every 5-10 years so the number and value of additional claims in each year would not be unmanageable.”

AIM says that museums should include details of the amount they spend and the frequency on new exhibitions, which would help support its recommendations.

Responses should be sent to: [email protected] by October 29.