Balearics face €3m cinema aid repayment demand
The Balearic Islands are challenging a demand to return cinema funding after Spain sought more than €3 million back from six autonomous communities. The money was intended for cinema venues and attracting audiences, but a state financial oversight body later said it had to be spent during 2025. The Balearics have lodged, or said they will lodge, an appeal.
The Ministry of Culture says the rule was imposed only in 2026, after €8.5 million had been allocated in May 2025 to 16 autonomous communities and the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla. It argues that the requirement to use the funds within 2025 was not included in the original transfer decisions and should not be applied retrospectively.
Spain’s General Intervention of the State Administration, the government’s financial oversight authority, rejected that objection. It upheld the position of its delegated office within the Ministry of Culture, triggering repayment requests for regions that had not used the money under the later interpretation.
The Valencian Community has also appealed or announced an appeal. The Spanish Federation of Cinemas has called on the ministry to prevent the more than €3 million from being lost to the sector.
The ministry says it has kept the cinema-venue funding at €8.5 million for 2026 and intends to retain it in future calls for applications.
Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com