If you run a game studio in Ontario, the OIDMTC might be the most reliable line item in your annual budget that you're not fully utilizing.
That was the throughline of Unlock Your Studio's Hidden Capital, a joint webinar hosted by Boast and XP Gaming on July 7, 2026. Over the course of an hour, finance and marketing leaders from two of Ontario's most established independent studios (Torn Banner Studios and Uken Games) joined Boast's R&D tax credit experts to discuss how they think about government funding, what they wish they'd known earlier, and what the OIDMTC actually looks like in practice.
The conversation covered a lot of ground. Here's what stood out.
What Is the OIDMTC and Why Does It Matter Right Now?
The Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit available to corporations developing eligible interactive digital media products in Ontario. For most gaming studios, the headline number is up to 40% back on eligible Ontario labour costs, with no cap on how much labour you can claim.
There's also an additional $100,000 marketing and distribution credit for non-specified products, which Alex Hayter, CMO at Torn Banner, pointed out is dramatically underutilized: "You'd be shooting yourself in the foot by not pursuing it."
The program runs on a few key tracks:
- 40% for non-specified products (games your studio develops and markets as its own IP)
- 35% for specified products (fee-for-service development) and qualifying or specialized digital game corporations
- Up to $100,000 in additional marketing and distribution credits (non-specified products only)
- No cap on eligible Ontario labour expenditures
And it doesn't stand alone. The OIDMTC can be stacked with federal SR&ED, which, as of March 26, 2026, received its largest enhancement in decades under Bill C-15, doubling the refundable expenditure limit from $3M to $6M for CCPCs and restoring capital equipment eligibility. More on that below.
"It's the Bread and Butter": How Torn Banner Thinks About OIDMTC
Steph Sandercock, Finance Director at Torn Banner Studios, was direct when asked which government programs the studio leans on most: "No contest, it's OIDMTC. It's scalable. As long as you're on top of it, it can just keep ticking along."
Torn Banner has been claiming the OIDMTC for years across multiple concurrent projects and Steph's advice for studios doing the same was characteristically clear: Systems first, always.
"I've done OIDMTC for up to four simultaneous projects at the same time. It's really about being organized and having your system from day one. You won't remember where someone worked in March, so have a system where every month you're updating that, in the format you already need for your application."
She also flagged something that gets overlooked as studios scale: The employer health tax, which kicks in once Ontario payroll exceeds $1M per year. "I've seen multiple studios go, 'I didn't even know that was a thing.'" The main point here is that OIDMTC doesn't exist in isolation; it's part of a broader picture of financial literacy that too few studios invest in early.
Torn Banner recently resumed claiming SR&ED as well, after a period without it. Steph noted that the two programs do work together, but require careful labour allocation to avoid claiming the same expenditure twice.
How Uken Games Layers Government Funding Into Its Growth Strategy
Ellis Yuan, Director of Finance at Uken Games, brought a different lens to the conversation as a CPA with experience at PwC plus six years managing finance at a mobile-first studio recognized by Ontario Creates for its use of the OIDMTC and the IDM Fund.
His take on how government funding fits into studio planning was notably precise and a useful model for any finance director in the room.
"SR&ED we look at from an intermediate-term perspective. We typically get our refund back three to four months after application. OIDMTC has more question marks. I think it's responsible and prudent to do scenario analysis and sensitivity around it. Ask yourself: what if we don't get OIDMTC this year? What does our cash flow and runway look like? Do we need interim financing?"
He also raised a point that often catches studios off guard: OIDMTC credits are taxable income. "Come tax season, you might need to include it on your return and it could put you into a payable position. So definitely layer that into your budget and growth strategy."
Ellis also noted the importance of relationship-building with funding partners that last beyond product launches and runs continuously. "Building mind share with our partners means that when a funding allocation opens up or there's a new initiative, we're thought of."
What Studios Get Wrong: Mat Rutishauser on the Three Layers of OIDMTC Complexity
Mat Rutishauser, Boast's Head of Pre-Sales Engineering, broke down where studios consistently leave money on the table into three layers.
Layer 1: Choosing the wrong stream. The OIDMTC has four product streams, each with different credit rates and rules. Knowing which stream you qualify for (and which is optimal for your studio) is the first decision that shapes everything else. "Knowing which stream is best for you is definitely one of the big picture items."
Layer 2: Process errors that delay the claim. Getting something wrong in your application costs you time and money . Ontario Creates will ask you to fix it, and that can add one to two months to your turnaround. "If you had expected the money to come in here, and now it's two months out, you have to readjust everything."
Layer 3: Suboptimal stacking. OIDMTC and SR&ED cannot be claimed on the same eligible labour dollar. Figuring out how to allocate labour between the two programs (and whether the SR&ED uplift justifies the OIDMTC tradeoff on a given expenditure) can be the difference of 5-10% or more in your total return.
Mat's note on cancelled projects was one of the most useful points of the session: if your game didn't ship, or a project was cancelled mid-development, those costs may still qualify. "Short answer: you can still get tax credits back on that. It depends on the stream. Definitely ask questions."
How to Stack OIDMTC with SR&ED After the 2026 Enhancements
One of the most significant developments for Ontario gaming studios in 2026 is the SR&ED program's expansion under Bill C-15, which received Royal Assent on March 26, 2026.
The key changes for CCPCs:
- Expenditure limit doubled from $3M to $6M, which means up to $2.1M in refundable credits annually
- Capital equipment eligibility restored for property acquired after December 16, 2024
- Phase-out thresholds raised from $10M–$50M to $15M–$75M in taxable capital
- Canadian public corporations (CPCs) now eligible for the 35% refundable rate for the first time
Mat explained why the CPC change matters specifically for gaming studios: "Prior to the changes, if you're a CPC, your SR&ED credit was not worth cannibalizing from your OIDMTC. Now you can get back up to 60 cents on the dollar in refundable versus OIDMTC's 40 cents."
The critical rule is that the same labour dollar cannot be claimed under both OIDMTC and SR&ED. Carlos Coelho, Boast's Head of Sales, put it simply: "Which bucket does this go into? Does it go into SR&ED? Does it go into OIDMTC? You have to separate those in your general ledger from day one."
"The Credits Are Too Generous to Ignore": Practical Advice from the Panel
The session closed with each panelist offering one piece of advice for Ontario gaming studio founders. A few lines worth holding onto:
Alex Hayter, CMO, Torn Banner: "Treat these tax credits as a foundational pillar of your financial strategy and not just an afterthought. There are very few things you can be certain of in today's environment. Having this pillar of certainty to plan towards is a blessing."
Steph Sandercock, Finance Director, Torn Banner: "The difference between a studio that ships one game and goes under, and the studio that goes on for 10 years and ships five titles, is because they took their finances seriously. Invest in financial literacy early."
Mat Rutishauser, Boast: "You are not alone. The tax credits and grants are actually evidence that the government — that Ontario — is behind you and rooting for your success. If you're feeling overwhelmed, reach out."
Carlos Coelho, Boast: "All it takes is 30 minutes to sit down with someone to understand your situation. The CRA calls SR&ED an entitlement; if you've taken risk, you're entitled to apply. Act. Educate yourself. Once you're started, somebody else can take the work from there."
Ellis Yuan, Uken Games: "Keep building relationships, even when you don't have a new project on the go. It's who you know as much as what you know."
Frequently Asked Questions from the Live Session
Why It's Worth an Hour of Your Time
Boast has helped more than 2,000 companies across North America access over $900 million in R&D tax credits since 2011. The studios in this webinar (Torn Banner, with 105 people and titles like Chivalry 2 and No More Room in Hell 2; Uken Games, with a portfolio of top-ranked mobile titles played by millions globally) are the proof that Ontario's programs work, and that claiming them well is a competitive advantage.
The full recording covers everything above in depth, including the live Q&A, the full stacking strategy discussion, and the fireside conversation with Torn Banner's team on scaling a studio in Ontario's current environment.
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Boast is a North American R&D tax credit solution that combines in-house technical and tax expertise with purpose-built technology to help companies maximize their claims and minimize time commitment. Since 2011, Boast has secured over $900M in R&D tax credits for 2,000+ companies across Canada and the United States.
