As the gaming industry evolves (which is always), so does the landscape of Quality Assurance, especially in regions that play a major role in game development. This year, Quebec's 2025 proposed budget introduces notable changes to its tax credit programs, particularly those supporting the technology and gaming sectors. For studios benefiting from those tax credits, these shifts could impact operational budgets and the approach to QA roles in ways both subtle and significant. In light of the new financial structure, studios will need to adjust their strategies to align with these developments. We're breaking down what this could mean for Quebec’s game development scene, particularly QA, and exploring the wider implications for studios, both large and small.

What Quebec’s new Budget Plan means for QA in the Gaming Industry

This year the province of Quebec released their proposed budget for 2025 which will have some major effects on the gaming industry and how studios will approach QA.

Currently gaming studios and publishers in Quebec benefit from a tax credit called the TCEB (CDAE en francais) where companies developing “E-Business” (this includes Game Development Studios, Publishers, and Outsourced Development) are eligible to be refunded on taxes paid per employee up to 30%. The credit is available for eligible employees making up to $83,333 per year and serves to incentivize the growth of the technology sector in Quebec.

In an effort to encourage higher wages, the new proposed budget will eliminate the salary cap per employee and apply an exclusion threshold of $18,054. This number is not picked out of a hat, it is linked to the basic personal tax credit - meaning as that number increases so will the threshold on the TCEB credit.

So what does this mean?

With the threshold in place, lower-wage jobs in the gaming sector will be less subsidized by the CDAE tax credit.
The average salary of a QA tester in Quebec is between $30,000 - $40,000/y. With the new budget proposal, the exclusion threshold will mean only $11,946 - $21,946 of that salary would be eligible for the tax credit. This means that studios will be losing out on roughly $6,000 in tax credits per QA tester. For major studios in Quebec that employ over 100 QA testers, for example, that's around $600,000.

Conclusion

While this is great for high earners and will certainly motivate gaming and tech companies to seek out top talent, growth in the lower wage positions that are still crucial towards development will suffer stagnation. Outsourced QA service companies headquartered in Quebec will likely dissolve their teams and outsource to cheaper countries, creating a swath of talented QA professionals hungry in a market that isn’t incentivized to hire them.

The bottom line is the cost of quality is about to go up.

As studios prepare to adapt, GameDriver is here to help navigate these challenges by enhancing QA processes across all levels. Be sure to connect with us at MIGS to learn how we can help your team turn these tax changes into a win.