Permissions
Procedure for foreigners seeking permissions to shoot Feature Films / Documentaries in India
The procedure for shooting of films by foreigners in India is given in the following paragraphs, which will answer most of your questions regarding the procedure to apply for a permission to shoot.
What Should Accompany Your Application
You need to send a simple letter indicating your intention to shoot in India, mentioning the dates of shooting, particulars of the cast and crew, and your chosen locations. Please address your letter to the following ministries according to the type of production.
FEATURE FILMS / TV FILMS:
THE MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
’A’ WING SHASTRIN BHAVAN
NEW DELHI-110 001
DOCUMENTARIES:
THE MINSTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
(EXTERNAL PUBLICITY DIVISION)
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
‘A’ WING, SHASTRI BHAVAN
NEW DELHI – 110 001
The letters should be sent at least a month before your planned shooting schedule and along with four copies of the final detailed shooting script, a draft / cheque for US$ 200 drawn in favor of Pay & Accounts Officer, Ministry of I & B, (MS) New Delhi (That is a fee for scrutiny of the script), detailed shooting locations and particulars regarding the cast and crew coming to India. No fee is required for shooting documentaries in India.
Should you wish to bring your own shooting equipment, please send a list of the equipment to be temporarily imported. This will enable the approving authorities to make a recommendation to the customs authorities to exempt the temporary import from customs duty.
Your permission to shoot will normally not take more than three weeks to process. The permission letter issued by the Government of India will facilitate your permission from other local authorities, which may, in some cases, need to be obtained directly from these authorities.
In case any living personality is portrayed in the film as a character, we suggest that you share the script with that personality or his / her legal heirs, before beginning the shooting, and obtain a ‘No Objection Letter’. This letter will expedite the clearance of your application, and also guard against the possibility of any defamation or libel suits.
If you propose to shoot your film as a co-production, a copy of the agreement between your company and the Indian party indicating the role of each party, its responsibilities and liabilities, must accompany the application.
If your film requires shooting in the scenic but sensitive areas of Jammu & Kashmir, the North Eastern India or border belts, your application will be considered for specific approval in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs. In such cases you would need to allow more time to process your application.
Role Of The Indian Mission In Your Country
Do submit the detailed particulars of all the members of the shooting team, to the Indian Mission in the country from which they would be departing for India at the time, indicating your intention to shoot in India. Our mission will issue them visas in the normal course.
Other Essential Information
An expert from a panel constituted by the Government Of India for this purpose will scrutinize your script. If considered necessary, to facilitate the shooting, a liaison officer may be attached to a film shooting team. This officer will help you to get local clearances, and provide an interface with any local institutions. Where a liaison officer is so attached to the shooting team, the Government of India will bear his expenses. In exceptional cases you may need to show the completed film to a representative of the Government of India, in India or in an Indian Mission abroad, before its release anywhere in the world. This requirement will apply only to films made on subjects of political, religious or socio cultural sensitivity, and is focused on ensuring that film has been shot in accordance with the scrutinized script and that the film has nothing objectionable from the point of view of presentation of a correct and balanced perspective on the topic covered.
During the shooting of the film if it is felt that any material changes or deviation from the approved script is necessary, permission may be taken from this Ministry before shooting these scenes.
Linked is the text of an Undertaking required to be duly signed and sent by you to the Government of India as part of the approval process.
