DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA FILM PERMIT INFORMATION & GUIDANCE
***WHITE HOUSE PERMITTING RESTRICTIONS FOR PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURAL PREPARATIONS***
Beginning: October 1, 2024
Beginning October 1, 2024 (and until further notice) OCTFME will not be able to accept permit applications for the segment of Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 15th Street NW and 17th Street NW. At the request of the District of Columbia's Department of General Services, the United States Secret Service and the United States Park Police this area in front of the White House (and surrounding areas) will be restricted to allow construction and preparations for the upcoming Presidential Inaugural festivities. Any applications that request this segment of Pennsylvania Avenue will be rejected during this restricted period.
GENERAL FILM PERMITTING INSTRUCTIONS
An individual or production company may submit a permit application for consideration and review if the production meets the following criteria:
(1) The production must submit a safety plan outlining on-set safety practices and contact tracing protocols for review.
(2) The production must identify and provide contact information for the production's designated on set safety compliance officer; and,
(3) Requests requiring the supervision and approval of District of Columbia or Federal Government public safety agencies (including street closures or traffic control) will be reviewed on a case
by case basis.
Administrative Processing Times
Please allow an application review and processing time of 5 to 7 business days for requests involving reserved parking or DC Government public safety services requests, and 3 to 5 business days for requests that do not require production parking or additional city services requests.
If you have any questions about the permit application process and procedures, please contact our permit administrative team at [email protected].
Thank you for your interest in filming in the District of Columbia. We look forward to hosting your production activity under conditions that are safe for your crew, cast, and residents of the District of Columbia.
Film permits are issued by the Office of Cable Television, Film, Music and Entertainment and provide permission to occupy public space for media production related activities. Permits may include location parking for essential production vehicles when available. Permits for production related parking will be restricted during Phase Two of the ReOpen DC Plan.
Film permit requests requiring additional permits, certifications or approvals from other District of Columbia agencies may require longer administrative processing times. Those requests include but are not limited to the following: temporary parking restrictions; traffic or pedestrian management; traffic lane or street closures; use of auxiliary power sources (generators); construction of temporary structures (tents, stages, etc.); use of mock firearms; use of pyrotechnics; or any request that involves the alteration or temporary removal of streetlamps, fire hydrants, parking meters, bike lanes, or other street or traffic signage or signals. During Phase Two of the ReOpen DC Plan some or all of these additional permit requests may be prohibited or restricted.
The film permit administrative process involves the following 5 steps:
