To run an event in Dubai, you must obtain a Department of Economy and Tourism (DTCM) permit and an e-ticketing permit that authorizes ticket sales. Any event that falls under one of these categories – Entertainment, Culture, Fashion, Sport, Business, Charity, Art, or Religious requires a DTCM event permit, whether ticketed or not. 

The law of Dubai requires that events running in the Emirate are properly licenced, and all registration data must be instantly transmitted to the systems maintained by the DTCM.

A levy per registration is also applicable.

This document is intended to give you some guidance to ensure this process runs as smoothly as possible. If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact your account manager.

Who needs to apply?

Anyone running a public or ticketed event in Dubai must apply for a DTCM permit.

You may get told by your venue that you’re exempt, but you’re probably not!

Non-compliance attracts substantial fines, so ask your client manager for advice if you are unsure.

How to apply?

You will usually apply via your venue, which should be licenced with DTCM.

Before you apply for your permit, consult with Visit, as your registration provider, to understand best how to complete the DTCM forms, as the manner of this could make a difference to the fees you need to pay.

You also have the option to apply through a third party, which is a company that will handle the whole application process for you.

Fees

For a free event, 1 dirham is charged on every attendee.

You need to register everyone in advance, but you can retract the ‘orders’ of those that didn’t attend, and only pay for those that showed up. However, this process must be completed within a strict deadline after the event.

For a paid event, 10% of the ticket price (AED equivalent) is levied. This is chargeable on all tickets sold. If you refund people then you may reverse the order with DTCM, but no-shows who are still charged and liable for the levy.

For an event that has some paid and some free ticketing, the rules are more complex:

• If the free tickets total no more than 75% of the entire attendance, then you can set it up as a paid event, and issue up to 75% complimentary tickets, for which there is no charge.

• If there is a higher proportion of free tickets, you may be able to register as two separate events, one free and one paid. Otherwise, you will be charged on your excess free tickets as if they’d been sold at the lowest­ price paid ticket available. In some cases, this can lead to a levy greater than your total revenue, so it is important to assess this properly in advance.

Please note that ALL attendees, including exhibiting personnel, organiser staff etc. are required to register and count towards the attendance figure.