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Filming in Belfast: permits and fees

Belfast City Council grants commercial filming permissions in its parks and open spaces with published hourly fee rates.

Who issues permits

Belfast City Council’s Marketing and Corporate Communications team handles commercial filming and photography on council-controlled land, primarily parks. Applications for park events or filming requiring broader public coordination go through the Outdoor Leisure team.

Process

Applications must be submitted in writing at least 20 working days in advance. Applications should include dates, times, crew details, equipment lists, and the intended commercial use. A risk assessment form and public liability insurance certificate must accompany the application. Filming at the Palm House and Tropical Ravine in Botanic Gardens requires a higher-tier application due to the conservation-sensitive environment.

Fees

Fees are reviewed annually. Current rates (valid to March 2026):

  • Commercial photography: £27 per hour
  • TV productions, commercials, and small films: £72 per hour
  • Filming at the Palm House / Tropical Ravine: £135 per hour
  • Radio recording: £33 per session

Wedding and civil partnership photography in council parks is managed separately at £26 for a two-hour slot.

What’s covered

Council parks and open spaces: Botanic Gardens (including the Palm House and Tropical Ravine), Victoria Park, Falls Park, Ormeau Park, Barnett Demesne, and Malone House. Public street filming requires consultation with DfI Roads (the road authority for Northern Ireland) separately from the council.

Typical restrictions

20 working days written notice is a strict requirement. News, current affairs, and educational filming may qualify for exceptions — discuss with the Marketing team before submitting. Drone use in council parks requires advance approval. All commercial shoots require a risk assessment.

Common reasons applications are refused or delayed

Belfast’s 20-working-day written notice requirement is strict, and it’s the single most common reason applications fail — productions used to shorter lead times elsewhere underestimate it. The council also takes conservation sensitivity at the Palm House and Tropical Ravine seriously; thin risk assessments for those locations get pushed back.

  • Insurance certificate missing public liability endorsement or with a cover start date after the shoot
  • Risk assessment absent or too brief for the proposed activity, particularly for night shoots in council parks or any work near the Palm House’s conservation-sensitive structure
  • No written-notice submission — the 20-day rule is applied to receipt of the written application, not an enquiry email
  • Date conflict with a council park event — Botanic Gardens in particular has a busy events programme in summer months
  • Drone operation planned without advance disclosure — this triggers a separate approval process that adds time
  • Unresolved complaint from a previous commercial shoot at the same park

Interface-area street filming — in parts of north or west Belfast — carries community sensitivity that the council’s Marketing team will flag early. It is not an automatic bar, but it requires honest conversation at the outset.

Belfast City Council’s parks filming permits don’t typically require neighbouring residential consent in the way street permits do elsewhere, because shoots are within park boundaries. However, where a production intends to photograph or film overlooking residential properties adjacent to parks — houses backing onto Ormeau Park or Barnett Demesne, for example — the council may ask for a notification letter to affected properties.

For public street filming in Belfast, the permit authority is DfI Roads (Department for Infrastructure Roads), not the council — the council’s permit covers parks only. Road management for any street closure sits with PSNI and DfI Roads jointly. Escalation for contested council park decisions: Marketing and Communications officer → head of marketing → relevant committee or the council’s Community and Wellbeing strand. For anything touching politically sensitive locations or Stormont estate grounds, the relevant authority is the Northern Ireland Executive’s property service, and that sits entirely outside Belfast City Council’s remit.

Contact

Apply on the Belfast City Council website → belfastcity.gov.uk/filming

FAQ

Who issues this filming permit?
Belfast City Council issues filming permits for its area. Applications go through the council's filming / events team — not the local parks department or police, although those may also be consulted.
How long is the lead time?
Allow at least 20 working days. Complex applications involving road closures, drone use, or multiple locations need more — plan 2–4 weeks ahead where possible.
What's the typical cost?
Fees start from £27. Expect supplementary charges for road closures, parking suspensions, officer attendance, and out-of-hours filming.
What does this permit cover?
The permit typically covers parks, civic buildings. Private property and other national-body land (e.g. Crown Estate, National Trust, Royal Parks) may need separate consent.
How do I apply?
Apply via Belfast City Council's filming page at https://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/filming. Submit your dates, locations, crew numbers, and equipment list. Expect a risk-assessment request and, for larger shoots, a pre-filming meeting.