How long does DFTC script approval take?

DFTC says script approval takes up to 25 business days to be issued. Business days are Monday to Friday. Weekends and public holidays are not counted.

Do I need script approval before a filming permit in Dubai?

DFTC says that for movie and television filming in any government or private location, script approval must be received before applying for a filming permit. Your production partner confirms whether your shoot falls under that rule.

Can I change the script after submitting it to DFTC?

DFTC says no further amendments are permitted once the final script is submitted, and a request can be cancelled but not adjusted unless the Commission asks. Changes to an approved script need written notice and approval first.

Do public holidays count in the 25 business days?

No. DFTC says weekends and public holidays are not business days, so each public holiday inside the window pushes the outer limit back by a day.

Who submits the script and the filming permit?

DFTC says individuals and international companies can submit a script, but a local production house must be hired to submit a filming request. Ask your production company who files each one.

How should I set a launch date for a Dubai brand film?

Work backwards: launch, edit, shoot days, filming permit, up to 25 business days for script approval plus holidays, then script lock. If script lock has passed, move the date.

DFTC Script Approval Timeline: Plan a Dubai Launch Date

Short answer: the DFTC script approval timeline is up to 25 business days. The clock counts Monday to Friday and skips public holidays. The filming permit can only be applied for after the script is approved. So for a brand film shot on location in Dubai, the launch date has to sit after the script lock, the approval window, the permit, the shoot and the edit. Set the date by counting backwards, not forwards.

Our guide on how to brief a brand film says to ask the permit question in the brief. This page is only the calendar: what the clock is, what stops it moving, and how to build a launch date around it.

What does DFTC say about the timeline?

The Dubai Film and TV Commission says script approval takes up to 25 business days to be issued, and that DFTC will contact you when it is granted.

Script first, permit second. For movie and television filming in any government or private location, script approval must be received before you apply for a filming permit.
Business days only. DFTC says the UAE working week is Monday to Friday. Weekends and public holidays are not business days.
The whole script. Arabic productions submit the full script in Arabic. All other productions submit the full script in English, even if only one sequence is filmed in Dubai.

Up to 25 business days is about 5 weeks of working days. Treat it as the outer limit in your plan, not the likely answer, and do not promise a date that only works if approval comes early.

Why can't the script change once it is in?

Because the submitted script is the plan DFTC approves, scenes and locations included.

DFTC says that for films and TV serials the final approved script must list the scene shots and each location you intend to use. It says no further amendments are permitted once the final script is submitted. You can cancel a request after submission, but you cannot adjust it unless the Commission asks you to.

The DFTC script terms add that any change to an approved script must be notified in writing and approved before it is used. The filming permit terms say the permit holder must not deviate from the subject and locations in the application. In short, a late "small change" is never small. Lock the locations and scenes before the script goes in.

How do public holidays stretch the window?

Every public holiday inside the window adds a day, because DFTC does not count it as a business day.

The UAE public holidays list includes Gregorian New Year, Eid Al Fitr, Arafah Day, Eid Al Adha, Hijri New Year, the Prophet's birthday and National Day on 2 and 3 December. The Islamic holidays are set by moon sighting, so their exact dates are only confirmed close to the day.

A worked example shows the effect. Count 25 business days from a script sent on Monday 2 November 2026, starting the next working day. With no holidays the window would end on Monday 7 December. National Day on Wednesday 2 and Thursday 3 December falls inside it, so the 2 holidays add 2 days and the outer limit moves to Wednesday 9 December 2026. Check the dates the UAE announces for your year before you fix the plan.

How do you work back from a launch date?

Start with the launch date and subtract each stage, latest first. Your production partner gives you the real length of each stage for your shoot.

Launch date. The day the film must be live, on its own page and your channels.
Edit and versions. The cut, the Arabic and English versions, captions and any short cutdowns.
Shoot days. Every location and day you plan to film.
Filming permit. Applied for after script approval. DFTC's permit terms say restricted locations need written permission from that organisation before the permit.
Script approval. Up to 25 business days, plus any public holidays inside the window.
Script lock. Final scenes, final locations, final language version.
Brief and claim. The one sentence the film must prove, agreed before anyone writes a scene.

If the date you get for "script lock" has already passed, the launch date moves, or the film changes to something that does not need location filming.

Who submits the script and the permit?

DFTC says individuals and international companies can submit a script themselves. To submit a filming request, though, a local production house must be hired.

So for a brand, the practical owner of this calendar is the licensed production company on the job. Ask them in the first meeting who files the script, who files the permit, and which date they need the locked script by. Your production partner also confirms whether your particular shoot falls under these rules.

What usually breaks the date?

Most slips come from the script, not from the approval itself.

Missing locations. A location that is not in the submitted script cannot simply be added later.
A late creative change. New scenes after submission mean written notice and fresh approval.
Restricted places. Some sites need their own approval on top of DFTC. Dubai Airports, for example, asks for its own written approval before a commercial shoot, as our guide to filming at Dubai airport explains.
Holidays. A window that crosses Eid or National Day runs longer than the same window in a quiet month.
Language. Arabic is the official language of the UAE (UAE fact sheet). Decide which language the script is written in before it is submitted, not after.

For the film itself, see brand film in Dubai and corporate video in Dubai. For the wider service, see video production in Dubai. To build a launch calendar around a shoot, contact the studio.

Key takeaways

DFTC says script approval takes up to 25 business days, Monday to Friday, with public holidays excluded.
The filming permit comes after script approval, so the script is the first date on the calendar.
A submitted script cannot be adjusted, so lock scenes and locations before it goes in.
Set the launch date by working backwards from it, and add every public holiday inside the window.

Written by Allen Antony James, Co-founder of Storytellers, a storyteller-first studio based in Dubai, telling stories worldwide. Want help putting this into practice? See Video production in Dubai or tell us about your business.

Sources

Every claim in this guide links to its source. All sources were checked on 18 Oct 2026.

DFTC script approval timeline: work back from the launch date