Morocco has become a top destination for filming in recent years. Its natural beauty, rich culture, and skilled local crews make it an excellent choice. In 2019 alone, 668 foreign productions chose Morocco as their filming location.

The country’s diverse geography and favorable climate make it perfect for filming, with stunning deserts, mountains, forests, coastlines, modern cities, well-established infrastructure, and readily available experienced industry professionals.

Several iconic movies choose Morocco as one of their principal locations of photography, including “Black Hawk Down,” “Kingdom of Heaven,” and “Gladiator.”

It has also become a go-to destination for Hollywood filmmakers looking to shoot movies set in the Middle East but in a safer environment. While some Middle Eastern countries refuse to accommodate films of a particular political nature, Morocco has a more liberal and open attitude.

Think about films such as “Army of One,” “Syriana,” and “Body of Lies.”

Morocco is a versatile and accommodating filming location that can cater to various projects, from short commercials to feature-length films and major television series. Depending on the scope and duration of your project, there are different factors to consider when planning your shoot. Here we identify specific legislations, permit requirements, and need-to-knows about starting your production in Morocco, the theory put into practice that applies to projects of all sizes and genres.

Navigating through these incentives and identifying the economic advantages and challenges of combining them across countries can be challenging. Therefore in the following articles, we highlight the different types of production aid and what productions are eligible.
The Moroccan Cinematographic Center brought several production support incentives to life to help facilitate and encourage audiovisual productions that desire to produce in Morocco.

1. Mythical diversity of landscapes, history, and culture:

Morocco’s allure as a shooting destination lies in its mythical diversity of landscapes, history, and culture. Filmmakers can explore a range of breathtaking backdrops, from the vast expanse of the Sahara desert to the Atlas Mountains and the picturesque coastal regions, easily accessible thanks to the countries existing tourism infrastructure.

The country’s rich history and cultural heritage provide an authentic and immersive setting for storytelling, offering a tapestry of vibrant traditions, architecture, and customs that can enhance any production.

2. Cash rebate for international production:

One of the key incentives for shooting in Morocco is the attractive tax rebate offered to international productions. Filmmakers can benefit from a 30% uncapped cash rebate on eligible expenditures.

This financial incentive can significantly contribute to the effectiveness of the overall production budget; productions can be eligible after a minimum spend of 10 million dirhams (approx. $1M) and a minimum of 18 days of work in Morocco.

3. VAT exemption:

The Moroccan tax administration provides a VAT exemption for foreign production companies on all production purchases, freelancers, services, and equipment rental for invoices above 5000 dirhams. To apply for this exemption, the foreign production company must obtain a shooting permit from the Moroccan Cinematographic Centre and open a bank account in their name, after which the tax administration will issue a VAT exemption certificate.

This simplified procedure allows foreign production companies to benefit from the tax advantage without starting up a local production entity in Morocco.

4. Temporary importation procedures:

Strategically located at the gateway of Africa and Europe, Morocco offers exceptional geographical advantages for filmmakers. With its northern border along the Mediterranean and western coast along the Atlantic Ocean, the country provides easy accessibility for productions from Western countries, simplifying the customs-clearance procedure for importing and exporting film-shooting equipment through CCM assistance.

This proximity reduces travel time and opens up the possibility of bringing equipment from abroad by plane or boat. Morocco recognizes the ATA carnet procedure for temporarily importing professional equipment and other production purchases; you can apply for the ATA carnet in your home country through your local chamber of commerce.

The usage of the ATA carnet is only possible after you obtain your film permit. Be aware that specific import restrictions exist for particular equipment, such as drones. Importing these goods requires additional licenses from the ANRT (for radio equipment) and a permit from the Ministry of interior (drones). These other permits should be obtained well in advance before traveling to Morocco.

5. Readily available equipment and crew:

Morocco boasts a pool of highly skilled and experienced human resources in the film industry. From talented local actors and performers to proficient crew members and production teams, filmmakers can tap from a wealth of prior expertise.

The country’s thriving film industry has nurtured a vibrant community of professionals well-versed in international production standards. The present and various crew positions can contribute with their creativity and technical skills to elevate any project, big and small.

When you benchmark the production cost of the local crew, there is generally an advantage of between 30 and 40% in lower fees versus crewmembers from other established film-producing countries, which plays in favor when you have productions with more production value and lots of people involved.

Moroccan technicians and talent are even requested in other North African end Middle East countries like Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates because of their cost-effectiveness and prior international experience.

1. Weather condition in Morocco:

Overall, Morocco is a year-round filming destination, and the best time to shoot depends on the production’s specific needs. Still, planning ahead and considering the climate and weather conditions is needed to ensure a successful shoot. Morocco’s climate is diverse, and temperatures vary significantly depending on the season and location.
It’s important to note that the weather can be unpredictable, particularly in mountainous and desert regions. Filmmakers should prepare for unforeseen circumstances and be willing to divert from the initial shooting schedule when needed.

2. Working with a local service provider – film permit:

Before you can obtain a film permit and to operate legally in Morocco, you must identify a Moroccan production partner who has an “autorisation d’exercices et agrément de production”, not every company in Morocco has this since executing cinematography for foreign entities (production exécutive) is an activity under special authorization in Morocco.

You can not apply alone for a permit for several kinds of productions. This legislation applies to feature films, short films, television series, documentaries, reality television, music videos, and institutional videos.

The production partner acts as a legal intermediary between your company and the local crew to ensure that all professional regulations and security measures are implemented correctly. Depending on the production size and length, all production accountancy passes through this supplier or a project bank account.

Our philosophy as a service provider is to accompany you in a project, defend your interests, identify cost-effective production approaches, and compare local and international quotes to find the perfect budget balance on a case-by-case basis.

3. Crew quota that apply:

In Morocco, several crew quotas apply for foreign productions depending on the kind of production.

Foreign crewmembers are exempt from needing a work permit for Morocco thanks to the film permit. However, using non-Moroccan nationals in production needs to be motivated, and quotas must be adhered to where they apply. Below is an overview.

4. Co-producing possibilities:

Morocco has several governmental and non-governmental film funds to which productions can apply. In general, foreign production entities can’t benefit from the support directly. Still, co-production agreements across countries that include Moroccan funding are possible for producing parties who can create a beneficiary model that seeks a mutual interest around distribution and international markets.

Morocco ratified several co-production agreements that form a legal basis for these discussions. For example, projects shooting in multiple countries within a joint cultural context are possible.

We can help analyze what possibilities exist and help apply for funds. However, we only proceed to do this after a case-by-case study assessing the eligibility and possible success rate.

Before you can obtain a film permit and to operate legally in Morocco, you must identify a Moroccan production partner who has an “autorisation d’exercices et agrément de production”,  since executive production is an activity under special authorization in Morocco.

You can therefore not always apply for a film permit alone, although some exceptions exist. For example for feature films, short films, television series, and music videos it is often required that foreign production entities wishing to film in Morocco work together with a Moroccan production partner with who a production agreement has to be concluded.

The production partner acts as a legal intermediary between your company and the local crew to ensure that all professional regulations and security measures are implemented correctly. Depending on the production size and length, all production accountancy passes through this supplier or a project bank account.

Some exceptions on this general rule do exist, for example small television projects can apply for a permit directly with the CCM, although the production context and size of the production request will be taken into account to assess the requirement for a production partner to be mandatary or not. This decision is made on a case-by-case assesment.

Our philosophy as a service provider is to accompany you in a project, defend your interests, identify cost-effective production approaches, and compare local and international quotes to find the perfect budget balance on a case-by-case basis.

In Morocco, several crew quotas apply for foreign productions depending on the kind of production.

Foreign crewmembers are exempt from needing a work permit for Morocco thanks to the film permit. However, using non-Moroccan nationals in production needs to be motivated, and quotas must be adhered to where they apply.

Our company can assist you with the application of the film permit on clients request.

Take into account that 28 days can sometimes be needed in order for a film permit to be approoved, this term depends on holidays, productional context, and current workloads at the responsible entities signing of the permits, we therefore recommend that you apply for a permit in time.

Disclaimer: a lot of disinformation on the usage of drones in Morocco can be found in internet articles and on YouTube, please note that a lot of information out there is of an incorrect nature. In this production guide we give a brief overview of the current legal situation and practical need-to-knows. (last update October 25th 2023)

The usage of drones in Morocco is heavily regulated and several restrictions on the usage of drones apply due to national security reasons. In general the procedure for taking your own drone into Morocco is therefore highly discouraged. Not that it is impossible, but the procedure to take your own drone does take a lot of time and effort from both authorities and production partners. We therefore only recommend starting this procedure in case your production requires a very specific kind of drone which would not be available in the country by one of the existing supplier companies who have the required drone licenses.

1. A specific UAV pilot license is officially not required in Morocco for flying a drone (it’s unregulated by local laws and ICAO guidelines for UAV operation applies), however we strongly suggest that any specialty pilot flying a drone has a proper license like one of EASA (EU) or the FAA (USA). Since a lot of common sense like defensive flying, taking necessary precautions (not flying over crowds and highly populated areas) also apply to flying a drone in Morocco. A permission of the local drone license owner is required before any foreign pilot is allowed to participate in flying the drone, this can be discussed on a case-by-case basis (the flight experience of the foreign pilot is taken into consideration).
2. Every pilot needs to have his own pilot UAV insurance, linked to the specific Drone model and serial number that he or she will be flying with. This drone insurance cover is to be acquired internationally through a broker who offers worldwide cover that does not exclude Morocco (please see the exclusion list).
3. In Morocco you need to apply for a separate drone permit that states the exact GPS coordinates and date and time of when you will be flying. A security assesment of these GPS coordinates, altitude and time of flying will be made by the responsible authorities on a case-by-case basis, local situations and regulations might vary. We consider 10 days (on top of the time it takes to obtain the film permit) to be a safe amount of time to obtain a permit in most cases.
4. A drone permit for aerial photography on a specific identified location can only be obtained after you have secured your filming permit (CCM). This might create an application delay in between receicing the film permit and the date on which you can obtain your drone permit.
5. Near several specific military, royal and other sensitive security sites it is often not possible to fly a drone. Or in specific cases several high security measures would apply such as approximate police and military surveillance next to the person flying the drone near those sites. Permits near these sensitive sites therefore require a very thorough and conservative production planning.
6. Sensitive sites include: ports, airports, military terrains, royal palaces, government buildings, … In practice it is not unusual for these locations to be closeby to interesting and famous historic filming locations. Such as parts of the cities: Marrakech, Casablanca, Ouarzazate, Rabat, Tanger, … Please note this list might not be complete.
7. Available drones in Morocco include: DJI Mavic 2, DJI Mavic 3 Cine, Alta X, DJI Matrice series, DJI Inspire 2, DJI Inspire 3, FPV Cinelifter, …
8. For the temporary importation of specialty drones we ask for at least 40 days in order to request the special importation permit succesfully. This term only starts after receiving your general film permit of the CCM.