Filming/Photography Permits in St. Pete-Clearwater

All commercial filming/photography activity planned on public space in any of the 24 municipalities in Pinellas County or on public property managed by the County requires a permit. Public property includes parks, beaches, roads, bridges, sidewalks, transportation hubs, and certain places of interest. Shoots that involve street/sidewalk blockage or closure; that include stunts, vehicle chases, fights, or real or prop weapons; that use fire, pyrotechnics, explosives or smoke; or involve staged photography also require a permit. Larger productions filming on private property may also need a permit if public space and/or neighborhoods will be impacted by filming activity, or if using weapons. When in doubt, submit a permit application. After we review the shoot details, we’ll advise how to proceed. You can also email Info@FilmSPC.com with questions.   

Please allow five (5) business days after submitting a complete permit applicaiton to process standard filming/photography requests. A complete application includes all known filming activity PLUS a Certificate of Insurance (COI) naming the jurisdiction in which you plan to film as additionally insured. The COI must be effective for the duration of the shoot. Apply for a permit ten (10) business days in advance of your shoot date if your project requires special assistance including, but not limited to, law enforcement, fire marshall or marine unit, or reserved parking. 

First-time users need to register with FilmApp. Each time you log in after that, FilmApp auto-populates key fields on the application, saving you time. There's also a dashboard where you can view and manage your applications, and submit questions and track their response.

Refer to our Getting Started guide (at right) for more application information.

Certificates of Insurance
Full info on all insurance requirements, language needed for COI's for each indivudual City or municipality here.