Anyone who holds public events without a valid permit or exceeds the permissible immission guide values without a valid special exemption or permit, or fails to comply with requirements and conditions, is breaking regulations and may be fined. The application can be submitted via the online form or informally. The application should be submitted to the respective office of the district (the offices are noted in the online form) 4 weeks before the start of the event. Depending on the size of the event, a fee of between 50 € - 1200 € will be charged; non-profit organisers can (partially) be exempted from the fees. You can find an application form in the downloads.

For events that take place in a green space or recreational area, an informal application for a special permit must be submitted to the respective district office. Since public green spaces are seen as places for recreation and not as venues for events, approval is only possible in exceptional cases and in the case of special public interest. In principle, it is easier to obtain a special use permit on public streets and squares (see special use permit). Commercial use of green spaces and recreational areas is generally prohibited. 

Since the respective district offices are responsible for the permits, the requirements for the applications differ slightly.

It is best to search for "Special uses in public green spaces and recreational areas" (in German: “Sondernutzungen in öffentlichen Grün- und Erholungsanlagen”) + the respective district.

As a rule, the application should be submitted at least 14 days before the start of the event. Depending on the scope, a fee of between €24 - €192 is charged; non-profit organisers can (partially) be exempted from the fees. 

Monuments and their respective usage are defined according to the Berlin Monument Protection Act (Denkmalschutzgesetz Berlin). Among other things, green spaces and parks can be included. Examples are the Großer Tiergarten, the Kleiner Tiergarten in Alt-Moabit, Mierendorffplatz, Viktoria-Luise-Platz, Hansaplatz, the green space at the Karlshorst trotting track and many more. You can find all listed green spaces and parks here or contact the district office directly to find out whether your desired space is listed. Events on listed green spaces and parks are categorically prohibited.

If (alcoholic) beverages are served commercially at an event, a permit must be applied for under the Catering Act (Gaststättengesetz). There is a federal state-wide application form for the granting of permits. In the event that only non-alcoholic beverages and/or beverages are served in return for voluntary donations, there is no need for a bar permit. A fee of € 55.10 - € 869.20 may be charged, depending on the amount of work involved. The average processing time for the application is approx. 2 weeks. The application must be submitted to the public order office responsible for the venue. Another option would be to turn the sale of beverages over to a caterer or local vendor who is registered as a traveling business and thus allowed to serve alcohol.

GEMA is the Society for Musical Performing and Mechanical Reproduction Rights, which protects the musical works of those authors who are registered with GEMA. For public events at which music titles protected by GEMA are played, the event must be registered and an amount must be paid. Part of this amount goes to the musicians. All necessary information as well as forms for registration are available at www.gema.de. For private events, where the guests are directly invited and strangers are not allowed to enter, no GEMA registration is required. However, you should be able to prove that it is a private event. Another way of not having to worry about licenses are live concerts by musicians who play their own music. In addition, there is also music that is released by its authors (usually only for non-commercial purposes) for free use.

The risk of infection is high in gatherings of people. Therefore, public and private events and gatherings are currently only allowed to take place to a limited extent. A prerequisite for being allowed to hold an event under certain conditions is a hygiene concept adapted to the event. This should address points such as attendance documentation, routing and room planning, cleaning, protection against the emission and transmission of viruses, catering, proper ventilation, etc. The Senate Department for Culture and Europe has published a hygiene framework concept for orientation purposes, which can be found here.

Applicable immission guide values for commercial noise may not be exceeded at events. For the protection of the general public and the neighbourhood from harmful effects on the environment, all public outdoor events are subject to approval (see Application for a permit or special exemption from noise protection regulations).

Immission control is the protection against harmful effects on the environment caused by immissions such as noise, light, vibration, etc.

The legal framework is provided by the Federal Immission Control Act (Bundes-Immissionsschutzgesetz). For the purposes of this Act, immissions are air pollution, noise, vibrations, light, heat, radiation and similar environmental impacts affecting humans, animals and plants, the soil, water, the atmosphere and cultural and other material assets (§3 (2) BlmSchG). Additional state-specific regulations on noise pollution are contained in the Event Noise Ordinance of the Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment. It is particularly important for the implementation of your event to comply with the immission guide values (see immission guide values).

Public events are defined as gatherings (without a political character) to which all persons have access and to which the group of participants cannot be further defined and/or there is no personal connection between participants and organisers. An event with an admission fee can still constitute a public event.

Private events are gatherings in which a group of people specifically participate. They are limited in time and place and are planned and carried out under the responsibility of a private organiser. At private events, the participants are known, "internally connected" and the number of participants is limited. General meetings of associations or company celebrations, for example, do not constitute private events.

An event is classified as disruptive if applicable immission guide values of the area/facility are exceeded. Depending on which immission guide values are complied with, a distinction is made between events causing little disturbance, disturbing events and disturbing events of outstanding importance. Immission guide values and detailed regulations on this can be found in the Event Noise Ordinance of the Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment.

For disruptive events, an application for approval or exceptional approval from the noise protection regulations must be submitted if they are expected to cause disruptive noise for third parties (see Application for a permit or special exemption from noise protection regulations).

For events that are to take place on public roads or squares, an event must be declared a special use within the meaning of § 8 Special Use; Ordinance Authorisation of the Federal Highway Act. To obtain this, you need at least (event) liability insurance. You can find the necessary documents in the Berlin Service Portal. Depending on the size of the event, a fee may be charged; non-profit organisers may (partially) be exempt from the fees. The exception to the general fee exemption is limited to the year 2021. The average processing of the application is between 4-9 weeks. The application must be submitted to the public order office responsible for the venue.

An event venue is defined as any building with rooms that individually hold more than 200 people or several rooms that together hold more than 200 people if these rooms share common escape routes. 

In Berlin, regulations on event venues are defined in the operating ordinance.

Among other things, they regulate the number of visitors, escape routes, seating plans, fire prevention, smoking/open fires/pyrotechnics, technical equipment, safety concepts, etc. The Operating Ordinance must be taken into consideration if these rooms share common escape routes. The operating regulations must also be taken into consideration if you are planning to open an event venue.