On 5^th May 2026, the Minister of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports has issued the National Arts Council Regulations, 2026 (GN No. 137 of 22 May 2026) (the “Regulations”). The Regulations require a broad range of individuals or companies engaging in artistic activities to register with, and obtain an operating permit from National Arts Council (“BASATA”) before carrying out any works of art. The Regulations also introduce new categories of arts to include DJs, MCs, artist managers, producers, event videographers, decorators, cake decorators, salon operators, graphic and advertising designers, and fashion designers. Individuals falling within these categories must pay a Tanzanian Shillings Ten Thousand (TZS 10,000) registration fee and obtain a BASATA permit for the relevant category.

The Regulations further impose an additional licensing requirement on companies and business name. A person who intends to carry out works of art under the categories mentioned in the preceding paragraph through registered business names or company must obtain a BASATA permit, with fees varying according to the nature of the activity. For example, DJs and MCs, are required to pay permit fee/government fee of Tanzanian Shillings Forty Thousand (TZS. 40,000), event decorators Tanzanian Shillings Twenty Thousand (TZS. 20,000), and artist managers and producers Tanzanian Shillings Fifty Thousand (TZS. 50,000). This means that both individuals, companies and business names falling under the categories above must likewise register with, and obtain a permit from, BASATA in order engage in any works of art.

The Regulations prohibits any artist or arts stakeholder from carrying out arts-related activities without first obtaining the requisite registration and permit from BASATA for the specific category of activity. It is important to note that compliance with BASATA’s registration and permitting requirements is a mandatory precondition to engaging in regulated arts-related activities. The Regulations impose the following penalties:

• any person who violates the Regulations shall liable to a fine of not less than Tanzanian Shillings Three Million (TZS. 3,000,000) and not more than Tanzanian Shillings Five Million (TZS. 5,000,000) or to a ban on engaging in artistic activities for a period of not less than one (1) year or both.
• any artist, group or art stakeholders who violates the provisions of the Regulations shall pay a fine of not less than Tanzanian Shillings One Million (TZS. 1,000,000) and not more than Tanzanian Shillings Three Million (TZS. 3,000,000).
• Any person, group or stakeholders in the arts sector who violate the provisions of the Regulations for which no specific penalty is provided commits a disciplinary offence and shall be liable to a fine of not less than TZS 1,000,000 and not more than TZS 10,000,000, or to suspension from carrying out arts-related activities for a period of between six (6) months and not more than one (1) year.

The legal implication of the Regulations is that registration with BRELA does not, in itself, authorize the entity to undertake regulated arts related activities. Individuals and companies are required to obtain a separate permit from BASATA, which is subject to annual renewal, before commencing operations. Failure to obtain and maintain a valid permit may attract regulatory sanctions as provided above.