Colombo, Sep. 21 (Daily Mirror) - New regulations requiring licences for the public use of certain music at weddings, parties, hotels, banks, supermarkets, corporate functions and other events have come into effect, as part of measures to protect intellectual property rights.
The regulations, gazetted by the Association of Creators and Publishers of Sri Lanka (ACPOSL) under the National Intellectual Property Office of Sri Lanka, came into force last Tuesday.
Under the new system, hotels and other establishments have been informed that licences must be obtained for events featuring music covered by the regulations. Fees range from Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 125,000 depending on the type of event and the number of attendees.
The licensing requirement initially covers Sri Lankan musical works represented by ACPOSL, as well as Hindi and Tamil musical works represented through the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS).
The regulations apply to a wide range of events, including weddings and receptions, private parties, corporate events, dinner dances, award ceremonies, product launches, promotional and sponsored events, conferences featuring musical entertainment, DJ shows, live band performances, concerts and music-focused programmes.
Under the fee structure, DJ events with fewer than 100 attendees will be charged Rs. 20,000, while events with 100 to 300 attendees will cost Rs. 30,000 and those with more than 300 attendees will cost Rs. 40,000.
For live music events, the corresponding fees are Rs. 25,000, Rs. 35,000 and Rs. 50,000.
Private or corporate DJ events will carry fees of Rs. 25,000 for fewer than 100 attendees, Rs. 40,000 for 100 to 300 attendees and Rs. 50,000 for more than 300 attendees.
Private or corporate events featuring live music or hybrid performances will require fees of Rs. 50,000, Rs. 75,000 and Rs. 125,000 respectively, based on attendance.
The licence must be obtained at least 14 days before the event. The responsibility for obtaining the licence will rest with the hotel or the event organiser, including corporate clients, wedding organisers or individual organisers.
However, events that exclusively use English-language or other foreign musical works will not be required to obtain a licence under the current regulations.
Anthony Monday, 21 September 2026 11:34 AM
GET READY TO PAY A FEE FOR LICENSE BEFORE GETTING MARRIED, AND A LICENSE FEE BEFORE HAVING A CHILD.
wickrama Monday, 21 September 2026 12:33 PM
Intellectual property rights is a good thing. However the application needs to be sensible. There are other important things like designs and patenting them. That will promote our industrial design giving it a boost. Good for lawyers. The lawyers fee schedule needs to be standardized too.
Ralcom Manjith Tuesday, 22 September 2026 05:58 AM
Shera Monday, 21 September 2026 01:11 PM
I don't get it. Who gets the money in the end? The artists or the government? How is the money distributed as royalties? And do the organizations have to submit a song list with the fee?
LP Monday, 21 September 2026 01:36 PM
Paul Monday, 21 September 2026 01:48 PM
Long overdue. Lankans were happily pirating everything, violating copyrights left and right like there's no tomorrow. Now they have to change their ways and come to the civilised world. Hope this law is strongly imposed.
Sambo Monday, 21 September 2026 02:00 PM
This is very, very unfair. Asit is a young couple find the money even to buy their wedding ring or have a small function and this like "Hingannage pathrayata henahura kada watnua wagai
Bernard Jayatilake Monday, 21 September 2026 03:23 PM
Musical shows which is a nuisance should be banned after 10 p.m. as they violate environment law and the authorities needs to be educated on limitations in approving permits on a case-by-case basis.
Kevin Monday, 21 September 2026 05:15 PM
Private parties? Does not happen anywhere in the world. The laws are draconian
Citizens Monday, 21 September 2026 10:40 PM
What about loud music played in public transport?
Crap Rap Tuesday, 22 September 2026 05:21 AM
What about what passes as music played in private buses, TV stations or radios?
BuffaloaCitizen Tuesday, 22 September 2026 12:35 AM
This will not affect those small parties or events that we have at home or in a wedding hall in the village. It is mainly for those happenings in the City where Hotels in the City host parties with Music. They rent the premises and provide the music. The music played is charged and pocketed by the establishment. Some of that pocketed money needs to go to the original creators of that music. Isn't that fair?
Jay A Tuesday, 22 September 2026 02:26 AM
What about AI creators who uses creations by others to earn money. So many AI created cover songs..
Jude Tuesday, 22 September 2026 02:30 AM
Jude Tuesday, 22 September 2026 02:36 AM
There's tons of entertainers making tons of money singing at weddings, parties and all kinds of events without paying a single cent as royalties to the people who created the music, the singer(s) song writers, music score.
Citizens Tuesday, 22 September 2026 03:43 AM
What about the loud music played in the 3 wheelers the propaganda vehicles and sales outlets. This is madness. And yes whom does the money go to ? Thr artist the composer the organisation or the government.
Way to go Tuesday, 22 September 2026 05:10 AM
If you earn money using someone else's product, you must pay your dues. There's no debate about that. Who it goes to should be decided by the law of the land.
Ranjith Tuesday, 22 September 2026 09:02 AM
Is the Inland Revenue Department taxing the Music trade / Musicians? How bout the Music shows paying high ticket prices? POLITICAL propaganda being used with musicians?
MN Tuesday, 22 September 2026 09:06 AM
Mark Nadarajah Wednesday, 23 September 2026 05:21 AM
If the original artists are no longer alive, who actually benefits from these fees? Will the television industry also be required to pay licence fees when contestants perform songs on talent shows? When other artists record an original track and sell it commercially, paying copyright fees is justified. However, enforcing this new law across Sri Lanka will be extremely challenging as there are countless bands performing in Sinhala, Tamil, and Hindi at various venues, making proper monitoring almost impossible. I also have serious doubts that small hotels—already operating on tight budgets and struggling to stay afloat—will comply. The regulations clearly state that artists are not liable; the responsibility falls entirely on the management of the venue. For many establishments, this will be yet another burden they simply cannot afford.
Mohamed Faiz Sunday, 27 September 2026 02:32 AM
A nation starved of food, medicine, jobs, education and drug menace, the government proves it is more invested in trivialities than in solving Sri Lanka’s real crises of economy, now taxing joy itself by licensing wedding playlists.
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