Dear filmmakers,
We appreciate your continued support of the Motion Picture Association’s Classification and Rating Administration (CARA). For over 55 years, we have provided American parents with advance information about the level of content in movies to help them make the best viewing choices for their family, while also protecting your First Amendment right to tell the stories you want, how you want, without the need for government regulation.
CARA is a self-funded division of the MPA and we have not updated our fee structure in 15 years. We acknowledge the rising costs of productions and the importance of planning your budget. As such, we want to provide you with as much advance notice as possible regarding a modest increase to our submission fee. This includes an initial increase effective for all titles submitted after October 1, 2024, as well as an annual percentage increase based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to ensure the continuity of our public services.
The below chart outlines our new submission fee structure. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to Cara-feeincrease@motionpictures.org.
| Class | Negative Cost | Fee before October 1, 2024 | New Fee, effective October 1, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| A-1 | > $75M | $25,000 | $27,000 |
| A-2 | $40M to $74.999M | $20,000 | $21,500 |
| A-3 | $15M to $39.000M | $15,000 | $16,000 |
| A-4 | $5M to $14.999M | $8,000 | $8,500 |
| A-5 | $500K to $4.999M | $5,000 | $5,250 |
| A-6 | < $500K | $3,000 | $3,150 |
| Class | Negative Cost | Fee before October 1, 2024 | New Fee, effective October 1, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| B-1 | $12M to $14.999M | $7,000 | $7,500 |
| B-2 | $8M to $11.999M | $5,000 | $5,300 |
| B-3 | $4M to $7.999M | $4,000 | $4,200 |
| B-4 | $1.4M to $3.999M | $3,000 | $3,150 |
| B-5 | $500K to $1.4999M | $2,700 | $2,800 |
| B-6 | < $500K | $2,500 | $2,600 |
| Class | Negative Cost | Fee before October 1, 2024 | New Fee, effective October 1, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| C-1 | Re-rate/Re-screen | $2,500 | $2,700 |
| C-2 | Re-issue | $2,500 | $2,700 |
| C-3 | Short Subject | $750 | $800 |
| C-4 | Re-Rate due to Obsolete Rating Symbol | N/C | N/C |
WHAT ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES AMONG CATEGORIES A, B, AND C?
CATEGORY A
FILMS WHICH MEET AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
- Submitter involved with the production or financing of the film in any way
- Submitter’s or distributor's aggregate gross revenues for the production, financing, and/or distribution of motion pictures for the prior calendar or fiscal year are more than $5,000,000
- Film does not meet the criteria for Category B submission
CATEGORY B
FILMS WHICH MEET ALL OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
- Submitter is NOT involved in any way whatsoever with the production or financing of the film
- Submitter’s aggregate gross revenues for the production, financing, or distribution of motion pictures for the prior calendar or fiscal year is less than $5,000,000
- The motion picture being distributed has a negative cost less than $15,000,000
CATEGORY C
FILMS WHICH MEET ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
- Films previously certified by CARA and being submitted for re-rating or re-screening prior to their exhibition or distribution
- Re-issued films originally released prior to November 1, 1968 which have not previously been rated
- Short films under 30 minutes
We look forward to continuing our work together.
The Classification and Rating Administration
FAQs
Why are you increasing your submission fees now?
What are these increases based on?
Rather than make a single, substantially larger, rate increase that will sustain operations for the next decade might have adversely impacted filmmaking, our intent is to make a more modest rate increase now with annual rate increases based on CPI. The annual increases will begin on January 1, 2026. Future rate increases will be published in October prior to the annual CPI increases being effective in January.