The proposed changes to the 2003 Licensing Act mean plays, dances and indoor sports events in community and council-owned venues will be free to take place without a licence from the local authority.
The new rules are expected to come into force in April and apply to indoor sports events for audiences of 1,000 people or less, and to plays, dance and music events with audiences of 500 or less.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport will also look at plans to drop licensing requirements for film screenings at community venues later in the year.
Under current rules, community organisers must apply for a 'Temporary Event Notice' at least 10 days before an event, or an entertainment licence that can cost around £200.
Removing the requirement is expected to bring about thousands of extra events around the UK.
Hugh Robertson, minister for sport and tourism, said: "Local events have become unnecessarily bureaucratic and complicated to organise. Deregulating them will encourage people and organisations to lay on more events and bring local people together."
The move follows last year's Live Music Act,
John Penrose MP, former entertainment licensing minister, He said the proposals marked a "long-planned step forward".
"The first step was cutting red tape on live music gigs, which happened last summer, while we laid the foundations to go further and simplify other events like plays and dance as well," Penrose said.
The deregulation is the result of a public consultation last year, aimed at removing unnecessary bureaucracy from civil society organisations, charities and businesses.
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