diff --git a/create_ticket_api.php b/create_ticket_api.php
index 62b6fcc..e4a85a9 100644
--- a/create_ticket_api.php
+++ b/create_ticket_api.php
@@ -5,6 +5,9 @@ header('Content-Type: application/json');
 error_reporting(E_ALL);
 ini_set('display_errors', 0);
 
+require_once __DIR__ . '/middleware/RateLimitMiddleware.php';
+RateLimitMiddleware::apply('api');
+
 // Load environment variables with error check
 $envFile = __DIR__ . '/.env';
 if (!file_exists($envFile)) {