1904 General Policies Concerning Publication
This Section discusses the U.S. Copyright Office’s general practices and procedures for examining published and unpublished works.
Copyright Compendium
Chapter 100
- 101 The U.S. Copyright Office
- 101.2 Organization of the U.S. Copyright Office
- 101.2 (B) Office of the General Counsel
- 101.2 (C) Office of Policy and International Affairs
- 101.2 (D) Office of Registration Policy and Practice
- 101.2 (E) Office of Public Information and Education
- 101.2 (F) Office of Public Records and Repositories
- 101.2 (G) Copyright Modernization Office
- 101.2 (H) Office of the Chief Financial Officer
- 101.2 (I) Office of the Chief of Operations
Chapter 200
- 201 What This Chapter Covers
- 202 Purposes and Advantages of Registration
- 202.2 Registration Distinguished from Preregistration
- 202.3 Registration Distinguished from Recordation
Chapter 300
- 301 What This Chapter Covers
- 302 The Legal Framework
- 303 Copyrightability Is Determined Based on U.S. Copyright Law
- 304 Eligibility
- 305 The Fixation Requirement
- 306 The Human Authorship Requirement
- 307 Copyrightable Subject Matter
- 308 The Originality Requirement
- 308.2 Creativity
Chapter 400
- 401 What This Chapter Covers
- 402 Who Is the Applicant?
- 403 Who Is the Correspondent?
- 404 Who Is the Claimant?
- 405 Applications Filed by or on Behalf of the Author
- 405.2 Minors
- 405.3 Intellectually Disabled Persons
- 405.4 Prisoners
- 405.5 Deceased Authors
- 405.6 Foreign Authors
Chapter 500
- 501 What This Chapter Covers
- 502 A Copyright Registration Covers a Claim in a Work of Original Authorship
- 503 Identifying the Original Authorship That the Applicant Intends to Register
- 503.1(C) Compilations and Derivative Works
- 503.1(D) Work of Authorship Distinguished from the Medium of Expression
- 503.1(E) Copyrightable Authorship
Chapter 600
- 601 What This Chapter Covers
- 602 General U.S. Copyright Office Examination Practices
- 602.2 Statutorily Required Information in the Application
- 602.3 Requirements for Registration of a Basic Claim
- 602.4 General Standards for Examination of an Application
- 602.4 (B) Scope of the Examination
- 602.4 (C) Factual Determinations and Administrative Notice
- 602.4 (D) No Searches or Comparison of Works
- 602.4 (E) Duplicate Claims
Chapter 700
- 701 What This Chapter Covers
- 702 The Literary Division
- 703 What Is a Literary Work?
- 704 Literary Works Distinguished from Works of the Performing Arts
- 705 Fixation of Literary Works
- 706 Copyrightable Authorship in Literary Works
- 707 Uncopyrightable Material
- 707.2 Research
- 707.3 Book Design
Chapter 800
- 801 What This Chapter Covers
- 801.2 What Is a Work of the Performing Arts?
- 801.3 Fixation of Works of the Performing Arts
- 801.3 (B) Phonorecords
Chapter 900
- 901 What This Chapter Covers
- 902 Visual Arts Division
- 903 What Is a Visual Art Work?
- 903.2 Architectural Works
Chapter 1000
- 1001 What This Chapter Covers
- 1002 Definitions
- 1002.2 Website Content
- 1002.3 Hypertext
- 1002.4 Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
- 1002.5 Cascading Style Sheets
- 1002.6 Databases
Chapter 1100
- 1101 What This Chapter Covers
- 1102 [Reserved]
- 1103 The Unit of Publication Option
- 1103.1 What Is a Unit of Publication?
- 1103.1 (A) The Unit Must Contain Separately Fixed Component Works
- 1103.1 (B) The Unit Must Contain an Actual Copy or Phonorecord of the Works
- 1103.1 (C) The Works Must Be Physically Bundled in the Unit
- 1103.1 (D) The Works Must Be Distributed to the Public in the Unit
- 1103.1 (E) Works That Do Not Qualify as a Unit of Publication
- 1103.2 Eligibility Requirements
- 1103.3 Registration Requirements
- 1103.4 Completing the Application
- 1103.4 (A) Type of Work
- 1103.4 (B) Title
- 1103.4 (C) Publication / Completion
- 1103.4 (D) Authors of the Component Works
- 1103.4 (E) Manufacturer, Publisher, Producer, Packager, or Creator of the Unit of Publication
- 1103.4 (F) Author Created / Nature of Authorship
- 1103.4 (G) Claimants / Transfer Statement
- 1103.4 (H) Limitation of Claim
- 1103.4 (I) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1103.4 (J) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1103.4 (K) Special Handling
- 1103.4 (L) Certification
- 1103.1 What Is a Unit of Publication?
- 1104 The Sound Recording / Recorded Work Option
- 1105 Group Registration
- 1106 Group Registration of Unpublished Works
- 1106.1 Eligibility Requirements
- 1106.1 (A) The Group Must Be Limited to Unpublished Works
- 1106.1 (B) Works That May Be Registered with this Option
- 1106.1 (C) The Number of Works That May Be Included in the Group
- 1106.1 (D) The Works Must Be Registered in the Same Administrative Class
- 1106.1 (E) The Author and Claimant for Each Work Must Be the Same
- 1106.2 Application Requirements
- 1106.3 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1106.4 Deposit Requirements
- 1106.5 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Unpublished Works
- 1106.5 (A) Type of Works
- 1106.5 (B) Titles of the Works
- 1106.5 (C) Year of Completion / Year of Creation
- 1106.5 (D) Authors / Claimants
- 1106.5 (E) Anonymous and Pseudonymous Works
- 1106.5 (F) Works Made for Hire
- 1106.5 (G) Author Created
- 1106.5 (H) Limitation of Claim
- 1106.5 (I) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1106.5 (J) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1106.5 (K) Special Handling
- 1106.5 (L) Certification
- 1106.6 Unpublished Collections Eliminated March 15, 2019
- 1106.1 Eligibility Requirements
- 1107 Group Registration of Serials
- 1107.1 What Is a Serial?
- 1107.2 Eligibility Requirements
- 1107.3 Application Requirements
- 1107.4 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1107.5 Deposit Requirements
- 1107.6 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Serials
- 1107.6 (A) Type of Group
- 1107.6 (B) Identifying the Serial
- 1107.6 (C) International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 1107.6 (D) Nation of First Publication / Author’s Citizenship
- 1107.6 (E) Volume, Number, Issue Date, and Date of Publication
- 1107.6 (F) Author / Claimant
- 1107.6 (G) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1107.6 (H) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1107.6 (I) Special Handling
- 1107.6 (J) Certification
- 1107.7 Scope of Protection for Serial Issues Registered Under the Group Registration Option
- 1108 Group Registration of Newspaper Issues
- 1108.1 What Is a Newspaper?
- 1108.2 Eligibility Requirements
- 1108.3 Application Requirements
- 1108.4 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1108.5 Deposit Requirements
- 1108.6 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Newspaper Issues
- 1108.6 (A) Type of Group
- 1108.6 (B) Identifying the Newspaper
- 1108.6 (C) International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 1108.6 (D) Publication Dates for the Issues in the Group
- 1108.6 (E) Nation of First Publication
- 1108.6 (F) Number of Issues in the Group
- 1108.6 (G) Author / Claimant
- 1108.6 (H) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1108.6 (I) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1108.6 (J) Special Handling
- 1108.6 (K) Certification
- 1108.7 Scope of Protection for Newspaper Issues Registered Under the Group Registration Option
- 1109 Group Registration of Newsletters
- 1109.1 What Is a Newsletter?
- 1109.2 Eligibility Requirements
- 1109.3 Application Requirements
- 1109.4 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1109.5 Deposit Requirements
- 1109.6 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Newsletter Issues
- 1109.6 (A) Type of Group
- 1109.6 (B) Identifying the Newsletter
- 1109.6 (C) International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 1109.6 (D) Publication Dates for the Issues in the Group
- 1109.6 (E) Nation of First Publication
- 1109.6 (F) Number of Issues in the Group
- 1109.6 (G) Author / Claimant
- 1109.6 (H) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1109.6 (I) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1109.6 (J) Special Handling
- 1109.6 (K) Certification
- 1109.7 Scope of Protection for Newsletter Issues Registered Under the Group Registration Option
- 1110 Group Registration for Contributions to Periodicals
- 1110.1 What Is a Contribution to a Periodical?
- 1110.2 Eligibility Requirements
- 1110.3 Application Requirements
- 1110.4 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1110.5 Deposit Requirements
- 1110.6 When May an Application for a Group Registration Be Filed?
- 1110.7 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Contributions to Periodicals
- 1110.7 (A) Type of Group
- 1110.7 (B) Identifying the Works Included within the Group
- 1110.7 (B) (1) Identifying the Contributions
- 1110.7 (B) (2) Identifying the Periodicals
- 1110.7 (C) Identifying the Author
- 1110.7 (D) Identifying the Copyrightable Material that the Author Created
- 1110.7 (E) Identifying the Copyright Claimant
- 1110.7 (F) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1110.7 (G) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1110.7 (H) Special Handling
- 1110.7 (I) Certification
- 1110.8 Contributions That Do Not Satisfy the Group Registration Requirements
- 1111 Group Registration of Short Online Literary Works
- 1111.1 What Is a Literary Work?
- 1111.2 What Is a Short Online Literary Work?
- 1111.3 Eligibility Requirements
- 1111.3 (A) All of the Works Must Be Short Online Literary Works
- 1111.3 (B) The Number of Works That May Be Included in the Group
- 1111.3 (C) The Number of Words in Each Work
- 1111.3 (D) All the Works Must Be First Published Online within Three Consecutive Calendar Months
- 1111.3 (E) The Author and Claimant for Each Work Must Be the Same Individual
- 1111.4 Application Requirements
- 1111.5 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1111.6 Deposit Requirements
- 1111.7 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Short Online Literary Works
- 1111.7 (A) Preparing the List of Titles, File Names, Publication Dates, and Word Counts
- 1111.7 (B) Type of Group
- 1111.7 (C) Title of the Group
- 1111.7 (D) Number of Works in the Group
- 1111.7 (E) Year of Completion
- 1111.7 (F) Earliest / Latest Publication Date
- 1111.7 (G) Nation of First Publication
- 1111.7 (H) File Name for the List
- 1111.7 (I) Titles of the Individual Works
- 1111.7 (J) Authors / Claimants
- 1111.7 (K) Anonymous and Pseudonymous Works
- 1111.7 (L) The Author’s Country of Citizenship or Domicile
- 1111.7 (M) Limitation of Claim
- 1111.7 (N) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1111.7 (O) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1111.7 (P) Special Handling
- 1111.7 (Q) Certification
- 1112 Group Registration of Database Updates and Revisions
- 1112.1 What Is a Database?
- 1112.2 The Scope of a Group Registration for a Database
- 1112.3 The Scope of a Group Registration for a Photographic Database
- 1112.4 Eligibility Requirements
- 1112.5 Application Requirements
- 1112.6 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1112.7 Deposit Requirements
- 1112.8 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Databases
- 1112.8 (A) Space 1: Title
- 1112.8 (B) Space 2: Name of Author / Nature of Authorship
- 1112.8 (C) Space 3 (a): Year in which Creation of This Work Was Completed
- 1112.8 (D) Space 3 (b): Date and Nation of First Publication of This Particular Work
- 1112.8 (E) Space 4: Copyright Claimant (s)
- 1112.8 (F) Spaces 5 & 6: Previous Registration / Derivative Work or Compilation
- 1112.8 (G) Space 8: Certification
- 1112.8 (H) Spaces 7 & 9: Correspondent and Mailing Address for the Certificate
- 1112.9 Effective Date of Registration for a Group of Revisions or Updates to a Database
- 1112.10 Databases That Do Not Satisfy the Group Registration Requirements
- 1113 [Reserved]
- 1114 Group Registration of Photographs
- 1114.1 Eligibility Requirements
- 1114.2 Application Requirements
- 1114.3 Filing Fee Requirements
- 1114.4 Deposit Requirements
- 1114.5 When May an Application for a Group Registration Be Filed?
- 1114.6 Completing the Application: Group Registration of Photographs
- 1114.6 (A) Preparing the Title List
- 1114.6 (B) Type of Group
- 1114.6 (C) Title of the Group
- 1114.6 (D) Title and Publication Information for Each Photograph
- 1114.6 (E) Number of Photographs in the Group
- 1114.6 (F) Year of Completion
- 1114.6 (G) Earliest / Latest Publication Date
- 1114.6 (H) Nation of Publication
- 1114.6 (I) Identifying the Author of the Photographs
- 1114.6 (I) (1) Photos Shot by an Individual Photographer
- 1114.6 (I) (2) Photos Created as Works Made For Hire
- 1114.6 (I) (3) The Author’s Country of Citizenship or Domicile
- 1114.6 (J) Identifying the Copyrightable Material that the Author Created
- 1114.6 (K) Identifying the Copyright Claimant
- 1114.6 (L) Rights and Permissions Information
- 1114.6 (M) Correspondent / Mailing Address for the Certificate of Registration
- 1114.6 (N) Special Handling
- 1114.6 (O) Certification
- 1114.7 Photographs That Do Not Satisfy the Group Registration Requirements for GRUPH or GRPPH
- 1115 [Reserved]
- 1116 Serials, Newspapers, and Newsletters at a Glance
- 1117 Photographs at a Glance
Chapter 1200
- 1201 What This Chapter Covers
- 1202 What Is a Mask Work?
- 1203 Mask Work Protection Distinguished from Copyright Protection
- 1204 Protectable Mask Works
- 1204.2 Originality
- 1204.3 Protectable Expression
- 1204.4 Eligibility Based on Nationality of Owner or Nation of First Commercial Exploitation
- 1204.5 Registration
- 1204.5 (B) Effective Date of Registration
- 1204.5 (C) Benefits of Registration
Chapter 1300
- 1301 What This Chapter Covers
- 1302 Vessel Design Protection Distinguished from Copyright Protection
- 1303 Definitions
- 1303.2 Hull
- 1303.3 Make Public
- 1303.4 Mold
- 1303.5 Original
- 1303.6 Plug
- 1303.7 Useful Article
- 1303.8 Vessel
Chapter 1400
- 1401 What This Chapter Covers
- 1402 Applications
- 1402.2 Statutory Requirements for Applications
- 1402.3 Types of Applications
Chapter 1500
- 1502 Deposit for Registration Distinguished from Mandatory Deposit
- 1503 Deposit for Registration
- 1503.2 Refusal to Register
Chapter 1600
- 1601 What This Chapter Covers
- 1602 What Is Preregistration?
- 1603 Eligibility Requirements
- 1603.1 Works That Are Eligible for Preregistration
- 1603.2 The Work Must Be Copyrightable
- 1603.3 A Portion of the Work Must Be Fixed
- 1603.4 The Work Must Be Unpublished
- 1603.5 The Work Must Be Intended for Commercial Distribution
- 1604 Preregistration Distinguished from Registration
- 1604.2 Uses of Preregistration
Chapter 1700
- 1701 What This Chapter Covers
- 1702 Registration Refused After Examination
- 1703 First Request for Reconsideration
- 1703.2 Review of the First Request for Reconsideration
Chapter 1800
- 1801 What This Chapter Covers
- 1802 Supplementary Registration: Correcting or Amplifying the Information in a Registration
- 1802.2 When May an Application for a Supplementary Registration Be Filed?
- 1802.3 Records That May Be Corrected or Amplified with a Supplementary Registration
- 1802.4 Records That Cannot Be Corrected or Amplified with a Supplementary Registration
- 1802.5 What Type of Information May Be Corrected or Amplified with a Supplementary Registration?
- 1802.6 Supplementary Registration Appropriate
- 1802.6 (B) Change in Name or Address
- 1802.6 (C) Title of the Work
- 1802.6 (D) Author (s) of the Work
- 1802.6 (E) Work Made for Hire
- 1802.6 (F) Copyright Claimant (s)
- 1802.6 (G) Year of Completion
- 1802.6 (H) Citizenship, Domicile, and Nation of First Publication
- 1802.6 (I) Publication Issues
- 1802.6 (J) The Claim to Copyright
Chapter 1900
- 1903 The Significance of Publication
- 1904 General Policies Concerning Publication
- 1904.2 Facts Stated in the Application
- 1904.3 Claim in a Published or Unpublished Work Contradicted by Information Provided Elsewhere, such as in the Registration Materials
Chapter 2000
Chapter 2100
- 2101 What This Chapter Covers
- PART I General Background
- 2102 Copyright Renewal
- PART II THE COPYRIGHT RENEWAL ACT OF 1992
- 2104 Affected Works
- 2105 Registration for the Original Term Is Not Required
- 2106 Renewal Registration Before Expiration of Original Term Is Optional
- 2107 Benefits Secured by Timely Renewal Registration
- 2108 Renewal Registration Is Possible Through Renewal and Extended Terms
- 2109 Benefits of Renewal Term Registration
Chapter 2200
- 2201 What This Chapter Covers
- 2202 Works Exempt From the Notice Requirement
- 2202.2 Post-Berne Works
- 2202.2 (B) Examination Guidelines for Post-Berne Works
Chapter 2300
- 2301 What This Chapter Covers
- 2302 The Recordation Section
- 2303 Recordation Distinguished from Registration
- 2304 What Types of Documents May or Must Be Recorded with the U.S. Copyright Office?
- 2304.1 (C) Designation of Agent to Receive Notifications of Alleged Infringement Under Section 512 (c) of the Copyright Act
Chapter 2400
- 2314 The Visual Arts Registry
- 2314.2 A Work of Visual Art Distinguished from Visual Art Works and Works of the Visual Arts
- 2314.3 The Purpose of the Visual Arts Registry
- 2314.4 Registration Distinguished from the Visual Arts Registry
- 2314.5 Recordation Requirements for a Visual Arts Registry Statement
- 2314.6 Who May Record a Visual Arts Registry Statement?
- 2314.7 When May a Visual Arts Registry Statement Be Recorded?
- 2314.8 How to Record a Visual Arts Registry Statement
- 2314.8 (B) Statements Submitted by or on Behalf of Building Owners
- 2403 Contact Information for RRCS
- 2404 The Public Records Reading Room
- 2405 Limitations on U.S. Copyright Office Services and Information
- 2405.2 Restricted Records
- 2405.3 Limitations on Services
- 2405.4 Delays for Requests Submitted by Mail