- 601 What This Chapter Covers
- 602 General U.S. Copyright Office Examination Practices
- 602.1 Completion of the Application
- 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
- 602.5 General Practices for Processing Information Provided in a Paper Application
- 602.6 General Policy Regarding Location of Information
- 602.7 General Practices Regarding Missing Information
- 602.8 General Policy Regarding Extraneous Information
- 602.9 General Policy Regarding Social Security Numbers, Driver’s License Numbers, Credit Card Numbers, and Bank Account Numbers
- 602.10 General Practices Regarding Cataloging Information
- 603 Variances
- 603.1 Immaterial Variances
- 603.2 Material Variances
- 603.2 (A) Material Variances That May Be Resolved by Amending the Registration Record without Annotating
- 603.2 (B) Material Variances That May Be Resolved by Amending and Annotating the Registration Record
- 603.2 (C) Material Variances That Cannot Be Resolved by Amending or Annotating the Registration Record
- 604 Annotations
- 604.1 Addressing Variances in the Registration Materials
- 604.2 Adding Comments to the Registration Record
- 604.3 Adding Missing Information to the Registration Record
- 604.4 Documenting Communications with the Applicant
- 604.5 Placement of the Annotation
- 604.6 Annotations Are Part of the Registration Record
- 605 Communications Between the Applicant and the Registration Specialist
- 605.1 General Policies
- 605.2 Communicating with the U.S. Copyright Office
- 605.3 Communications from the U.S. Copyright Office
- 605.3 (A) The U.S. Copyright Office’s Email Addresses
- 605.3 (B) When the U.S. Copyright Office Will Communicate with the Applicant
- 605.3 (C) Records Concerning U.S. Copyright Office Communications
- 605.3 (D) Communication from the U.S. Copyright Office May Address Multiple Issues
- 605.3 (E) Oral Communications
- 605.3 (F) Written Communications
- 605.4 Case Numbers, Service Request Numbers, THREAD ID Numbers, and Correspondence Identification Numbers
- 605.5 Applicant’s Internal Tracking Number
- 605.6 Deadlines for Responding to Communications from the U.S. Copyright Office
- 605.7 File Closed Following a Failure to Respond to a Written Communication from the U.S. Copyright Office
- 605.8 Procedure for Reopening a Closed Application
- 605.9 Withdrawing an Application
- 606 Warnings
- 607 Registration Made Under the Rule of Doubt
- 608 Refusal to Register
- 609 Identifying the Work That the Applicant Intends to Register
- 610 Title of the Work
- 610.1 Title Types
- 610.2 Title of Work Being Registered / Title of this Work
- 610.3 Previous or Alternative Title
- 610.4 Works Containing Separate and Independent Works: Units of Publication, Collective Works, and Contributions to Collective Works
- 610.5 Series Title
- 610.6 Examination Guidelines: Title of Work
- 610.6 (A) Untitled Works
- 610.6 (B) Descriptive Titles That Appear to Be Incorrect
- 610.6 (C) Titles Consisting of Roman Letters and Arabic Numerals
- 610.6 (D) Title of the Work: Variances
- 610.6 (D) (1) Variances between the Title Provided in the Application and the Title That Appears on the Deposit Copy (ies)
- 610.6 (D) (2) Title That Appears on the Deposit Copy (ies) is More Complete Than the Title Provided in the Application
- 610.6 (D) (3) Edition Number, Version Number, or Other Identifying Information Not Provided
- 610.6 (D) (4) Material Variances Between the Title Provided in the Application and the Title That Appears on the Deposit Copy (ies)
- 611 Year of Completion / Year in Which Creation of This Work Was Completed
- 612 Date of Publication
- 612.1 General Policy
- 612.2 What Constitutes Publication?
- 612.3 Determining whether the Work Is Published or Unpublished
- 612.4 What Is the Date of First Publication?
- 612.5 What Is the Nation of First Publication?
- 612.6 Completing the Application: Date and Nation of First Publication
- 612.7 Examination Guidelines: Date and Nation of First Publication
- 612.7 (A) Claim in a Published Work Contradicted by Information Provided Elsewhere in the Registration Materials
- 612.7 (B) Claim in an Unpublished Work Contradicted by Information Provided Elsewhere in the Registration Materials
- 612.7 (C) Nation of Publication Given in a Paper Application without a Date of Publication
- 612.7 (D) Extraneous Statements Concerning Publication
- 612.7 (E) Month, Day, and Year Required for the Date of First Publication
- 612.7 (F) Exact Date of Publication Unknown
- 612.7 (G) Multiple Dates of Publication
- 612.7 (H) Future Date of Publication
- 612.7 (I) Impossible, Impractical, or Implausible Date of Publication
- 612.7 (J) Nation of First Publication: Works Published in Multiple Countries
- 612.7 (K) Nation of First Publication Unclear
- 612.7 (L) Nation of First Publication Unknown
- 613 Name of Author (s)
- 613.1 Who Is the Author?
- 613.2 When Authorship Is Determined
- 613.3 Identifying the Authors Who Should Be Named in the Application
- 613.4 Identifying the Authors of a Work Made for Hire
- 613.5 Identifying the Authors of a Joint Work
- 613.6 Identifying the Author of a Derivative Work
- 613.7 Identifying the Author of a Compilation
- 613.8 Identifying the Author of a Collective Work or a Contribution to a Collective Work
- 613.9 Completing the Application: Name of Author
- 613.10 Examination Guidelines: Name of Author
- 613.10 (A) Name of Author Unclear
- 613.10 (B) Name of Author: Variances
- 613.10 (C) Name of Author Not Required
- 613.10 (D) Name of Author Unknown
- 613.10 (E) Name of the Author Omitted: Works Created by a Single Author
- 613.10 (F) Name of an Author Omitted: Works Created by Large Numbers of Authors
- 614 Works Made for Hire
- 614.1 Completing the Application: Works Made for Hire
- 614.1 (A) Year of Completion and Date of Publication
- 614.1 (B) Identifying the Author of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.1 (C) Identifying the Citizenship and / or Domicile of the Author
- 614.1 (D) Year of Birth and Death Not Required for Works Made for Hire
- 614.1 (E) Registering a Work Made for Hire as an Anonymous or Pseudonymous Work
- 614.1 (F) Identifying the Claimant for a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 Examination Guidelines: Works Made for Hire
- 614.2 (A) Identifying the Work as a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) Identifying the Author of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (1) Was the Work Created by an Employee Acting within the Scope of His or Her Duties?
- 614.2 (B) (2) Was the Work Specially Ordered or Commissioned as a Work Made for Hire?
- 614.2 (B) (3) Naming the Employee or the Individual Who Actually Created the Work as the Author of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (4) Volunteer Created Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (5) Organization Named as the Author of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (6) Individual Named as Author of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (7) Individual and Incorporated Organization Named Together as the Authors of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.2 (B) (8) Individual and Unincorporated Organization Named Together as the Authors of a Work Made for Hire
- 614.1 Completing the Application: Works Made for Hire
- 615 Anonymous and Pseudonymous Works
- 616 Year of Author’s Birth and Death
- 617 Citizenship and Domicile of the Author
- 617.1 What Is the Author’s Citizenship and Domicile?
- 617.2 Determining the Author’s Citizenship or Domicile for a Published Work
- 617.3 Determining the Author’s Citizenship or Domicile for a Work Made for Hire
- 617.4 Determining the Author’s Citizenship or Domicile for Anonymous and Pseudonymous Works
- 617.5 Determining the Author’s Citizenship or Domicile for Compilations and Derivative Works
- 617.6 Completing the Application: Citizenship and Domicile
- 617.7 Examination Guidelines: Citizenship and Domicile
- 618 Author Created / Nature of Authorship
- 618.1 Asserting a Claim to Copyright
- 618.2 Limiting the Claim to Copyright
- 618.3 The Relationship Between the Author Created / Limitation of Claim Fields in the Online Application and the Relationship Between Spaces 2, 5, 6 (a), and 6 (b) in the Paper Application
- 618.4 Completing the Application: Author Created / Nature of Authorship
- 618.5 Derivative Works
- 618.6 Compilations
- 618.7 Collective Works
- 618.7 (A) Asserting a Claim to Copyright in a Collective Work
- 618.7 (B) Asserting a Claim to Copyright in a Contribution to a Collective Work
- 618.7 (C) Asserting a Claim to Copyright in a Serial Publication
- 618.7 (D) Examples for Asserting a Claim to Copyright in a Collective Work and / or a Contribution to a Collective Work
- 618.8 Examination Guidelines: Author Created / Nature of Authorship
- 618.8 (A) Authorship Unclear
- 618.8 (A) (1) Design
- 618.8 (A) (2) Game
- 618.8 (A) (3) Packaging
- 618.8 (A) (4) Author, Artist, Writer, Songwriter, Editor, and Other Professional Designations
- 618.8 (A) (5) Story, Story Idea, Story Concept, Story Line
- 618.8 (A) (6) Conceived, Conception
- 618.8 (A) (7) Plot
- 618.8 (A) (8) Character (s)
- 618.8 (A) (9) Research
- 618.8 (A) (10) Unclear Terms for Musical Works and Sound Recordings
- 618.8 (A) (11) Entire Work and Other Unspecific Terms
- 618.8 (B) Percentage of Authorship
- 618.8 (C) Uncopyrightable Material Claimed in the Author Created Field or the Nature of Authorship Space
- 618.8 (C) (1) Deposit Copy (ies) Containing Copyrightable Authorship and Uncopyrightable Material; No Claim Asserted in Uncopyrightable Material
- 618.8 (C) (2) Claim in Copyrightable Authorship and Uncopyrightable Material
- 618.8 (C) (3) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Deposit Copy (ies) Contain Copyrightable Authorship
- 618.8 (C) (4) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Acceptable Authorship Statement Used to Describe Uncopyrightable Material
- 618.8 (C) (5) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Works Created by Two or More Authors
- 618.8 (C) (6) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Registration Refused
- 618.8 (D) De Minimis Material Claimed in the Author Created Field or the Nature of Authorship Space
- 618.8 (D) (1) Deposit Copy (ies) Contain Copyrightable Authorship and De Minimis Material; No Claim Asserted in the De Minimis Material
- 618.8 (D) (2) Claim in Copyrightable Authorship and De Minimis Material
- 618.8 (D) (3) Claim in De Minimis Material: Works Created by Two or More Authors
- 618.8 (D) (4) Claim in De Minimis Material: Registration Refused
- 618.8 (E) Variances Between the Information Provided in the Application and Elsewhere in the Registration Materials
- 618.8 (F) Material Claimed in the Author Created Field or Nature of Authorship Space Not Found in the Deposit Copy (ies)
- 618.8 (G) Copyrightable Material in the Deposit Copy (ies) That Has Not Been Claimed in the Application
- 618.8 (H) Nature of Authorship Statement Omitted from a Paper Application
- 618.8 (I) Nature of This Work
- 618.8 (A) Authorship Unclear
- 619 Name of Claimant
- 619.1 Who Is Eligible to Be a Copyright Claimant?
- 619.2 The Claimant Must Be an Individual or a Legal Entity
- 619.3 When Is an Individual or Legal Entity Eligible to Be a Copyright Claimant?
- 619.4 Claimants Distinguished from the Owner of a Copy or Phonorecord of the Work
- 619.5 Claimants Distinguished from the Applicant and the Correspondent
- 619.6 Naming the Author as Claimant
- 619.7 The Author May Be Named as Claimant Even if the Author Has Transferred the Copyright to Another Party
- 619.8 Naming a Transferee as Claimant
- 619.9 A Party That Owns One or More — but Less than All — of the Exclusive Rights May File an Application to Register a Copyright Claim, but Cannot Be Named as the Copyright Claimant
- 619.10 A Nonexclusive Licensee Cannot Be a Claimant
- 619.11 One Registration Per Work
- 619.12 Completing the Application: Name of Claimant
- 619.13 Examination Guidelines: Name of Claimant
- 619.13 (A) Nicknames, First Names, Last Names, and Abbreviated Versions of the Claimant’s Name
- 619.13 (B) Initials
- 619.13 (C) Identifying the Author of a Pseudonymous Work as the Copyright Claimant
- 619.13 (D) Identifying the Author of an Anonymous Work as the Copyright Claimant
- 619.13 (E) Two or More Names Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (E) (1) Applications Submitted on Behalf of the Copyright Claimant
- 619.13 (E) (2) Two or More Names Separated by Conjunctions or Punctuations Marks in a Paper Application
- 619.13 (E) (3) Individual Name Listed Above or Below the Name of a Legal Entity in a Paper Application
- 619.13 (F) Group of Individuals Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (G) Individual and Unincorporated Business Organization Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (H) Individual and Incorporated Organization Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (I) Partnership Named as Claimant
- 619.13 (J) Trust or Estate Named as Claimant
- 619.13 (K) Variances Between the Name Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space and Elsewhere in the Registration Materials
- 619.13 (L) Variance Between the Name Provided in the Name of Claimant Field / Space and the Copyright Notice
- 619.13 (M) Statements Concerning the Claim to Copyright in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (N) Percentage of Copyright Ownership in the Name of Claimant Field / Space
- 619.13 (O) Owner of Copyright for a Limited Term
- 619.13 (P) Future and Contingent Interests
- 619.13 (Q) Deceased Individual or Defunct Entity Named as a Claimant
- 619.13 (R) Identifying the Claimant by Referring to Other Records
- 619.13 (S) Name of Claimant Unknown
- 619.13 (T) Name or Address of Claimant Omitted
- 620 Transfer Statement
- 620.1 What Is a Transfer of Copyright Ownership?
- 620.2 What Is a Transfer Statement?
- 620.3 Transfer Statement Distinguished from an Instrument or Conveyance That Transfers the Copyright from One Party to Another
- 620.4 When Is a Transfer Statement Required?
- 620.5 Joint Works
- 620.6 Works by Two or More Authors That Do Not Meet the Statutory Definition of a Joint Work
- 620.7 Derivative Works and Compilations
- 620.8 Collective Works
- 620.9 Completing the Application: Transfer Statement
- 620.10 Examination Guidelines: Transfer Statement
- 620.10 (C) Unacceptable Transfer Statements
- 620.10 (C) (1) Transfer by Oral Agreement
- 620.10 (C) (2) Transfer of One or More — but Less than All — of the Rights under Copyright
- 620.10 (C) (3) Transfer Statements That Merely Describe the Relationship between the Author and the Copyright Claimant
- 620.10 (C) (4) Transfer or Possession of Material Object
- 620.10 (D) No Transfer Statement Given
- 620.10 (D) (2) Same Person Is Named as Author and Claimant
- 620.11 Extraneous Information Provided in the Transfer Statement Field / Space
- 621 Limitation of Claim
- 621.1 What Is Unclaimable Material?
- 621.2 Unclaimable Material That Need Not Be Excluded from the Application
- 621.3 The Relationship Between the Author Created / Limitation of Claim Fields in the Online Application and the Relationship Between Spaces 2, 6 (a), and 6 (b) of the Paper Application
- 621.4 Previously Published Material
- 621.5 Previously Registered Material
- 621.6 Public Domain Material
- 621.7 Copyrightable Material That Is Owned by an Individual or Entity Other Than the Claimant
- 621.8 Completing the Application: Limitation of Claim
- 621.8 (A) Identifying the Material That the Author Created
- 621.8 (B) Identifying Unclaimable Material That Should Be Excluded from the Claim
- 621.8 (C) Identifying the New Material That the Applicant Intends to Register
- 621.8 (C) (1) The Online Application: New Material Included Field
- 621.8 (C) (2) Paper Applications: Space 6 (b)
- 621.8 (D) Completing an Application to Register a Compilation, a Collective Work, and / or a Contribution to a Collective Work
- 621.8 (E) Examples for Identifying Unclaimable Material and the New Material That the Applicant Intends to Register
- 621.8 (F) Identifying Previously Registered Material That Should Be Excluded from the Claim
- 621.8 (G) Identifying Preregistered Material
- 621.9 Examination Guidelines: Limitation of Claim
- 621.9 (A) Limitation of Claim Not Required
- 621.9 (B) Identifying the Author of a Work That Contains an Appreciable Amount of Unclaimable Material
- 621.9 (C) Authorship Unclear
- 621.9 (D) Claim Clarified by Information Provided Elsewhere in the Registration Materials
- 621.9 (D) (1) Claim Clearly Defined by the Title of the Work
- 621.9 (D) (2) Claim Clarified by Information Provided in the Author Created Field or Nature of Authorship Space
- 621.9 (D) (3) Claim Clarified by Information Provided in the Limitation of Claim Screen or Spaces 6 (a) and / or 6 (b) of the Paper Application
- 621.9 (D) (4) Claim Clarified by Information Provided in Space 5 of the Paper Application
- 621.9 (D) (5) Claim Clarified by Information Provided in the Deposit Copy (ies)
- 621.9 (E) Uncopyrightable Material Claimed in the New Material Included Field or Space 6 (b)
- 621.9 (E) (1) Deposit Copy (ies) Contain Copyrightable Authorship and Uncopyrightable Material; No Claim Asserted in the Uncopyrightable Material
- 621.9 (E) (2) Claim in Copyrightable Authorship and Uncopyrightable Material
- 621.9 (E) (3) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Deposit Copy (ies) Contain Copyrightable Authorship
- 621.9 (E) (4) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Acceptable Authorship Statement Used to Describe Uncopyrightable Material
- 621.9 (E) (5) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Works Created by Two or More Authors
- 621.9 (E) (6) Claim in Uncopyrightable Material: Registration Refused
- 621.9 (F) De Minimis Material Claimed in the New Material Included Field or Space 6 (b)
- 621.9 (F) (1) Deposit Copy (ies) Contain Copyrightable Authorship and De Minimis Material; No Claim Asserted in the De Minimis Material
- 621.9 (F) (2) Claim in Copyrightable Authorship and De Minimis Material
- 621.9 (F) (3) Claim in De Minimis Material: Works Created by Two or More Authors
- 621.9 (F) (4) Claim in De Minimis Authorship: Registration Refused
- 621.9 (G) Discrepancies Between the Limitation of Claim Fields and the Deposit Copy (ies)
- 621.9 (H) Discrepancies Involving the Copyright Notice
- 621.9 (H) (1) Published Works
- 621.9 (H) (2) Unpublished Works
- 621.9 (I) Discrepancies Involving the Registration Number or Year of Registration in a Paper Application
- 621.9 (J) Reference to Previous Registration Clearly Erroneous
- 621.9 (K) Reference to a Preregistration in the Previous Registration Field/Space
- 622 Rights and Permissions Information / Correspondent / Mail Certificate
- 623 Special Handling
- 623.1 What Is Special Handling?
- 623.2 Justification for Special Handling
- 623.3 Examination Guidelines: Special Handling
- 623.4 Timeline for Special Handling Requests
- 623.5 Procedure for Requesting Special Handling
- 623.6 Special Handling Fee
- 623.7 Special Handling for Multiple Applications That Share the Same Deposit Copy
- 624 Certification
- 624.1 The Significance of the Certification
- 624.2 Who May Certify the Application?
- 624.2 (A) Application Certified by the Author or the Author’s Duly Authorized Agent
- 624.2 (B) Application Certified by a Party That Owns All the Rights under Copyright That Initially Belonged to the Author or That Party’s Duly Authorized Agent
- 624.2 (C) Application Certified by an Owner of One or More — but Less than All — of the Exclusive Rights or That Party’s Duly Authorized Agent
- 624.3 Completing the Application: Certification
- 624.4 Examination Guidelines: Certification
- 625 Registration Decision Date and Effective Date of Registration
- 625.1 Minimum Requirements for an Acceptable Application
- 625.2 Minimum Requirements for Acceptable Deposit Copy (ies)
- 625.2 (A) Acceptable File Formats for the Deposit Copy (ies) Accompanying an Online Application
- 625.2 (B) Unacceptable File Formats for the Deposit Copy (ies) Accompanying an Online Application
- 625.2 (C) Corrupted Deposit Copy (ies) Files Accompanying an Online Application
- 625.2 (D) Shipping Slips for Mailing Physical Deposit Copy (ies) to Accompany an Online Application
- 625.3 Minimum Requirements for an Acceptable Filing Fee
- 625.4 Minimum Requirements for Establishing an Effective Date of Registration Distinguished from the Requirements for Issuing a Certificate of Registration