Information Circular
|
|
Information Circular |
|
|
Circular 4 Copyright Office FeesIN GENERAL The 1976 Copyright Act (title 17 of the United States Code) established statutory fees for certain services provided by the Copyright Office. These services include registering claims to copyright and renewal of claims, as well as recording documents, searching copyright records, and other services. In 1997 Congress passed a law giving the Register of Copyrights the authority to set these fees if certain conditions were met. See Pub. L. 105-80, III Stat. 1529 (1997). Section 708(a)(10) authorizes the Register of Copyrights to charge additional fees. The additional fees are fixed on the “basis of the cost of providing the service” “for any other special services requiring a substantial amount of time or expense.” PAYMENT OF FEES All remittances should be in the form of checks, bank money orders, or bank drafts payable to: Register of Copyrights. Except to replenish an established Copyright Office Deposit Account, electronic transfer of funds are not possible. For information on Deposit Accounts, request Circular 5, “How to Open and Maintain a Deposit Account in the Copyright Office.” If a check received in payment of the filing fee is returned to the Copyright Office as uncollectible, the Copyright Office will cancel the registration and will notify the remitter. The filing fee for processing an original, supplementary, or renewal application is nonrefundable, whether or not copyright registration is ultimately made. Do not send cash. The Copyright Office cannot assume any responsibility for the loss of currency sent in payment of copyright fees. If you are filing from outside the United States, your check or money order must be redeemable without a service or exchange fee through a U.S. institution, payable in U.S. dollars, and imprinted with American Banking Association routing numbers. Banks that have affiliates with American financial institutions may be able to provide this service. Postal money orders and international money orders that are negotiable only at a post office are not acceptable. Certain Fees and Services May Be Charged to a Credit Card Some fees may be charged by telephone and in person in the office. Others may only be charged in person in the office. Credit card payments are generally authorized only for services that do not require filing of applications or other materials. An exception is made for fees related to items that are hand-carried into the Public Information Office. Certifications and Documents Section: These fees may be charged in person in the office or by phone: additional certificates; copies of documents and deposits; searching, locating and retrieving deposits; certifications; and expedited processing. Public Information Office: These fees may only be charged in person in the office, not by phone: standard registration request forms; special handling requests for all standard registration requests; requests for services provided by the Certifications and Documents Section when the request is accompanied by a request for special handling; search requests for which a fee estimate has been provided; additional fee for each claim using the same deposit; full term retention fees; appeal fees; Secure Test processing fee; short fee payments when accompanied by a Remittance Due Notice; in-process retrieval fees; and online service providers fees. Reference and Bibliography Section: Requests for searches on a regular or expedited basis can be charged to a credit card by phone. Records Maintenance Unit: Computer time on COINS, printing from the Optical Disk, and photocopying can be charged in person in the office. Fiscal Control Section: Deposit Accounts maintained by the Fiscal Control Section may be replenished by credit card. See Circular 5, “How to Open and Maintain a Deposit Account in the Copyright Office.” NIE recordations and claims filed on Forms GATT and GATT/GRP may be paid by credit card if the card number is included in a separate letter that accompanies the form. SERVICES PROVIDED Registration of Copyright Claims A certificate bearing the Copyright Office seal is sent for each registration and renewal. For further information about copyright registration procedures, request Circular 1, “Copyright Basics.” For further information about filing an NIE, including a correction NIE, or registering a restored work under the URAA, request Circular 38b, “Highlights of Copyright Amendments Contained in the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA).” Recordation of Documents A document that relates to any disposition of a copyright, such as a transfer, will, or license, may be recorded in the Copyright Office. The basic fee of $80 covers a document of any length containing one title. Additional titles are $20 for each group of 10 or fewer titles. The Copyright Office will verify title counts. When processing is completed, the submitted document(s) will be returned with a certificate of recordation bearing the Copyright Office seal. For more information about recordation of documents, request Circular 12, “Recordation of Transfers and Other Documents.” PAYMENT OF FEES FOR RECORDATION ON FORM GATT, FORM GATT/GRP, AND NIES Credit cards may be used for filings under the Uruguay Round Agreements (URAA) when timely submitted. These filings include Notices of Intent to Enforce (NIE) a copyright and registrations made on Form GATT and Form GATT/GRP. The Copyright Office will accept VISA, MasterCard, and American Express for these filings only. Debit cards cannot be accepted for payment. To pay by credit card, the filer must provide in a separate letter the credit card’s name, number, and expiration date; the total amount authorized to be charged; and a signature authorizing the Copyright Office to charge the fees to that account. To protect its security, the credit card number must not appear on the NIE, Form GATT, or Form GATT/GRP because the notice and/or application becomes part of the public record. Filers of an NIE, Form GATT, or Form GATT/GRP may also pay by deposit account. See Circular 5, “How to Open and Maintain a Deposit Account in the U.S. Copyright Office.” Certifications Fees are cumulative. When the Copyright Office certifies a record, a certification fee is payable in addition to fees for other applicable services, such as searches or photoduplication. There is an additional charge of $80 for each hour or fraction of an hour required to locate completed Copyright Office records, except where the requestor supplies the Copyright Office with the registration number and year of registration. Under certain circumstances, the Copyright Office will locate and retrieve in-process materials for certification or for other purposes. The charge to retrieve in-process materials is $100 per hour. For more information about this service, request Circular 6, “Obtaining Access to and Copies of Copyright Office Records and Deposits.” Search Reports A written report is sent for each search. Upon request the Reference and Bibliography Section will estimate the fee required for a search, based on the hourly fee of $75. The fee must be received before the search is undertaken.
For more information about this service, request Circular 22, “How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work.” Receipt for Deposits Normally the certificate of registration will serve as a record of receipt for claims submitted under section 408 of the Copyright Act. For items submitted under section 407, mandatory deposit for the Library of Congress, the fee for a receipt for deposit is $10. Special Handling Expedited processing of an application for registration of a claim to copyright, a mask work claim, or a request for recordation of documents pertaining to a copyright is granted at the discretion of the Register of Copyrights in certain cases. Requests must include details that support the basis for the request. Examples of situations where a special handling request may be approved include pending or prospective litigation, cases involving the U.S. Customs Service, contractual matters, or publishing deadlines. The request must include a written certification, that is, a signed statement that the details are correct to the best of the requestor’s knowledge. Requests for special handling should be made in person in the Copyright Public Information Office, LM-401, Library of Congress, or by mail to: Special Handling For more information about special handling, request Circular 10, “Special Handling.” Full-Term Retention of Copyright Deposits The Copyright Office general policy is to retain published, registered copyright deposits for at least 5 years with the exception of deposits of published works registered in Class VA (visual arts). These are retained for at least 10 years. Unpublished deposits, however, are ordinarily kept for the full copyright term. Registrants who wish to ensure that the Copyright Office will keep their published deposits for the full length of the copyright term must pay a fee of $425 to cover processing and storage costs. Requests for full-term retention should be sent to: Library of Congress For further information on full-term retention, request Circular 96, Section 202.23, “Full-Term Retention of Copyright Deposits.” Surcharge for Expedited Reference and Bibliography Searches This service involves researching Copyright Office records for information on copyright registrations, renewals, and transfers and other documents. It may be provided on an expedited basis under certain conditions. The fee for expedited service is $250 per hour and is in addition to the $75 statutory fee for each hour or fraction thereof. Surcharge for Expedited Certifications and Documents Services Anyone may request an additional certificate of registration, copies of the copyright application, correspondence, and other documents related to copyright. These services may be provided under certain conditions on an expedited basis. Copies of the copyright deposit will be provided only when 1) written authorization is received from the copyright claimant of record or his/her designated agent or from the owner of any of the exclusive rights in the copyright; 2) the Copyright Office Litigation Statement Form is completed and received from an attorney or authorized representative in connection with actual or prospective litigation involving the copyrighted work; or 3) a court order is issued for a reproduction of a deposited article, facsimile, or identifying portion that is the subject of litigation in the court’s jurisdiction. The fees for expedited services are surcharges and will be added to the regular charge for the service provided (minimum 1 hour). Refunds Payments more than $50 in excess of the required fee will be refunded automatically, but refunds of $50 or less will only be made upon request. Filing fees remitted to the Copyright Office for basic, supplementary, or renewal registration and for special handling will not be refunded, whether or not copyright registration is ultimately made. To cover administrative and processing costs, fees received in conjunction with requests for services may not be refunded even when the services cannot be provided. Appeals When the Copyright Office refuses to register a claim to copyright, it notifies the applicant in writing of the refusal to register. After such notification, the applicant may appeal (seek reconsideration) within 120 calendar days, by sending a letter requesting reconsideration and setting forth his or her objections to the refusal. The cost of a first appeal (request for reconsideration) is $200 plus $20 for each additional claim in a related group. If registration is again refused, a second appeal (request for reconsideration) for reconsideration may be submitted. The cost of a second appeal is $500 plus $20 for each additional claim in a related group. The decision of the Board of Appeals for the second appeal constitutes final agency action. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION Information via the Internet: Circulars, announcements, regulations, other related materials, and all copyright application forms are available via the Internet. You may access these from the Copyright Office website at www.copyright.gov Information by fax: Circulars and other information (but not application forms) are available by using a touchtone phone to access Fax-on-Demand at (202)707-2600. Information by telephone: For general information about copyright, call the Copyright Public Information Office at (202)707-3000. The TTY number is (202)707-6737. Information specialists are on duty from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., eastern time, Monday through Friday, except federal holidays. Recorded information is available 24 hours a day. Or, if you know which application forms and circulars you want, request them from the Forms and Publications Hotline at (202)707-9100 24 hours a day. Leave a recorded message. Information by regular mail: Write to: Library of Congress Copyright Office FeesEffective as of July 1, 2002*
Other Copyright Service Fees
Rev. July 2002 This electronic version has been altered slightly from the original printed text for presentation on the World Wide Web. For a copy of the original circular, consult the PDF version or write to Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue S.E., Washington, D.C. 20559-6000. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||