Do-It-Yourself Copyright Registration
We follow the three simple steps to copyright that the U.S. Copyright Office has to register your new original work and get copyright protection. You can register your work and get a copyright by yourself or you can hire Carson Patents for copyright registration assistance.
If you are looking to use copyrighted material, check out our article on how to get permission from copyright owner. It includes the steps to the process of requesting copyright permission as well as important relevant information.
The 3 steps to copyright:
- complete the copyright registration application;
- pay the copyright registration application fee; and
- deposit a copy of the work with U.S. Copyright Office
Important Note: The following 3 steps are the U.S. Copyright Office’s steps to get an author’s/artist’s new original work registered, not our own steps to copyright. This is how simple it is to register a copyright on your own.
Carson Patents
3 Steps to Copyright – How to Register an Original Work
Total Approximate Time 14 days
Copyright Step 1: Complete the Copyright Registration Application
The first step to registering your work and getting a copyright is to fill out the application. We recommend filling out the copyright registration application online. You can get printable forms from the U.S. Copyright Office’s website, but note that the filing fee for submitting a paper filing is nearly twice the fee for filing online.
There is a minimum of information needed to register a copyright. Basically all that is needed is the title of the work, the author’s/artist’s personal information (name, birth date, nationality or domicile), the nature of the authorship (whether it was made for hire), the creation date, the publication date, and the name and address of the claimant (usually the author or artist).
A claimant is the person submitting the work for registration (e.g. submitting a registration for a deceased relative’s work or for the person for whom the work has been performed under hire).
Access and complete the application in the Registration Portal. The U.S. Copyright Office website will guide you through the application and provide additional information.
Copyright Step 2: Pay the Copyright Registration Application Filing Fee
The second step to registering your work and getting a copyright is to pay the U.S Copyright Office filing fee. We recommend filling out the copyright registration application online and paying the filing fee online when the application is submitted.
The filing fee will cost between $45 and $125 when registering for the copyright protection yourself. If you pay online, the cost is only $45 if you are the author, the claimant, the work was not made for hire, and you are registering only one work. All other online filings are $65.
Note: The U.S Copyright Office filing fee goes up to $125 if you get the forms, print them, and file by mail.
Copyright Step 3: Deposit a Copy of the Original Work
The third step to registering your work and getting a copyright is to make a deposit of the work. If you are filing online, depositing the work means uploading a copy of it. By mail, a copy must be sent to the the U.S Copyright Office.
Note: You may not need to make a deposit if your work is already published. However, protection of a work through the U.S. Copyright Office is inexpensive.
Estimated Cost: 45 USD
Supply:
- Artist's/Author's original creation (work).
Tools:
- Internet connection and browser.