Notes for US citizens

USA flagUS copyright law

Prior to signing onto the Berne Convention in 1989 (the US Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988),  the US required works to be 'copyrighted' via the US Copyright Office. This is no longer the case and under the Berne Convention international citizens enjoy the same copyright protection in the US as they do elsewhere without any need to register via the US Copyright Office (although they do still operate a voluntary registration scheme).

There is however still a single stipulation that the US Copyright Office, which is run by the Library of Congress, makes in relation to US citizens. This appears in US Copyright Office document Circular 1 ‘Copyright Basics’ (source:http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf - October 2019) and states “Before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration (or refusal) is necessary for U.S. works”.

Because of this one statement we advise that US Citizens also consider registering with the US Copyright Office.

How does this affect you?

This rule ONLY applies to work created by US citizens or organisations and where an infringement suit is filed in the United States.

It does not affect copyright owners outside the US, (even if they need to bring a legal case in a US court), nor will it affect cases filed outside the US. In fact, under the terms of international conventions, US law must treat works by non-US authors as though they were registered in the US.

Can US citizens register with the UK Copyright Service?

Yes. The focus of our service and that of the US Copyright Office is not the same - the two may even be seen as complementary to some degree.

For historical reasons, registration in the US focuses on court proceedings within the US itself, and the main advantage of a US Copyright Office registration is potential statutory damages in a US court claim, while a registration with the UK Copyright Service ensures that you always have evidence available for any national or international legal case or dispute.

There are several benefits for US citizens who register with the UK Copyright Service, here are some considerations:

  • We can provide a copy of your work as evidence to support your claim in any international case.
  • Our response time to enquiries is very fast and this makes us more convenient to use outside the US
  • Unlike postal submissions to the US Copyright Office, our archive procedures include a backup service that ensures that we will always be able to provide a full and valid copy of your work, even if the original item you submitted becomes unreadable.
  • For an author with strong copyright evidence to file suit in court is fairly unusual, as with strong evidence behind you, most infringing parties would be very keen to reach a mutually amicable agreement and avoid legal costs.
  • US Copyright Office records are public records, which means anyone can inspect them, and it is a known (and allowed) practice for organisations to compile lists of names and addresses in order to send unsolicited mail, (source:https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-what.html - last checked February 2022).
    By contrast, UK Copyright Serviceclient records are treated as strictly confidential.
  • UK Copyright Service registrations are processed much quicker:

    Immediate cover is available via our online service, while postal applications are normally processed within 2 working days of receipt (see our service speed page).

    By contrast, the US Copyright Office states "The average processing time for all claims is 3.4 months", with an average 1.6 months (about 7 weeks) for "Claims that DO NOT require correspondence", (source:https://www.copyright.gov/registration/docs/processing-times-faqs.pdf - February 2022) and that other than an automatic email if you submit online they “do not provide a confirmation of receipt”.
    We feel this is a long time to wait to see if your submission was in order, and many US citizens find that registering with our service means that they can also be assured some intermediate protection whilst waiting for the US Copyright Office to process their application.