3 Tips to Save Money on Copyright Registration

Here are three tips to save you money when registering your works with the U.S. Copyright Office. While most people can file for copyright registration without the help of an attorney, a copyright lawyer can help you find the least expensive way to protect your creative work.

1. Register online

   Starting with an easy one, simply filing online saves copyright registrants money. The U.S. Copyright Office’s current online registration fee is as low as $65 for a Standard Application (or even $45 for a “single author, same claimant, one work, not for hire”), while paper filings for most registrations start at $125!

   See Copyright Office Circular 4 for more information.

2. Register a collection of works

   Do you regularly produce multiple copyrightable works? Most creators do! Musicians write full albums of songs, photographers take photographs for a collection, and many streamers upload a new copyrightable video every day.

   The U.S. Copyright Office allows registrants to register up to ten unpublished works with the same application. While in some cases creators should file for protection as soon as a single work is created, waiting until a collection is complete to register multiple works simultaneously can save recurring registration costs.

   See Copyright Office Circular 24 for more information.

3. Don’t wait until you need to sue (or are being sued!) to register

   Copyright registrants can request the copyright application be processed on an expedited basis in some cases, such as a pending or prospective lawsuit and contract or publishing deadlines, to get a registration or recordation more quickly. However, expedited copyright filing will cost you significantly more. The U.S. Copyright Office’s current “special handling fee” for expediting requests is $800 for registration and $550 for recordation.

   See Copyright Office Circular 10 for more information.