Get Artist Group Registration Us Form

Like anything else that can be copyrighted, artwork is protected by copyright when the art is affixed in a tangible form (such as a painting, sculpture, or drawing). You have to register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office if you want to be able to take infringers to court and be awarded damages.

You may register up to ten unpublished works by (1) completing the online application for a "Group of Unpublished Works", (2) paying the nonrefundable filing fee, and (3) uploading a separate digital copy of each work in a separate electronic file. Do not combine your works into one PDF file.

All the works must have the same copyright claimant. All the works must be by the same author. The author of each work must be an individual, not an employer or other person for whom the work was made for hire. Each work must have been first published as a contribution to a periodical within a 12-month period.

Copyright covers both published and unpublished works. What does copyright protect? Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture.

Unpublished works are those which have not been distributed in any manner. Although prior to 1978, copyright protection generally was available only for published works, such protection is now available for published as well as unpublished works.

Which form should I use? Online registration through the electronic Copyright Office (eCO) is the preferred way to register basic claims. Paper versions of Form TX (literary works); Form VA (visual arts works); Form PA (performing arts); Form SR (sound recordings) are available on the Copyright Office website.

To register a claim to copyright in a musical composition, you must submit the following to the Copyright Office: (1) a completed application form; (2) a nonrefundable filing fee; and (3) the required “deposit copies” of your work. This circular highlights issues common to registrations of musical compositions.

The author is also the owner of copyright unless there is a written agreement by which the author assigns the copyright to another person or entity, such as a publisher. In cases of works made for hire, the employer or commissioning party is considered to be the author.