the source country, if later) for certain works whose copyrights in the United States had been lost due to noncompliance with formalities (such as first publication without a copyright notice, noncompliance with the manufacturing clause, or failure to register a basic or renewal claim before the original term expired] or due to lack of eligibility or subject matter protection (in the case of sound recordings). For a copyright to be restored under this provision, the work had to have met certain criteria at the time of creation and first publication.
The URAA applies to pre-1978 works as well as post-1978 works. Generally, the provisions apply to published works of foreign origin, but they also may apply to certain unpublished works that were registered for the original term, or in the case of sound recordings, to those fixed prior to February 15, 1972.
For a general discussion of restored works and the registration requirements for such works, see Chapter 2000, Section 2007.
2143 Renewal Registration Not Appropriate for Restored Copyrights
To be eligible for renewal term registration, a work must have secured statutory protection by first publication with the statutory or U.C.C. notice (or soon thereafter by ad interim registration), or by registration as an unpublished work, and continued to meet all statutory requirements to maintain copyright through the full original term and into the renewal term. Therefore, a work that failed to secure copyright in the United States at the time of first publication, or lost it at any time during the original or renewal terms, is not eligible for renewal registration, even when copyright was restored in the United States under the provisions of the URAA.
2144 Copyright Terms for Restored Copyrights
Under Section 104A of the Copyright Act of 1976, restored works enjoy the remainder of the term that would have been granted in the United States had the copyrights not been lost. 17 U.S.C. §104A(a)(l)(B). Therefore, a work that initially secured copyright under the Copyright Act of 1909 by first publication with notice, or by registration as an unpublished work, but lost copyright at some point and then regained it under the URAA, enjoys the same term it would have been granted in the United States if copyright had remained uninterrupted. Likewise, a work that failed to secure copyright in the United States at the time of first publication enjoys the same term of copyright it would have been granted in the United States if statutory copyright had been secured upon publication.
NOTE: Some works of foreign origin first published abroad may have secured statutory copyright in the United States even when publication occurred without the statutory or U.C.C. notice. See Section 2115.2(F). If statutory copyright was secured in the United States and remained uninterrupted into the renewal term, registration under the URAA is not appropriate.
2145 Registration Under the URAA After Copyright in Source Country Has Expired
Provided a work of foreign origin met the eligibility requirements for restoration of copyright as of January 1,1996 (or as of the date of adherence or proclamation of
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