C.F.R. § 202.3(c)(2)(ii). There is no need to date the certification in an online application; the date will be added automatically when the application is received by the U.S. Copyright Office. See Online Registration of Claims to Copyright, 72 Fed. Reg. 36,883, 36,887 (July 6, 2007).
If the certification box has not been checked, or if a name is not provided in the field marked Name of Certifying Individual, the application will not be accepted by the electronic registration system.
For guidance concerning the Note to Copyright Office field on the Certification screen, see Section 605.2(A).
624.3(B) Paper Applications
A paper application should be signed and dated on space 8 of the application under the heading Handwritten Signature. In addition, the first and last name of the person who certified the application should be typed or printed on the space marked Typed or Printed Name and Date. 37 C.F.R. § 202.3(c)(2)(ii).
If the signature is illegible the registration specialist will add an annotation to the registration record, such as: “Regarding certification: image of signature on file in Copyright Office.”
The person who certifies the application should check one of the boxes on the application indicating whether he or she is an author of the work, the claimant specified in the application, an owner of one or more exclusive rights in the work, or a duly authorized agent of one of the foregoing persons. 37 C.F.R. § 202.3(c)(2)(i). Ordinarily, an application will be accepted if two or more of the boxes in space 8 have been checked unless there is reason to question the application.
- Checking the “author” box means that the person certifying the application is one of the authors of the work named in space 2 of the application.
- Checking the “other copyright claimant” box means that the person certifying the application is the copyright claimant named in space 4 of the application. It also means that the person certifying the application owns all the rights under the copyright that initially belonged to the author.
- Checking the “owner of exclusive rights” box means that the person certifying the application owns one or more of the exclusive rights under the copyright, such as the right to distribute the work, or the right to perform the work publicly, etc.
- Checking the “authorized agent of” box means that the person certifying the application is an authorized representative of an author named in space 2 of the application, the copyright claimant named in space 4 of the application, or a party that owns one or more of the exclusive rights in the work. If the person certifying the application is a duly authorized agent, he or she should provide the name of the person or entity that he or she represents.
