COMPENDIUM: Chapter 1400
Applications and Filing Fees
1401 What This Chapter Covers
This Chapter provides a general overview of the types of applications that may be used to register a work of authorship created or first published on or after January 1, 1978. It also discusses the filing fees for applying to register a work. For a detailed discussion of the U.S. Copyright Office's registration practices, see the following chapters:
• For information on how to complete an application for a basic registration, see Chapter 600.
• For information on how to complete an application for a group registration, see Chapter 1100.
• For information on how to complete an application to register a mask work or vessel design, see Chapters 1200 and 1300.
• For information on how to complete an application for a preregistration, see Chapter 1600.
• For information on how to complete an application for a supplementary registration, see Chapter 1800.
• For information on how to complete an application for a renewal registration, see Chapter 2100.
• For information concerning the deposit requirements, see Chapter 1500.
1402 Applications
To seek a copyright registration for a work of authorship, an applicant must provide the U.S. Copyright Office with a completed application, deposit copy(ies), and filing fee. This Section discusses the different types of copyright applications.
1402.1 Statutory Basis for the Application
The Copyright Act gives the Register of Copyrights the authority to create applications and to specify administrative classes of works for registration. See 17 U.S.C. §§ 408(c)(1), 409. Pursuant to this authority, the U.S. Copyright Office has created certain administrative classes for purposes of registration, including literary works, works of the performing arts, and works of the visual arts, among others. The Office has created different versions of the online application and different paper forms for different classes of works. Registration is administered by the Office's Registration Program, which includes three divisions: Literary, Performing Arts, and Visual Arts. Applications are assigned to one of the Registration Program's three divisions, depending on the classification of the work.
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