Your Copyright Fee Just Went Up

If you are in the habit of filing your works with the US Copyright Office, it's going to cost you a bit more. $15 dollars more to be exact. That still won't break the bank if you play your cards right and use the bulk submission process. If you're not sure whether you should be filing your works with the copyright office, a good place to start is with their FAQ page.

Here's the scoop on the price increase.

The U.S. Copyright Office will increase its registration filing fee to $45 per application effective tomorrow July 1, 2006. Other increases include fees to document recordation, supplementary registration, search services, certifications of records and additional certificates.

This is the first basic registration filing fee increase since 1999, when the fee was raised from $20 to $30. The Office intends for the filing fee to support a substantial portion of the cost of the registration program. In March the Register of Copyrights submitted a fee study to Congress of the costs the Copyright Office incurs in providing services, as well as an economic analysis and the proposed schedule of fees. This is the third schedule of fees set forth under legislation that went into effect in 1997 that allows the Register to set fees by regulation rather than statute. A Federal Register notice describes the adoption of the new fees.

Any request received in the U.S. Copyright Office on or after July 1, 2006, for a service whose fee is scheduled to increase on that date must be accompanied by the new fee. For more information or to review the fees visit the US Copyright Office.

What about you? Do you register your works with the copyright office? Why or why not? Leave me a comment.