Copyrights and Foreign Works

*Photo by Timothy Vollmer is licensed under CC 2.0. *

The protections of our copyright laws are not limited to the original works of Americans or even to works created within the United States. Congress has provided protections for certain foreign works as well. These protections, however, are not without limit and require that certain conditions be met.

First, copyright protection extends to all unpublished works, whether foreign or domestic. Published works, however, must satisfy certain conditions to qualify for copyright protection within the United States. Any foreign works that can satisfy just one of the following requirements will receive protection:

1. If upon the date of first publication, any of the authors is an American national or living within the United States, copyright protections attach.
2. If upon the first date of publication, any of the authors is a national, sovereign authority of, or simply living within a foreign country that is party to a treaty that so provides, copyright protections attach.
3. If upon the first date of publication, any of the authors has no state, copyright protections attach regardless of where that author may live.
4. If the work is first published within the United States or in any other country that is party to a treaty that so provides, copyright protections attach. Works that are originally published outside the United States or a treaty party state may still qualify for this condition if they are published in the United States or a treaty party state within thirty days of the original publication.
5. If the work is a sound recording that was first created in the United States or a treaty party state, copyright protections attach.
6. If the work is a pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work that is incorporated within an architectural structure located within the United States or treaty party state, copyright protections attach.
7. Works published by the United Nations or the Organization of American States receive protections.
8. Foreign works within the public domain in the United States prior to 1996 that received restored copyright protections pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreements receive copyright protections. (Click here for additional information on the Uruguay Round Agreements.)
9. When the President finds that a foreign country extends copyright protections to works by American nationals on substantially the same basis as it extends such protections to its own nationals, the President may extend copyright protections to works created by a national of that foreign country by a Presidential proclamation.

Regardless of the provisions above, however, it is always a good idea to register copyrights, even of foreign works, with the United States Copyright Office, to ensure the protection of your rights within the United States.

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Sources:

Copyright Basics

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See Also:

How to Secure a Copyright

Understanding Copyrights