Dates of Birth and Death: If the author is dead, the statute requires that
the year of death be included in the application unless the work is anony-
mous or pseudonymous. The author’s birth date is optional but is useful as
a form of identification. Leave this space blank if the author’s contribution
was a “work made for hire.”
Author’s Nationality or Domicile: Give the country of which the author
is a citizen or the country in which the author is domiciled. Nationality or
domicile must be given in all cases.
Nature of Authorship: After the words “Nature of Authorship,” give a brief
general statement of the nature of this particular author’s contribution to the
work. Examples: “Entire text”; “Coauthor of entire text”; “Computer pro-
gram”; “Editorial revisions”; “Compilation and English translation”; “New
text.”
General Instructions: Do not confuse “creation” with “publication.”
Every application for copyright registration must state “the year in which
creation of the work was completed.” Give the date and nation of first pub-
lication only if the work has been published.
Creation: Under the statute, a work is “created” when it is fixed in a copy
or phonorecord for the first time. Where a work has been prepared over a
period of time, the part of the work existing in fixed form on a particular
date constitutes the created work on that date. The date you give here should
be the year in which the author completed the particular version for which
registration is now being sought, even if other versions exist or if further
changes or additions are planned.
Publication: The statute defines “publication” as “the distribution of copies
or phonorecords of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of owner-
ship, or by rental, lease, or lending.” A work is also “published” if there has
been an “offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons
for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display.”
Give the full date (month, day, year) when, and the country where, publica-
tion first occurred. If first publication took place simultaneously in the United
States and other countries, it is sufficient to state “U.S.A.”
Name(s) and Address(es) of Copyright Claimant(s): Give the
name(s) and address(es) of the copyright claimant(s) in this work even if the
claimant is the same as the author. Copyright in a work belongs initially to
the author of the work (including, in the case of a work made for hire, the
employer or other person for whom the work was prepared). The copyright
claimant is either the author of the work or a person or organization to whom
the copyright initially belonging to the author has been transferred.
Transfer: The statute provides that, if the copyright claimant is not the
author, the application for registration must contain “a brief statement of how
the claimant obtained ownership of the copyright.” If any copyright claimant
named in space 4 is not an author named in space 2, give a brief statement
explaining how the claimant(s) obtained ownership of the copyright. Exam-
ples: “By written contract”; “Transfer of all rights by author”; “Assignment”;
“By will.” Do not attach transfer documents or other attachments or riders.
General Instructions: The questions in space 5 are intended to show
whether an earlier registration has been made for this work and, if so, whether
there is any basis for a new registration. As a general rule, only one basic
copyright registration can be made for the same version of a particular work.
Same Version: If this version is substantially the same as the work cov-
ered by a previous registration, a second registration is not generally possi ble
unless: (1) the work has been registered in unpublished form and a second
registration is now being sought to cover this first published edition; or (2)
someone other than the author is identified as copyright claimant in the ear-
lier registration, and the author is now seeking registration in his or her own
name. If either of these two exceptions applies, check the appropriate box and
give the earlier registration number and date. Otherwise, do not submit Form
TX. Instead, write the Copyright Office for information about supplementary
registration or recordation of transfers of copyright ownership.
Changed Version: If the work has been changed and you are now seeking
registration to cover the additions or revisions, check the last box in space
5, give the earlier registration number and date, and complete both parts of
space 6 in accordance with the instructions below.
Previous Registration Number and Date: If more than one previous reg-
istration has been made for the work, give the number and date of the latest
registration.
General Instructions: Complete space 6 if this work is a “changed
version,” “compilation,” or “derivative work” and if it incorporates one or
more earlier works that have already been published or registered for copy-
right or that have fallen into the public domain. A “compilation” is defined
as “a work formed by the collection and assembling of preexisting materi-
als or of data that are selected, coordinated, or arranged in such a way that
the resulting work as a whole constitutes an original work of authorship.”
A “derivative work” is “a work based on one or more preexisting works.”
Examples of derivative works include translations, fictionalizations, abridg-
ments, condensations, or “any other form in which a work may be recast,
transformed, or adapted.” Derivative works also include works “consisting of
editorial revisions, annotations, or other modifications” if these changes, as
a whole, represent an original work of authorship.
Preexisting Material (space 6a): For derivative works, complete this space
and space 6b. In space 6a identify the preexisting work that has been recast,
transformed, or adapted. The preexisting work may be material that has been
previously published, previously registered, or that is in the public domain.
An example of preexisting material might be: “Russian version of Goncha
-
rov’s ‘Oblomov.’”
Material Added to This Work (space 6b): Give a brief, general statement
of the new material covered by the copyright claim for which registration is
sought. Derivative work examples include: “Foreword, editing, critical annota-
tions”; “Translation”; “Chapters 11–17.” If the work is a compilation, describe
both the compilation itself and the material that has been compiled. Example:
“Compilation of certain 1917 speeches by Woodrow Wilson.” A work may be
both a derivative work and compilation, in which case a sample statement
might be: “Compilation and additional new material.”
Deposit Account: If you maintain a Deposit Account in the Copyright
Office, identify it in space 7a. Otherwise leave the space blank and send the
fee with your application and deposit.
Correspondence (space 7b): Give the name, address, area code, telephone
number, fax number, and email address (if available) of the person to be con-
sulted if correspondence about this application becomes necessary.
Certification (space 8): The application cannot be accepted unless it bears
the date and the signature of the author or other copyright claimant, or the
owner of exclusive right(s), or the duly authorized agent of author, claimant,
or owner of exclusive right(s).
Address for Return of Certificate (space 9): The address box must be com-
pleted legibly because the certificate will be returned in a window envelope.
SPACE 3: Creation and Publication
3
SPACE 4: Claimant(s)
4
SPACE 5: Previous Registration
5
SPACE 6: Derivative Work or Compilation
6
SPACE 7, 8,9: Fee, Correspondence,
Certication, Return Address
7,8,9
