Commons:Licensing

This page gives non-lawyers an overview of complicated copyright laws through an example-based tutorial. It aims to help uploaders decide whether an image or other media file is acceptable on Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia Commons accepts only free content, that is, images and other media files that can be used by anyone, anytime, for any purpose. The details are explained below. Wikimedia Commons accepts only media that are explicitly freely licensed, or that are in the public domain in at least the United States and in the source country of the work. Wikimedia Commons does not accept fair use justifications: see Commons:fair use. Media licensed under non-commercial only licenses also are not accepted. The license that applies to an image or media file must be indicated clearly on the file description page using a copyright tag. All information required by that license must be provided on the description page. The information given on the description page should be sufficient to allow others to verify the license status. It would be best to do this immediately in the summary field on the upload form. If you request permission from a copyright holder, please use the email template to do so.

Acceptable licenses

A copyright license is a formal permission stating who may use a copyrighted work and how they may use it. A license can only be granted by the copyright holder, which is usually the author (photographer, painter or similar).

This cartoon comics to explain why Commons does not accept "noncommercial" licenses. Click to view the full-size image.

All copyrighted material on Commons must be licensed under a free license that allows anyone to use the material for any purpose. In particular, the license must meet the following conditions:

• Republication and distribution must be allowed.
• Publication of derivative work must be allowed.
• Commercial use of the work must be allowed.
• The license must be perpetual (non-expiring) and non-revocable.
• Acknowledgment of all authors/contributors of a work may be required.
• Publication of derivative work under the same license may be required.
• For digital distribution, use of open file formats free of digital restrictions management (DRM) may be required.

The following restrictions must not apply to the image or other media file:

• Use by Wikimedia only (the only non-free-licensed exceptions hosted here are Wikimedia logos and other designs which are copyrighted by the Wikimedia Foundation).
• Noncommercial/Educational use only.
• Use under fair use only.
• Notification of the creator required, rather than requested, for all or for some uses.

For example, the following are generally not allowed:

• Screenshots of software that is itself not under a free license. However, screenshots of software under the GPL or a similar free software license are generally considered to be OK. See Commons:Screenshots.
• TV/DVD/Videogame screenshots. See Commons:Screenshots.
• Scans or reproductive photographs of copyrighted artwork, especially book covers, album/CD covers, etc. See Commons:Derivative works.
• Copyrighted symbols, logos, etc. (Not to be confused with trademarks.)
• Models, masks, toys, and other objects which represent a copyrighted work, such as a cartoon or movie character (rather than just a particular actor, regardless of a specific role). See Commons:Derivative works.

Commons also allows works that are not protected by copyright (i.e. works in the public domain). Please read the section about public domain below.

For an explanation of the justification for this licensing policy, see Commons:Licensing/Justifications.

Multi-licensing

This cartoon demonstrates the utility of multi-licensing one's own work. Click to view the full-size image.

File:Tharau.jpeg

Example of a free "own image" of a public place. Dual licensed by its author under GFDL and CC-BY-SA (see description page)

You can offer as many licenses for a file as you want as long as at least one of them meets the criteria for free licenses above. For example, files under a "non-commercial" license are OK only if they are at the same time also released under a free license that allows commercial use.

Multi-Licensing with restrictive licenses may be desirable for compatibility with the licensing scheme of other projects; also, multi-licensing allows people who create derivative work to release that work under a restrictive license only, if they wish—that is, it gives creators of derivative works more freedom with regards to which license they may use for their work.

Well-known licenses

The following well-known licenses are preferred for materials on Commons:

• Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike licenses
• GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL)
• GNU General Public License (GPL) / GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL)
• Free Art License

Again, works in the public domain are also accepted (see below). See Commons:Copyright tags for more licenses.

Note: The GFDL is not practical for photos and short texts, especially for printed media, because it requires that they be published along with the full text of the license. Thus, it is preferable to publish the work with a dual license, adding to the GFDL a license that permits use of the photo or text easily; a Creative Commons license, for example. Also, do not use the GPL and LGPL licenses as the only license for your own works if it can be avoided, as they are not really suitable for anything but software.

Works which are not available under a license which meets the Definition of Free Cultural Works are explicitly not allowed. See the Wikimedia Foundation board resolution on licensing for more information.

Some examples of licensing statuses commonly found on the Internet, but forbidden on Commons, include:

• Creative Commons Non-Commercial Only (-NC) licenses
• Creative Commons No-Derivatives (-ND) licenses
• Unlicensed material only usable under fair use, fair dealing, or other similar legal exceptions (see below for the reasons)

Non-permitted licenses may only be used on Commons if the work is multi-licensed under at least one permitted license.

License information

Example image with the recommended detailed image description (see image page)

All description pages on Commons must indicate clearly under which license the materials were published, and must contain the information required by the license (author, etc.) and should also contain information sufficient for others to verify the license status (source link) even when not required by the license itself or by copyright laws.

Specifically, the following information must be given on the description page, regardless if the license requires it or not:

• The License that applies to the material. This should be done using a copyright tag.
• The Source of the material. If the uploader is the author, this should be stated explicitly. (e.g. "Created by uploader", "Self-made", "Own work", etc.) Otherwise, please include a web link or a citation if possible. Note: Things like "Transferred from Wikipedia" are generally not considered a valid source unless that is where it was originally published. The primary source should be provided.
• The Author/Creator of the image or media file. For media that are considered to be in the public domain because the copyright has expired, the date of death of the author may also be crucial (see the section about public domain material below). A generic license template which implies that the uploader is the copyright holder (e.g. {{PD-self}}) is no substitution for this requirement. The only exceptions to this is if the author wishes to remain anonymous or in certain cases where the author is unknown but enough information exists to show the work is truly in the public domain (such as the date of creation/publication).

Of less importance, but should always be provided if possible:

• The Description of the image or media file. What is it of? How was it created?
• The Date and place of creation. For media that are considered to be in the public domain because the copyright has expired, the date of creation may be crucial (see the section about public domain material below).

These points of the description can be done at best using the Information template. For usage of this template see Commons:First steps/Quality and description.

Scope of licensing

In some cases, a document (media file) may have multiple aspects that can and have to be licensed: Every person that contributed a critical part of the work has rights to the results, and all have to make their contribution available under a free license—see derivative work. However, the distinctions are unclear and may differ from country to country. Here are a few examples to clarify:

• For a music recording, the following aspects must be taken into account, and each must be under a free license (or in the public domain):
  • The score of the music (rights by the composer)
  • The lyrics of the song (rights by the writer)
  • The performance (rights by the performers)
  • The recording (rights by the technical personnel / recording company)

• For a picture of artwork (also book covers and the like), it is similar:
  • The creator of the original artwork has rights to any reproductions and derivative work.
  • The photographer has rights to the image, if it is not a plain reproduction of the original.

• For a picture of a building, note that the architect may hold some rights if distinct architectural features are shown, but see also Commons:Freedom of panorama.

This is often problematic, if the artwork is not the primary content of the image or is not clearly recognizable: in that case, usually only the creator of the resulting picture (recording, etc.) holds a copyright. For instance, when taking a photograph of a group of people in a museum, the photo may also show some painting on the walls. In that case the copyright of those painting does not have to be taken into account. The distinction however is not very clear.

Note that the license for all aspects has to be determined and mentioned explicitly.

Also note that reproductions usually may not be copyrighted; the creator of an image of a picture owns no copyright to the resulting digital image. The only relevant copyright is that of the original picture. This also applies to Screenshots.

Material in the public domain

Commons accepts material that is in the public domain, that is, documents that are not eligible to copyright or for which the copyright has expired. But the "public domain" is complicated; copyright laws vary between countries, and thus a work may be in the public domain in one country, but still be copyrighted in another country. There are international treaties such as the Berne Convention that set some minimum standards, but individual countries are free to go beyond these minimums. A general rule of thumb is that if the creator of a work has been dead for more than 70 years, his works are in the public domain in the country the creator was a citizen of and in the country where the work was first published. If the work is anonymous or a collaborative work (e.g. an encyclopedia), it is typically in the public domain 70 years after the date of the first publication.

Many countries use such a copyright term of 70 years. A notable exception is the U.S. Due to historical circumstances, the U.S. has more complex rules. In the United States, copyright generally lasts:

• for works first published before 1978: until 95 years after the first publication, and
• for works first published 1978 or later: until 70 years after the author's death, or for anonymous works or work made for hire, until the shorter of 95 years since the first publication or 120 years since the creation of the work.
• Works published before 1923 are in the public domain.

For works created before 1978 but only published 1978 or later, there are some special rules. These terms apply in the U.S. also for foreign works.

However, the year and location of publication is essential. In several countries, material published before a certain year is in the public domain. In the U.S. this date is January 1, 1923. Furthermore, in some countries all material published by the government is public domain, while others claim some copyrights, yet others are very restrictive (see country specific details below).

Regarding the United States and non-U.S. works, one should bear in mind that the U.S. passed a law (the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, URAA) that restored copyrights in the U.S. on foreign works if that work was still copyrighted in the foreign source country on the URAA date. This URAA date was January 1, 1996 for most countries. This means that foreign works became copyrighted in the U.S. even if they had been in the public domain in the U.S. before the URAA date. See also Wikipedia:Non-U.S. copyrights.

In some jurisdictions (like the United States), one can also explicitly donate work one has created oneself to the public domain. In other places (like the European Union) this is technically not possible, but one can grant the right to use the picture freely with, for example, a Creative Commons license.

Interaction of United States copyright law and non-US copyright law

Every faithful reproduction of Mona Lisa is considered by Commons to be public domain. See "Exception" in text for details.

Commons is an international project, but its servers are located in the U.S., and its content should be maximally reusable. Uploads of non-U.S. works are normally allowed only if the work is either in the public domain or covered by a valid free license in both the U.S. and the country of origin of the work. The "country of origin" of a work is generally the country where the work was first published.

When uploading material from a country outside the U.S., the copyright laws of that country and the U.S. normally apply. If material that has been saved from a third-party website is uploaded to Commons, the copyright laws of the U.S., the country of residence of the uploader, and the country of location of the web servers of the website apply. Thus, any licence to use the material should apply in all relevant jurisdictions; if the material is in the public domain, it must normally be in the public domain in all these jurisdictions (plus in the country of origin of the work) for it to be allowable on Commons.

For example, if a person in the UK uploads a picture that has been saved off a French website to the Commons server, the upload must be covered by UK, French and US copyright law. For a photograph to be acceptable for upload to Commons, it must be public domain in France, the UK and the US, or there must be an acceptable copyright licence for the photograph that covers the UK, US and France.

Exception: Faithful reproductions of 2D works of art that are in the public domain are an exception to this rule following a WMF position statement in July 2008 to the effect that such photographs are themselves considered to be in the public domain. For details, see Commons:When to use the PD-Art tag.

Fair use material is not allowed on Commons

Wikimedia Commons does not accept fair use content. See Commons:Fair use.

Derivative works

This montage is an example of a derivative work. It combines various preexisting images that were released under the GFDL and other compatible free content licenses.

You want a picture of Mickey Mouse, but of course you can't just scan it in. Why not take a picture of a little action figure and then upload it? Don't. The reason why you can't upload photographs of such figures is that they are considered as derivative works. Such works can't be published without permission of the original creator.

The US Copyright Act of 1976, Section 101, says: "A derivative work is a work based upon one or more preexisting works, such as a translation, musical arrangement, dramatization, fictionalization, motion picture version, sound recording, art reproduction, abridgment, condensation, or any other form in which a work may be recast, transformed, or adapted. A work consisting of editorial revisions, annotations, elaborations, or other modifications which, as a whole, represent an original work of authorship, is a “derivative work”." A photograph of a copyrighted item is considered a derivative work in US jurisdiction. US Copyright Act of 1976, Section 106: "(...) The owner of copyright under this title has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize any of the following: (...) (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work;"

Therefore, "unauthorized" derivative works, like photographs of copyrighted action figures, toys, etc., must be deleted.

For more information, see Commons:Derivative works.

Simple design

Logo of Microsoft

Most commercial items and products are protected by intellectual property laws in one way or another, but copyright is only one such protection. It is important to make the distinction between copyright, trademarks, and patents. Wikimedia Commons generally only enforces copyright restrictions, for these reasons:

1. Almost anything can be trademarked, and it wouldn't make sense to forbid everything.
2. Trademarks and industrial designs restrictions are pertinent to industrial reproduction, but photographs of such items can otherwise be freely reproduced.

Commons accepts images of text in a general typeface and of simple geometric shapes, even if it happens to be a trademarked logo. Such images should be tagged with {{PD-textlogo}}. Any design which is an artistic work may be copyrighted, however.

It is often very difficult to determine whether a design is protected by copyright or not, and images of these sorts are frequently nominated for deletion, with various results.

Fonts

The raster rendering of a font (or typeface) is not subject to copyright in the U.S., and therefore is in the public domain. It may be copyrighted in other countries (see Fonts on English Wikipedia). You should use {{PD-font}} in this case.

However, this does not apply to vector format images (like SVG) of fonts. In such case, you should check if the font was released under a free license, like OFL, and use {{Open Font}} if applicable. Otherwise, the image should not be uploaded to Commons because it is not free.

Checklist

Let's assume you took a picture with your camera, or you've scanned it from somewhere, or you've downloaded it off a web server - and want to upload it to Wikimedia Commons. How do you know what's OK and what's not? Here's a simple chart that helps you decide. In cases of doubt, read the further advice for your country first. If you still don't know for sure, ask on Commons:Help desk or Commons:Village pump in your local language.

See Commons:Image casebook for a more complete list.

OK

Own photos of:

• Nature (forest, sky, etc.)
• Animals (cats, dogs, etc.)
• Insects (ants, beetles, etc.)
• Produce (apples, tomatoes, etc.)
• People who have given their consent for their image to be published
• Yourself (as long as you don't use this as your private webspace)
• Objects that are public domain by age both in the United States and your jurisdiction:
  • Buildings built by an architect who died 70+ (preferably 100+) years ago
  • Works of art created by an artist who died 70+ (preferably 100+) years ago
  • Books by authors who died 70+ (preferably 100+) years ago
  • Newspapers and Magazines published by an author who died 70+ (preferably 100+) years ago

Own scans of:

• Material where copyright has expired in both your jurisdiction and the United States.
• Pictures created entirely by you (based either on no earlier source or on a source which is in the public domain)

Material from web servers:

• Material where copyright has expired in your jurisdiction, the United States and the jurisdiction of the web server.

Questionable, may or may not be OK

All kinds of copyrighted material, when uploader does not own the copyright:

• Logos (only very simple designs are OK, see Simple design)
• Screenshots (see Commons:Screenshots)

Photographs, drawings, scans and other reproductions of:

• Cars (cars with only one color and without any ads, paintings etc. are OK)
• Products of daily use (simple designs are OK)
• Book covers (only very simple designs are OK)
• Currency (depends on country law; please see Commons:Currency)
• Buildings built by an architect who died less than 70 years ago (or is still alive) (see Freedom of panorama)
• Permanently installed works of art in a public place, created by an artist who died less than 70 years ago (or is still alive) (see Freedom of panorama)
• Interiors of private houses, homes, museums
• Celebrities (see Commons:Photographs_of_identifiable_people)
• Normal people who have not given their consent (see Commons:Photographs_of_identifiable_people)

not OK

• Fair use images
• Fan art that closely resembles copyrighted material
• Reproductions of objects that are copyrighted by someone other than yourself like the following:
  • Action figures, statuettes, costumes and other copyrighted material (see Derivative Works)
  • Album, videogame, movie and other commercial products covers, posters, newspapers and magazines of less than 70 years (covers and interiors).
• Sounds of things that are copyrighted by someone other than yourself like the following:
  • Copyrighted radio stations (programs and commercials)
  • Lyric songs created by an author who died less than 70 years ago (or is still alive)

International law

Berne Convention

Almost all countries in the world are party to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (see here for the text). Following this convention, countries enforce copyrights from other countries, according to certain rules. One consequence of these rules is that we should always care about the laws of the country of origin of the work.

Most important is article 7, which sets the term of duration of the protections granted by the Convention. The Convention sets a minimal term of 50 years after the life of the authors (subject to some exceptions). However, each country is free to set longer terms.

In any case, the term shall be governed by the legislation of the country where protection is claimed; however, unless the legislation of that country otherwise provides, the term shall not exceed the term fixed in the country of origin of the work.

Even though many countries have accepted the rule of the shorter term based on Article 7 of the Convention, please note that the United States Copyright Act has not honored such a rule. For example, 17 U.S.C. 104A(a)(1)(B) may restore copyright on a work published outside the USA for the remaining American copyright term even if its copyright may expire sooner in its source country. This may affect works that were still copyrighted on 1 January 1996 in their source countries. This mean that a work now in the public domain in a Commons user's home country might still be legally copyrighted in the USA. For further details, please visit w:en:Wikipedia:Non-US_copyrights#Dates_of_restoration_and_terms_of_protection for a list of American copyright restoration dates.

European copyright law

The European Union has issued directives harmonizing copyright rules in the European Union (see Copyright law of the European Union). Note, however, that directives, unlike European regulations, do not apply uniformly. They have to be transposed into national law by each country's legislature, and they often offer significant leeway in doing so. This is, for instance, the case for the legal exemptions of copyright (equivalent of "fair use"), which are allowed to differ within certain limits.

The most important, for our purposes, is the Directive on harmonizing the term of copyright protection (text). This directive sets the duration of copyright to 70 years following the death of the author (for multiple authors, of the last author; for collective, pseudonymous or anonymous works, following the date of publication).

However, this directive does not shorten already running extended copyright terms in countries that apply them.

The 2001 EUCD, article, 5 specifies exceptions to copyright. However, only one of these exceptions is mandatory (it concerns caching). The others are optional, meaning that for each exception, each country is free to choose whether it adopts it and how it restricts it. Thus, one should not assume that one exception true in one EU country applies in another. Notably, each country is free to chose how to copyright objects permanently located in public places and "simple" photographs.

Finally, there is considerable amounts of case law or jurisprudence on these issues. In some cases, they may create rights or restrictions that do not appear in the text of the law. Thus, one should always be wary in how the law is interpreted in the country of interest, as opposed to merely reading the legal texts.

Country-specific laws

Laws about copyright differ from country to country. Images uploaded to Commons, unless uploaded from the United States, involve the interaction of two or more copyright jurisdictions. Generally, the policy applied on Commons is to only allow images that can be used in all (or at least most) countries. The laws of individual countries differ especially in the following points:

• The time for which a copyright applies. In most countries, copyright expires no later than 70 years after the death of the author.
• Status of works of the government. In many (but not all) countries, documents published by the government for official use are in the public domain.
• Material applicable for copyright. In some jurisdictions, pictures of artistic work like architecture, sculptures, clothing etc. can not be used freely without the consent of the creator of the original artwork.

The safest way to apply international copyright law is to consider the laws of all the relevant jurisdictions and then use the most restrictive combination of laws to determine whether something is copyrighted or not. The jurisdictions that might need to be considered are:

• The place where the work was created;
• The place where the work is being uploaded from;
• The place that any web server the work has been downloaded from physically is;
• The United States.

A work is only allowed on Commons if it is either public domain in all relevant jurisdictions or if there is a free licence which applies to the work in all relevant jurisdictions.

In the case of a painting published in France please do apply US-American copyright laws as those copyright laws apply to the servers of Commons. Also apply the copyright laws of the country you are in and the copyright laws of any web server you got the work off. In the case of a French painting uploaded to Commons from a French web server by someone living in the UK three copyright jurisdictions would apply: France, UK and US. US law would mean that if the painting had not been published before 1923 it would be in copyright. British law would mean that if the painting was by an artist who had been dead for less than 70 years it would be in copyright. French law would mean that, if the painting was by an artist who died while in service for France (a concept called Mort pour la France), it would be in copyright for 100 years after the artist's death: an additional 30 years past the term provided by British law. In this case the most restrictive combination of jurisdictions would be French and US. Only if the painting was legally in the public domain in both France and the United States could it be uploaded from a French web server to Commons.

UNESCO has a collection of national copyright laws that should be referred to when creating country-specific tags such as those below.

Relevant country-specific differences in the duration of copyright (from 70 years pma) and exceptions of the application of copyright are discussed below (countries are listed in alphabetical order):

Afghanistan

It appears that Afghanistan has no copyright laws at all. See this information from WIPO, and also w:Afghanistan and copyright issues.

Albanien

According to Copyright law of Albania the duration of copyright is 70 years post mortem auctoris. Copyright terminates 70 years after publication for pseudonymous or anonymous work. The following are not copyrightable and thus in public domain:

• the ideas, theories, concepts, discoveries and inventions in a creative work, apart from the way of acquiring, explanation or expression;
• the official texts of a legal, administrative, legislative, political nature and their respective official translations;
• the official symbols of the state, symbols of other public organizations and public authorities, such as: Coat of arms, seals, flags, emblems, medallions, medals;
• Means of payment;
• news and press information;
• simple data and facts.
• Folk expressions.

Algerien

Algerian law states that photos and films are protected for 50 years starting from the end of the publication year, after which they are in the public domain.

Andorra

The copyright law of Andorra states that the copyright term lasts for life extended for 70 years as from the first of January of the year following the death of the author. In a work of joint authorship, the term of 70 years shall be calculated from the death of the last surviving joint author. In a work of an author/s not identified individually (collective, anonymous or pseudonymous), the term is 70 years from the first time at the public disposal.

This is not applicable to any official text of legislative, administrative or judicial nature. However, the works of architecture are protected.

Andorra is party to the Berne Convention since June 2, 2004.

Arab States

Laws are found in both Arab Committee for Protecting Intellectual Property and Arab Law Group Organization

Armenien

According to the Copyright law of 1999 the duration of copyright is 50 years after the death of the author and 50 years after publication for anonymous work. Moral rights are perpetual.

The copyright in a work created on an employment assignment shall belong to the author of the work.

Armenia has freedom of panorama limited to de minimis use and non-commercial purposes.

Please check article 6. in Armenian; it is very unclear in English.

Argentinien

See templates for details.

• {{PD-AR-Photo}}: photographs—not drawings or other works—published in Argentina 25+ years ago;
• {{PD-AR-Movie}}: movies whose script writer, producer, and director died 50+ years ago;
• {{PD-AR-Anonymous}}: anonymous works published 50+ years ago belonging to an institution, corporation or legal entity registered in Argentina;
• {{CC-AR-Presidency}}: photographs taken from the Presidency of Argentina web site.

Australien

Government-produced works

According to [1], copyright of works with commonwealth, state, or territory-owned copyright expires 50 years from the date of creation (rounded up to the nearest year). Following that logic, all government-created works created before 1 January 1974 should be in the public domain.

Non-government works

Presently, the Australian Copyright Act 1968[2] should be consulted to determine whether the copyright of a work produced or published in Australia has expired. The Australian Copyright act 1968 was amended as of the 1st January 2005 and further amended February 2008, prior to this the time limit was 50 years the amendment was not retrospective, copyrights that expired prior to this date were not revived [3]

• Australian copyright is applied to works published first in Australia or whose original author is/was an Australian citizen, Australian resident or person under protection of the Australian government.[4]
• For published works, the copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author.[5]
• For previously unpublished works, the copyright cannot expire less than 70 years after the first publication of the work. [6]
• For anonymous/pseudonymous works, the copyright expires 70 years after the first publication of the work.[7]

Following this logic:

• All published works whose author deceased before 1 January 1954 are in the public domain.
• What is more, since works that went out of copyright before the change of the law in 2005 did not regain copyright, all published works whose author died before 1 January 1954 are public domain, as they went out of copyright before the new law came into effect. Copyright is lost at the start of the next year, so works of authors who died in 1954 will not be out of copyright until 2025.
• All anonymous/pseudonymous works published before 1 January 1954 are in the public domain.
• Unpublished works are not in the public domain.

Note:

• Photographs taken prior to midnight on the 31st December 1954 are in the public domain[8], photographs taken on/after 1st January 1955 are not PD unless prescribed by the copyright owner.

Österreich

Freedom of panorama

Objects permanently located in public that can be photographed from public (accessible) grounds, without devices such as a ladder, can be used by its photographer for any purpose, regardless of whether they display an artwork/building or not. This right is called Panoramafreiheit (freedom of panorama). However in some circumstances certain modifications (but not usage) of the image can be prohibited by the copyright owner of the object (artist or architect) if the copyright of that object has not expired. Generally an image taken in public space might not be used to produce an object similar to the original. (§54. (1) [9])

§54. (1) 5. : Werke der Baukunst nach einem ausgeführten Bau oder andere Werke der bildenden Künste nach Werkstücken, die dazu angefertigt wurden, sich bleibend an einem öffentlichen Ort zu befinden, zu vervielfältigen, zu verbreiten, durch optische Einrichtungen öffentlich vorzuführen und durch Rundfunk zu senden und der Öffentlichkeit zur Verfügung zu stellen; ausgenommen sind das Nachbauen von Werken der Baukunst, die Vervielfältigung eines Werkes der Malkunst oder der graphischen Künste zur bleibenden Anbringung an einem Orte der genannten Art sowie die Vervielfältigung von Werken der Plastik durch die Plastik.

Official works

By Austrian law, documents are in the public domain (gemeinfrei) if they have been published as part of a law or official decree or edict, or if they have been released as an official announcement or for public information. The relevant law is paragraph 7 of the UrhG.

Aserbaidschan

According to the Copyright law of 1996 the duration of copyright is 50 years post mortem auctoris. The duration of copyright for anonymous work is 50 years after publication unless the author is identified. Post-humously work is protected 50 years after death if the work is published within 30 years after death.

According to article 8 copyright registration or explicit mention of copyright may be necessary. The English translation is not clear on this point.

The following are not subjects of copyright:

• official documents (laws, court decisions, other texts of legislative, administrative or judicial character) and their official translations;
• State emblems and official signs (flags, armorial bearings, decorations, monetary signs and other State symbols and official signs);
• works of folklore;
• communications concerning events and facts that have informational character.

The reproduction, broadcasting or communication to the public by cable of architectural works, photographic works and works of fine art permanently located in a public place shall be permissible without the author's consent and without payment of remuneration, except where the presentation of the work constitutes the main feature of the said reproduction, broadcast or communication to the public by cable, if it is used for commercial purposes.

Weißrussland

The copyright law of Belarus states that the copyright term lasts for life, then extended for the next 50 years after the death of the author. In the case of more than one author, it will be 50 years p.m.a. after the death of the last author.

Belgien

According to the Copyright law of 1994 the duration of copyright is 70 years post mortem auctoris. For anonymous work the duration of copyright is 70 years after publication if the author is not identified.

Brasilien

According to Brazilian Copyright law of 1998 (in Portuguese) translation:

Chapter III -The Economic Rights of the Authors and Term Thereof

• Art. 28. The author has the exclusive right to use his literary, artistic or scientific work, to derive benefit from it and to dispose of it.
• Art. 41. The author's economic rights shall be protected for a period of 70 years as from the first of January of the year following his death, subject to observance of the order of succession under civil law.
• Art. 42. Where a literary, artistic or scientific work of joint authorship is indivisible, the term of protection provided for in the foregoing Article shall be calculated from the death of the last surviving joint author.
• Art. 43. The term of protection of economic rights in anonymous or pseudonymous works shall be 70 years counted from the first of January of the year following that of the first publication.

Sole Paragraph. The provisions of Articles 41 and its sole paragraph shall be applicable where the author makes his identity known before the expiry of the period referred to in the introduction to this Article.

• Art. 44. The economic rights in audiovisual and photographic works shall be protected for a period of 70 years from the first of January of the year following that of their disclosure.
• Art. 45. In addition to the works in respect of which the protection of the economic rights has expired, the following shall pass into the public domain:
  • I. the works of authors deceased without heir;
  • II. the works of unknown authors, subject to the legal protection of ethnic and traditional lore.

Chapter V - Term of Protection for Neighboring Rights

• Art. 96. The term of protection of neighboring rights shall be 70 years from the first of January of the year following fixation for phonograms, transmission for the broadcasts of broadcasting organization, and public performance in other cases.

Freedom of panorama

• Art. 48. Works permanently located in public places may be freely represented by painting, drawing, photography and audiovisual processes.

Kanada

All photographs taken before 1 January, 1949 are in the public domain.

For works from after that time, or non-photographs, the Copyright Act states a copyright subsists for the life of the author plus 50 years following the end of the calendar year of death (section 6). If the work is anonymous or pseudonymous then the copyright lasts either 50 years following publication or 75 years after the making of the work, whichever is earlier (section 6.1), provided the authorship does not become known in that timeframe.

See the Canadian Public Domain Flowchart to determine if a work is in the public domain.

Chile

{{PD-Chile}}

China

People's Republic of China

According to the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China in effect in Mainland China:

• Article 5: The law does not apply to those specified in Template:PD-PRC-exempt.
• Article 20: The rights of authorship, alteration and integrity of an author shall be unlimited in time. These are moral rights.
• Article 21:
  • A copyright subsists for the life of the author plus 50 years following the end of the calendar year of death.
  • A legal entity or other organization or in respect of a work created in the course of employment enjoys the copyright for 50 years since the first publication.
  • A cinematographic work, a work created by virtue of an analogous method of film production or a photographic work is copyrighted for 50 years since the first publication.
  • All of the preceding terms expire on December 31 of the last year.
• Article 59 has restored copyright. The same thing has also been written in Article 55 of the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China dated 1990 (zh:中华人民共和国著作权法/1990年).[10] One should not simply assume that works made in China before the 1990 laws are in the public domain.

According to the Chinese Civil Law Article 100 photos of regular people may not be published without their consent， if the person can be identified. The use of the image for profit (commercially) without his consent shall be prohibited.

Hongkong

According to Chapter 528 Copyright Ordinance, in Section 17 Duration of copyright in literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works, in the law of Hong Kong, a work's copyright expires 50 years after the last death of known authors, or the work's first publication for unknown authorship, or the year it made when the work is never made public and with unknown authorship. The above-mentioned ordinance does not apply to the work of Hong Kong Government, Legislative Council and certain international organizations. Their copyrights are under separate ordinances. [11]

Macau

According to the Copyright Law (Decree-Law n.o 43/99/M):

• Article 6: Official works are not protected. See also Template:PD-MacaoGov.
• Article 21: Generally, copyright shall lapse 50 years after the death of the creator of the work, even in the case of works disclosed or published posthumously, to expire at the end of the last year.
• Article 51: Non-Macanese works are copyrightable in Macau for the Macanese copyright duration or the home country or area, whichever is less, i.e. the rule of the shorter term applies in Macau.
• Article 106: The copyright in an audiovisual work shall lapse 50 years after its disclosure.
• Article 148: The copyright in works of applied art shall lapse 25 years after the completion of the work.
• Article 155: The copyright in photographic works shall lapse 25 years after their completion, even if they have never been disclosed or published.
• Article 182: The rights of performers shall lapse 50 years after the performance.
• Article 188: The rights of producers of phonograms and videograms shall lapse 50 years after fixation.
• Article 192: The rights of broadcasting organizations shall lapse 20 years after the broadcast.

Republic of China

According to the Copyright Act of the Republic of China in effect in Taiwan Area:

• Article 9: Works specified in Template:PD-ROC-exempt shall not be the subject matter of copyright.
• Article 30:
  • Generally, economic rights endure for the life of the author and 50 years after the author's death.
  • Where a work is first publicly released between the 40th and 50th years after the author's death, the economic rights shall endure for a term of 10 years beginning from the time of the first public release.
• Article 31: Economic rights in a joint work subsist for 50 years after the death of the last surviving author.
• Article 32
  • Economic rights in a pseudonymous work or an anonymous work endure for 50 years from the time of public release; provided, the economic rights shall be extinguished where it can be proven that the author has been deceased for over 50 years.
  • The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall not apply when the pseudonym of the author is well known to the public.
• Article 33: Economic rights in works authored by a juristic person endure for 50 years after the public release of the work; provided, if the work is not publicly released within 50 years from the completion of the creation, the economic rights shall subsist for 50 years after completion of the creation.
• Article 34:
  • Economic rights for photographic works, audiovisual works, sound recordings, and performances endure for 50 years after the public release of the work.
  • The proviso of the preceding article shall apply mutatis mutandis to the preceding paragraph.
• Article 35: All terms of duration specified in Articles 30 through 34 terminate as of the last day of the last year of the term.

Kolumbien

According to Article 21 and following the Colombia Law 23 of 1982, the rights of the author expire 80 years after the death of the author (or the death of the last coauthor). Should the rights of the author have been transferred by means of an act between living persons, the protection period remains 80 years after the death of the author. The right of the author for some collective works and anonymous works expires 80 years from the date of publication, and, for cinematic works, 80 years after the movie's premiere (end of production).

Literary, scientific, and artistic works whose title holder is a corporate body, an official entity, or any public institution, the period of protection is 30 years.

In the above cases, protection ends on December 31 of the corresponding year.

Tschechische Republik

According to the Czech Copyright Law [12], §3 a) there is no copyright on official works, such as legal acts, public documents including those in preparation, documents published by the House of Representatives and Senate, state symbols (flags, coats of arms, anthems) of countries and administrative subdivisions, municipal chronicles and any other works whose exclusion from copyright protection is in public interest.

Freedom of panorama: Works permanently displayed in public area (square, street, park, public road or another public space) can be freely recorded through drawing, painting, photograph or movie, but not through three-dimensional models. Author of the derivative work should only mention the author and name of the original work, if possible (§33).

In line with EU Copyright Directive, authors are entitled to royalties for usage of their works during their lifetime and 70 years after their death (§27). Performing artists (e.g. actors, musicians, dancers) are entitled to royalties for 50 years after publishing of their performance (§73). (All terms are computed from January 1 of the year following the respective event.)

Dänemark

According to Danish law, Consolidated Act on Copyright 2003, the copyright on "photographic images" expire 50 years after the image's creation. However, for "photographic works" the copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author. The definition of a photographic work, as opposed to image is not precisely defined. In general a work is considered to have to display some form of originality or other special artistic properties. Simple snap-shots do not qualify as works. Interpretation is highly subjective. There is some debate as to whether all works by a professional photographer constitute works as opposed to simple images.

Ägypten

Egyptian Law states that photos paintings and drawing are protected for 25 years starting from the publication date, after which they are in public domain.

Per Article 167, Audio recordings are in copyright for 50 years after publication.

Estland

According to the Republic of Estonia Copyright law Public sources: Copyright does not apply to works of folklore, legislation and administrative documents, court decisions and official translations thereof; official symbols of the state and insignia of organisations. Copyright does not apply to reproduction of work by libraries, archives or museums.

It is permitted, without the authorization of the author and without payment of remuneration, to reproduce works of architecture, works of visual art, works of applied art or photographic works which are permanently located in places open to the public by any means except for mechanical contact copying, and to communicate such reproductions of works to the public except if the work is the main subject of the reproduction and it is intended to be used for direct commercial purposes. If the work specified carries the name of its author, it shall be indicated in communicating the reproduction to the public.

Finnland

According to Finnish Copyright law of 2005 copyright expires for photographs not considered to be "works of art" fifty years after the photograph was taken. Photographs considered to be "works of art" are protected normally for 70 years after the death of the works creator. The difference between a photograph and photographic work of art is not precisely defined. As an example, the (legally not binding) opinion of the Finnish Copyright Council [13] is that this photograph of Paavo Nurmi "-- is despite its historical importance a regular photo of current events. The photograph does not demonstrate original and personal contribution from the photographer and so it can't be considered to be -- a photographic work."

The copyright law of 1991 extended the copyright time from 25 years (according to the 1961 copyright law) to 50 years. However, material already released to public domain according to the 1961 law remain in public domain and therefore all photographs (but not photographic works of art) released before 1966 are in the public domain.

The textual representations of Finnish coat of arms of municipalities, regions and provinces are considered to be governmental decisions and therefore they are not protected by copyright. According to the opinions of the Finnish Copyright Council 1997:11 and 1998:5 also the graphical representation is thought (at least in these cases) not to meet the requirements for a original work of art and therefore is not protected by copyright. This is also thought to be true for the coat of arms of historical provinces and other historical coats of arms.

Photos of works of art exhibited in public spaces can only be used for non-commercial purposes, unless it is clear that the work is not the main subject in the photo (freedom of panorama). Making pictures of buildings is explicitly allowed, but photographing single homes or yards may be illegal based on privacy laws.

Menschen

[14]

Photos of people who are of public interest (famous politician, artist, sportsman) and who are carrying out their public duties or work may be published without consent.

Photos of regular people in public places[15] may not be published without their consent unless the person is clearly not the main subject of the image and the picture does not cause damage, suffering or despisal to the person in the picture.

However, if the person can be identified, the image may never be used in advertisement (commercially) without consent.

Frankreich

The relevant laws are in the first book of the Code of Intellectual Property, or CPI (English version). The code includes dispositions transposed from the 1993 European directive on Copyright. France also enforces the Berne Convention.

The normal duration of copyright is 70 years following the end of the year of death of the author (or the death of the last author for multiple authors); if the work is anonymous, pseudonymous or collective, it is 70 years following the end of the year of publication of the work (unless the authors named themselves). See below for important extensions to copyright.

Images from public sites

Note that French government services often use professional photographers who are not government employees to make official photographs. These photographers then typically sell an usage right to the government. In such circumstances, the government does not own the copyright to the photograph, and thus could not give us a license to use it even if it wanted to.

The rules for protection of works by the government are somewhat fuzzy, and one should assume by default that anything from a government entity is copyrighted. One should refer to:

• Law of July 17, 1978
• Decree of December 30, 2005

Laws, decrees, court decisions and other similar government texts (but not the translations or commentaries thereof), possibly found on Légifrance, are in the public domain. This seems acknowledged by Légifrance's copyright terms.

Unless you really know what you're doing, please abstain from copying photos from French government sites to Commons. Thanks.

Wartime copyright extensions

On February 27, 2007, the Court of Cassation, supreme jurisdiction, first civil chamber, ruled in the Hazan case (arrêt n° 280 du 27 février 2007) that articles L123-8 and L123-9, extending the duration of protection to compensate for wartimes, were not applicable to works for which an extended protection period (beyond 70 years) had not started to elapse on July 1, 1995.[16][17]. The judgment regarding Giovanni Boldini's work was broke too, by the same court : [18].

In practice, only subsist extensions for music and authors "Mort pour la France", as the extension of rights on music was enacted in 1985, before the European Union resolution extended the rights for all authors in 1997.

Previously, French law granted extensions to copyright because of the World Wars (see CPI L123-8 and following). The extensions were:

• 6 years and 152 days for World War I
• 8 years and 120 days for World War II
• 30 years for people who died for France ; this includes, for instance, Alain-Fournier (1 January 1915 +50+30+6+8 years +152+120 days = 30 September 2009), Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Jehan Alain.

Several extensions were added together.

It was previously assumed that the European directive on copyright did not necessarily suppress these extensions:

Article 10 - Where a term of protection, which is longer than the corresponding term provided for by this Directive, is already running in a Member State on the date referred to in Article 13 (1), this Directive shall not have the effect of shortening that term of protection in that Member State.

According to the French Ministry of Culture, the legal status of these extensions, adopted when copyright was 50 years after death, was unclear in the context of the new 70-year law; the Ministry called for erring on the side of caution and assuming they are valid. [19]

It was also assumed that copyright holders do try to enforce these extensions. In 2005, right holders demanded payment for a movie where a character whistled The Internationale, whose author died in 1932. (See also Template:PD-Internationale for further information.) On the other hand, the Paris Appeal Court ruled against applying the extensions in 2004 [20], but on 12 October 2005, another section of the same court applied the extension so that the works of the painter Giovanni Boldini who died in 1931 will not enter the public domain before late 2016 [21].

Works of arts, including architecture, exhibited in public spaces

The architect of a notable building owns copyright over the representations of that building, including postcards and photographs. For instance, the architect of the pyramid in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum may claim copyright over images of the pyramid. This, for instance, extends to the designer of lighting systems; for instance, the company operating the Eiffel Tower claims copyright of images of the tower when lighted at night.

However, ruling #567 of March 15, 2005 of the Court of Cassation denied the right of producers of works of arts installed in a public plaza over photographs of the whole plaza:

Because the Court has noticed that, as it was shown in the incriminated images, the works of Mr X... and Z... blended into the architectural ensemble of the Terreaux plaza, of which it was a mere element, the appeals court correctly deduced that this presentation of the litigious work was accessory to the topic depicted, which was the representation of the plaza, so that the image did not constitute a communication of the litigious work to the public

The court draws a distinction between depictions of a work of art, and depictions of whole settings of which the work of art is a mere part, and denies the right of the artist over such images.

While architects may have rights to works derived from their work of art, this is not the case of the owners of works of art or buildings, in general. The summary of the conclusions of a May 7, 2004 ruling by the Court of Cassation was:

The owner of a thing does not have an exclusive right over the image of this thing; he or she can however oppose the usage of this image by a third party if this usage results in an abnormal disturbance to him or her."

In this decision, the court excluded that the owner of a hotel, who had made extensive repairs and enhancements to the buildings at high costs, could claim exclusive rights to the image of that hotel: merely demonstrating that the costs supported did not demonstrate that the publishing of images was an abnormal disturbance.

The Court already ruled on June 5, 2003, that the right of property comprised absolutely no right to the image of this property. However, they also upheld the right to privacy of the homeowners: in this case, not only a photograph of a house was published, but also its exact location and the name of the owners. Earlier rulings (May 2, 2001) similarly rejected requests based on ownership without a justification of an abnormal disturbance.

Deutschland

Freedom of panorama

Objects permanently located in public that can be photographed from public (accessible) grounds, without devices such as a ladder, can be used by its photographer for any purpose, regardless of whether they display an artwork/building or not. This right is called Panoramafreiheit (freedom of panorama). However in some circumstances certain modifications (but not usage) of the image can be prohibited by the copyright owner of the object (artist or architect) if the copyright of that object has not expired. A notable exception from freedom of panorama was the wrapped German Reichstag by the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude since it was from the beginning not a permanent installation.

There are some cases (e.g. images of sculptures by living artists displayed in public) in which there is a discussion on whether they are acceptable on Commons in the future. (See discussion). When in doubt, German Wikipedia might be a better choice for upload.

Official works

By German law, documents are in the public domain (gemeinfrei) if they have been published as part of a law or official decree or edict, or if they have been released as an official announcement or for public information. The relevant law is section 5 of the UrhG. The first and most important sentence states:

Gesetze, Verordnungen, amtliche Erlasse und Bekanntmachungen sowie Entscheidungen und amtlich verfaßte Leitsätze zu Entscheidungen genießen keinen urheberrechtlichen Schutz.

For more information about German copyright laws, see the meta-page Wikipedia:Bildrechte on the German Wikipedia.

Griechenland

The terms of WIPO copyright treaty have been introduced with Law 3184/2003. See also [22] for the full text. The economic right on works created by employees (under any work relation) of the Government or a legal entity of public law (greek: Ν.Π.Δ.Δ.) in execution of their duties is transferred to the employer, unless provided otherwise by contract. (Law 2557/1997, Part 8.17)

Duration of copyright protection

According to Law 2557/1997, the duration of the copyright is 70 years after the death of the creator, or 70 years after the date of publication for anonymous and pseudonymous works. After the expiry of the period of copyright protection, the State, represented by the Minister of Culture, may exercise the rights relating to the acknowledgment of the author’s paternity and the rights relating to the protection of the integrity of the work deriving from the moral rights. This clause may prevent the creation of certain types of derivative work, even after the copyright has expired, as the State has the right to prohibit any distortion, mutilation or other modification of the original work.

Exemptions from copyright

There are a few exemptions from copyright, defined in earlier Law 2121/1993, Part 2. Those which may apply to the content of Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons are:

• Official state, government and judicial texts: Laws, decrees, administrative decisions and circulars, proceedings and decisions of courts of justice etc. It is not clear if pictures of postage stamps (pre 1970), revenue stamps and currency are covered by this clause.
• Expressions of popular tradition (folklore), current news items and simple facts and data.

Monuments & antiquities

Photography of ancient monuments and antiquites is allowed only for personal use. The Greek Government requires payment of a fee for publishing images of monuments and antiquities and claims copyright on them. This is specified in a Ministerial Decision published in Governmet Gazette issue B-1491/2005-10-27, pragraph 2.1.5. However, such images are still acceptable on Commons, see Commons:Image_casebook#Museum_and_interior_photography.

Ungarn

The relevant law is 1999./LXXVI.; copyright lasts 70 years from the death of the author, or from publication if author is unknown. Legal provisions and other means of state direction are in the public domain, as are standards made obligatory by law. Folklore is also in public domain.

Freedom of panorama applies to fine art, applied art and architecture erected with a permanent character outdoors in a public place.

Images about people require their consent, except for public performances (Section 80 of the Civil Code).

Indien

According to Indian copyright law, all pictures published in India more than 60 years ago are in the public domain. [23] Official website

For other works: "The general rule is that copyright lasts for 60 years. In the case of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works the 60-year period is counted from the year following the death of the author. In the case of cinematograph films, sound recordings, photographs, posthumous publications, anonymous and pseudonymous publications, works of government and works of international organisations, the 60-year period is counted from the date of publication."

[Comment: Note that, in the case of sound recordings, it may be that the underlying music is still in copyright while the recording itself is not, so a little care is necessary. Probably best to use some precaution, and make sure both the music and recording are out of copyright, unless someone can clarify further.]

Indonesien

Translated from Indonesian Copyright Act No. 19, 2002 ([24] in Indonesian):

Chapter II, Section 5, about the limitation of copyright.

Article 14: Not viewed as violations of copyright:

• Publication and/or distribution of the country's coat of arms or national anthem if there is no modification from the original.
• Publication and/or distribution of any work that has been published and/or distributed by or in the name of the Government, except if the copyright of the object is stated as protected, either in law or in writing on the work, at the time the work was published and/or distributed.
• Quotations of news reports, in full or in part, from any news agency, broadcasting agency, newspaper or any other similar source, provided the source is cited in full.

Chapter III, about copyright duration.

Article 29

• Copyright of books, pamphlets, and all written works; plays and musicals, dance and choreography; all forms of three-dimensional art such as paintings and sculpture; batik; songs and music with or without lyrics; architecture; speeches, lectures, speeches and similar works; display materials; maps and translations interpretations, adaptations and anthologies lasts for the life of the author and for 50 (fifty) years after the author dies.

Article 30

• Copyright of software, cinematography, photography, databases and engineering products lasts for 50 years after the initial publication of the work.

Iran

According to the Iranian "Law for Supporting Authors, Composers, and Artists" (قانون حمایت حقوق مؤلفان و مصنفان و هنرمندان), passed on 11 Dey 1348 (January 1, 1970) and published in the official newspaper number 7288 on 21 Bahman 1348 (February 1, 1970), for many images, including paintings, the work is in the public domain if all of its authors have died for at least 30 Iranian years (may be different from 30 Gregorian years by a few days).

As special exceptions, if the work is cinematic or photographic or if the (economic) rights of a work have been transferred to a legal person, the work will become public domain after 30 Iranian years from its publication or offering.

• English translation of the Iranian copyright law of 1970

Iraq

Iraqi Law states that photos are protected for 5 years, starting from the publication date, after which they are in public domain.

Irland

According to section 24 of the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000, all literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works enter the public domain after seventy years counted from the beginning of the following calendar year (i.e. as of 2008, prior to 1938-01-01) after either the death of the author, or, if the author is unknown or pseudonymous, the date of publication.

Israel

According to the Israeli Copyright act, 2007, article 38, works are protected until 70 years after their author's death. Pictures are protected until 70 years after their photographer's death, unless the pictures were taken before May 1st. 2008 - in which case the pictures are protected for 50 years from the day the picture was taken, unless the pictures were taken by a public authority (a government authority) in which case the pictures are protected for 50 years from the day of publication. Freedom of Panorama applies: Taking and publishing photos of works of art ("scalptures" and "applied art" or "useful art")—if these are permanently installed in a public place – and of architectural works is allowed (according to Section 23 of the Law: "Broadcasting, or copying by way of photography, drawing, sketch or similar visual description, of an architectural work, a work of sculpture or work of applied art, are permitted where the aforesaid work is permanently situated in a public place.")

Italien

Generally, 70 years after the author's death, but with a few exceptions:

• Audio recordings created and published in Italy at least fifty years ago, of a work which is itself in the public domain, are in the public domain. Article 75 of Italian copyright law treats audio recordings as a special case. Template:PD-Italy-audio covers these works.
• A second rule, giving a shorter term for "non-artistic" photographs, is difficult to apply accurately, and hence should not be used on Commons (see Commons:Deletion requests/Template:PD-Italy). Photographs in general enter the public domain 70 years after the author's death, this rule should be used instead.
• More or less everything else also enters the public domain 70 years after the author's death.
• The theory that a 70 year rule applies to works of the Italian government is unproven and disputed. See Commons:Deletion requests/Category:PD Italy.

Jamaika

According to the copyright act of Jamaica copyright expires:

• 50 years after the death of the author
• 50 years after publication if the author could not be determined.

Japan

According to the Japanese Copyright Law, the copyright subsists for the life of the author plus 50 years (article 51). If the work is anonymous or pseudonymous, the copyright lasts for 50 years after the publication or the death of the author, whichever is the earlier (article 52). The copyrights of the works in names of organizations expire in 50 years after the publication, or in 50 years after the creation if the works are not published within 50 years after the creation (article 53). Since June 18, 2003 cinematographic works are exceptionally protected for 70 years, instead of 50 years, after the publication, or in 70 years after the creation if the films are not published within 70 years of the creation (article 54).

For audio recordings, the term is 50 years after publication ([http://www.cric.or.jp/cric_e/clj/cl4.html Per Chapter IV, Section 6, Article 110).

In July 2006, a Japanese court ruled that all movies produced in Japan prior to 1953 were to be made available into the public domain. See template {{PD-Japan-film}} for details. (Websites [25] and [26] presents another information. Please verify it on official Japanese websites in official Japanese documents.)

Works correspond to the following are not eligible for copyrights (article 13).

• The constitution, and other laws and ordinances.
• Announcements and notifications by the organizations of the national or local governments.
• Judicial decisions of the law courts.

Jordanien

Jordanian Law states that photos and two dimensional artistic works are protected for 25 years starting from the end of the publication year, after which they are in public domain.

Kenia

Copyright protection exists during the life of the author and 50 years after his or her death for works other than photographs or 50 years after the first publication for photographs. [27]

Kuwait

Kuwaiti Law states that photos, films and two dimensional artistic works are protected for 50 years starting from the end of the publication year, after which they are in public domain.

Libanon

Lebanese copyright law from 1999 states that works are protected for 50 years after the author's death (#49) and 50 years after publication for anonymous work (#52). Moral rights are perpetual.

Malaysia

According to the Copyright act of 1987 copyright subsists until 50 years after the death of the author. Copyright for unpublished work subsists for 50 years after first publication. For anonymous or pseudonymous work copyright subsists for 50 years after publication unless the author is made known. According to article 11 works by the Government, Governmental Organizations and International organizations are subject to copyright until 50 years after publication (article 23).

Mexiko

According to the Mexican law (See Art. 29: Ley federal del derecho de autor, critical commentary, in Spanish) a copyright subsists for the life of the author plus 100 years following the end of the calendar year of death of the youngest author or the publication date in case of the federal, state or municipal governments. There is one exception: works that were already in the public domain before July 23, 2003. Generally speaking, that means works created by someone who had died before July 23, 1928 (75 years before).

For a brief guide to Mexican copyright law see User:Drini/Mexican copyright law. Also note works created by the Mexican government do not default to PD, they being protected 100 years after publishing (art. 29)

Mongolei

Under the Law of Mongolia on Copyright, protection of works first published in Mongolia expires:

• 50 years after the death of the creator(s)
• 75 years after publication for anonymous and pseudonymous works
• 75 years after creation when created by a legal person (organisation, business, authority)
• 25 years after creation for photographic works and works of applied art

Combining this in an optimal way with US regulations, works first published in Mongolia can be uploaded and tagged with {{PD-Mongolia}} in any of the following cases:

• Any photographic image or other applied art created before 1972 (PD in Mongolia before 1997)
• Any pseudonymous work if it was published more than 75 years ago (Mongolian law)
• Any work by a legal person if it was created more than 75 years ago (Mongolian law) AND published before 1964 (US law, no renewal)
• Any other work if the creator(s) died more than 50 years ago (Mongolian law) AND it was published before 1964 (US law, no renewal)

If we can show that the original publication was made without a copyright notice, then the 1964 limit moves ahead to 1989.

Moral rights (e.g. the right to be named as an author) cannot be transferred and don't expire.

Marokko

Moroccan Law states that photos and films are Protected for 50 years starting from the end of the publication year, after which they are in public domain.

Namibia

• Photographs are protected 50 years from the end of the publication year, or from the end of the year it was made, if unpublished : copyright act 1994, §6 b
• Literary or musical work or an artistic work, other than a photograph are copyrighted for a period of 50 years from the end of the year in which the author dies, if published : copyright act 1994, §6 a
• Works made by or under the direction or control of the State are copyrighted : copyright act 1994, §5

Niederlande

Dutch laws and legal judgments are completely free of copyright (Article 11 of Dutch copyright law of 1912).

In principle all works communicated to the public by or on behalf of the public authorities (government) are not copyright protected in the Netherlands, unless the copyright has been reserved explicitly, either in a general manner by law, decree or ordinance, or in a specific case by a notice on the work itself or at the communication to the public. This is regulated in Article 15b of the Copyright Act of 1912. Entities like the Silicose Oud-mijnwerkers foundation can also be regarded as public authorities (AbRS 30 November 1995, JB 1995/337) and are not automatically copyright protected.

Works of individual authors enjoy copyright protection until 70 years after the 1st January following the author's death. The duration of the copyright belonging jointly to two or more persons in their capacity as co-authors of a work shall be calculated from 1 January of the year following the year of the death of the last surviving co-author. The copyright in a work of which the author has not been indicated or has not been indicated in such a way that his identity is beyond doubt shall, or a public institution, association, foundation or company is deemed the author, expires 70 years after 1 January of the year following that in which the work was first lawfully communicated to the public.

Neuseeland

Literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works are protected for life plus 50 years under the Copyright Act of 1994. Sound recordings and films, broadcasts and cable programmes are protected for 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which it was made or broadcast to the public, whichever is later. Works of artistic craftsmanship industrially applied are protected for 25 years.(Source: New Zealand Ministry for Economic Development)

Norwegen

Works are protected 70 years after author's death, or 70 years after publication if the author is unknown/anonymous. There is one exception: Photos that are not considered artistic works (i.e. snapshots) are protected until no less than 15 years after the photographer's death and no less than 50 years after publication.

Photos of works of art exhibited in public spaces can only be used for non-commercial purposes, unless it is clear that the work is not the main subject in the photo (freedom of panorama). There are no restrictions on photos of buildings.

Photos of people may not be published without their consent unless either a) the image illustrates a current event of interest the general public, or b) the person is clearly not the main subject of the image (i.e. passers-by may be included unless they fill an unreasonable amount of the image) or c) the image depicts a gathering, an outdoor parade or something which is of interest to the general public. This is part of the Copyright Act, and thus might affect the right to publish an image under a free license, as the person depicted retains the right to refuse use of the image.

There are no such thing as public domain, yet there are a similar notion of works that fall in the free. Exclusive rights will then cease to apply, but a form of moral rights (such as the right to attribution and integrity) still apply.

Texts of laws and decisions, reports and statements made and published by state or local authorities are not protected by copyright, but images used in such publications may be protected unless they were made specifically for the publication.

Recordings of performances are copy-protected for 50 years[28], after which time they may be used freely (the material of the performance may still be bound by copyright, however).

Norwegian currency is protected by copyright (see Commons:Currency#Norway).

• Lov om opphavsrett til åndsverk m.v. (åndsverkloven). (in Norwegian)
• Copyright in Literary, Scientific and Artistic Works Act (1961) (Word document with unofficial English translation, University of Oslo Website)

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was dissolved in 1923, therefore all works published there are currently in the public domain in the United States. The Ottoman Empire refused to recognize international copyright, so works published there are not protected by copyright internationally. Ottoman official documents are also not protected since the diwans (which comprised a large variety of legal documents) were in the public domain in the Empire.

A precise date of publication must be provided, especially if the image was published circa 1920. Photographs claiming PD status on the basis of Ottoman origin must have been published in the Ottoman Empire, not merely taken there. For works published in the Republic of Turkey, see Turkey.

Pakistan

According to Pakistani copyright laws, all photographs enter the public domain fifty years after they were created, and all non-photographic works enter the public domain fifty years after the death of the creator.

Paraguay

Paraguay passed a new copyright law in 1998. This law replaced any earlier legislation and was fully retroactive (see artcile 181). Works are copyrighted in Paraguay until 70 years after the death of the last surviving author (70 years p.m.a.; article 47), or for 70 years since the disclosure of an anonymous work. If the author of an anonymous work becomes known during these 70 years, 70 years p.m.a. applies (article 48). Copyright on collections, computer programs, audiovisual works, and broadcasts last for 70 years since the publication or completion of the work, but individual contributions are copyrighted to 70 years p.m.a. (article 49). Moral rights (attribution, integrity of the work) do not expire, and Paraguay has a domaine publique payant (i.e., for uses of public domain works, a fee must be paid top the state; see article 55).

Paraguay makes a distinction between photographic works and simple photographs. Any photograph that is not a work is copyrighted until 50 years since its creation (article 135).

Paraguay does have the "freedom of panorama", i.e., works permanently placed at public places (open-air only) may be freely reproduced by two-dimensional means such as photography, or filming (articles 39(4) and 41(4)).

The term for the neighbouring rights on performances, phonograms, and broadcasts is 50 years since the first performance, publication of the recording, or first broadcast.

Peru

The Peruvian copyright law of April 23, 1996, which entered in force on May 24, 1996, states in its transitional provisions that "[works] protected under the previous legislation shall benefit from the longer terms of protection provided for in this law". It is unclear whether that also applies to works where previous shorter terms had already expired.

The 1996 law has a copyright term of 70 years p.m.a. (70 years since publication for anonymous/pseudonymous works, articles 52–56). Performers' neighboring rights also last until 70 years p.m.a. (article 135), for phonograms and broadcasts, the term is 70 years since publication or the initial broadcast or transmission (articles 139 and 142).

Note that any video, whether it qualifies as an "audiovisual work" or not, is protected until 70 years after the publication (or its creation, if not published in that time; article 143). Likewise, photographs that are not "works" are copyrighted for 70 years since the photo was taken (article 144). Peru also has a publication right with a term of 10 years since the publication.

The Philippines

Copyrighted photographs are protected for 50 years after publication. Works by the government of the Philippines are not protected by copyright. However, prior approval of the government agency or office wherein the work was created is necessary for exploitation of such works for profit. (Republic Act 8293)

Polen

According to the Art.3 of copyright law of March 29, 1926 (valid until 1952) and Art. 2 of copyright law of July 10, 1952 of the People's Republic of Poland, all photographs by Polish photographers (or published for the first time in Poland or simultaneously in Poland and abroad) printed without a clear copyright notice before the law was changed on May 23, 1994 are public domain. Status of those photographs did not change after Polish Copyright Law of February 4, 1994 was enacted. (See: Template:PD-Polish)

According to the Polish Copyright Law of February 4, 1994 (Article 4, case 2) "governmental symbols, documents, materials and signs are not subject to copyrights". However in some instances the use of this image in Poland might be regulated by other laws. It is being debated if postage stamps and banknotes fall into this category. (See: Template:PD-Polishsymbol)

According to the Art.21 of copyright law of March 29, 1926 (valid until 1952) photographs lose copyright protection ten years after picture was taken. Series of scientific or artistic pictures lose copyright protection after 50 years. According to Art. 27 of copyright law of July 10, 1952 (valid until May 23, 1994) photographs and series of photographs lose copyright protection ten years after publication date. However, retroactive Polish Copyright Law of February 4, 1994 Art. 124, put all those images back under copyright protection, for 70 years since the death of the author.

The copyright act from February 4, 1994 in article 33 point 1 allows to propagate works that are permanently exhibited on the publicly accessible roads, streets, squares or gardens provided that the propagation is not for the same use. The name of the creator and source should be provided if it is possible by article 34. This use is royalty free, provided that it does not harm the legitimate interests of the creator by article 34.

Rumänien

The current Romanian copyright law goes back to 1996, when Law no. 8 of March 14, 1996 on Copyright and Neighboring Rights entered in force on June 25, 1996.[29] The law is very close to the Spanish copyright law; it has a general copyright term of 70 years p.m.a. The law reprotected works on which the shorter copyright terms from the earlier law had already expired; such reprotection became valid from June 25, 1996 on (article 149(3)).

This new Romanian copyright law has been amended several times since 1996.

The previous law on authors' rights in Romania was decree no. 321 from June 18, 1956, published on June 27, 1956. It had much shorter copyright terms (see articles 6 and 7). The earlier copyright law was the law on authors' rights from June 28, 1923, itself modified by the law no. 596 from July 24, 1946, the decree no. 19 from February 16, 1951, the decree no. 428 from November 13, 1952, and the decree no. 591 of December 17, 1955.

The 1923 law had a copyright term of 30 years p.m.a. if heirs existed, the 1956 law had a general term of 50 years p.m.a. (50 years since publication for works created by a legal entity). Shorter terms in the 1956 law existed for authors of entries in encyclopedias and dictionaries (20 years since publication), and for photographers (5 years since publication for individual artistic photos, 10 years for a series of such). But all these shorter terms were overridden by the 1996 law, and are of historical interest only (for instance, to determine whether or not a work was still copyrighted on the URAA date).

Russia and former Soviet Union

Copyrights of works created in Russia was based on the Russian copyright law of 1993 and its amendments of 1995 and 2004 (Федеральный закон от 9.07.1993 № 5351-1). Since January 1, 2008, intellectual property rights are regulated by Russian law 230-FL of 2006: Part IV of the Civil Code, together with the Russian law 231-FL of 2006: Implementation act for Part IV of the Civil Code. This new law replaced all previous IP laws in Russia.

The same law applies to the works from the former Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union, since Russia is recognized as one of the twelve (12) legal successors of the USSR (as a federation of republics). Copyrights of works originating from other former Soviet republics may be claimed by the corresponding w:post-Soviet states too.

See Commons:Copyright tags#Russia and former Soviet Union for specific copyright tags.

See also:{{PD-Ukraine}}, as one of specific post-Soviet tags.

Note: There was a discussion whether pre-1973 works from the Soviet Union are copyright-free, originating in the period of uncertainty after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. It was concluded that this theory is incorrect; see discussions in en:Template talk:PD-USSR and Template talk:PD-Soviet.

Saudi-Arabien

Saudi Arabian Law states that the "protection period for applied art (handcrafted or manufactured) and photographs shall be twenty five years of the date of publication." Films, sound and artistic works are protected for 50 years starting from the publication date, after which they are in the public domain.

Slowakei

• English translation of the Slovak copyright law as of 2004.
• Slovak copyright law in Slovak language.

• Freedom of panorama:

According to section 27 of the Slovak copyright law, Slovakia has freedom of panorama. Works permanently located at public places may be freely reproduced by drawing, painting, graphics, relief picture or relief model, or by photography or film, and such reproductions may be freely published and sold without the consent of the original author.

Slowenien

• English translation of the Slovene copyright law as of 2004.
• The Slovenian Intellectual Property Office
• Zakon o avtorskih in sorodnih pravicah (copyright law in Slovenian language)

Südafrika

The Copyright Act of 1978 is the current law of South Africa governing copyrights. S.3(2)(a) specifies that cinematograph films, photographs, and sound recording are copyrighted for 50 years after their first publication. (Most other works are copyrighted for 50 years after the death of the author.)

Südkorea

For photographs and most other works, copyright persists until 50 years after the death of the last surviving creator. See s:Copyright_Act_of_South_Korea#SECTION_7_Protection_Period_of_Authors.27_Property_Rights for exact details.

For audio files and broadcasts, the term of protection ends 50 years after creation. According to Chapter IV Section 5 of the Copyright Act:

The protection period of neighboring rights shall come into effect from the following date and continue to subsist for a period of 50 years from the next year of such date:

1. For stage performances when the stage performance takes place;

2. For phonograms when the first fixation of sounds is made; and

3. For broadcastings when the broadcasting is made.

Note that, for musical recordings, the underlying musical work will also need to be out of copyright.

For deciding if the work is out of copyright in the U.S., it's necessary to figure out whether the work was in copyright in 1996. If a work went out of copyright before the 1986 act extended copyright terms from 30 years to 50 years, it does not regain copyright. The act came into force in 1987, hence, works where all authors died before 1957 are out of copyright in both South Korea and the U.S. (See Yunjeong Choi, Development of Copyright Protection in Korea: its History, Inherent Limits, and Suggested Solutions, Brook. J. Int'l L. 28 (2003), pp. 643-673.)

Spanien

In Spain the "copyright" is known as "intellectual property". Generally, according to Spanish law, Royal Act 1/1996, on April 12, about Intellectual Property (Spanish PDF), the copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author. If the "intellectual property" of the work isn't owned by anybody, or it is a collective work where individual authors are not identifiable, this work would be on public domain after 70 years since the date of publication. However, works of authors who died before December 7, 1987 are dealt with by the 1879 law, which sets a protection time of 80 years post mortem auctoris.[30]

70-year limits are calculated from January 1, the following year to the date of the death or publication.

Exceptions to this (that may be useful in commons) are:

• The pieces of work situated permanently in parks, streets, squares and other public ways can be reproduced, distributed and communicated freely by using paintings, drawings, photographies and audiovisual procedures.
• Legal or ruling dispositions and their correspondent projects, resolutions of jurisdictional organs and acts, agreements, deliberations and reports of public organizations, and so official translations of all these texts are not subjected to "intellectual property".

Somalia

There has been no copyright protection in Somalia since the start of the country's civil war in 1991 and the subsequent destruction of the national copyright office. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, the last time the copyright office updated its records was in 1986.

Sudan

Sudanese Law states that photos and films are protected for 25 years starting from the publication date, after which they are in public domain.

Schweden

Photographs published after 1994 are protected for 70 years after the author's death if they have an artistic or scientific value. Photos that lack artistic value are only protected for 50 years after creation. If the photograph was published before 1994, transitional regulations apply—see {{PD-Sweden}}.

Works of art permanently exhibited in public spaces can be used without consideration to the creator of the work of art, e.g. freedom of panorama, and there are no restrictions on photos of buildings. (Upphovsrättslagen 24 §)

Governmental laws and ordinances, decisions and statements published by Swedish authorities, and official translations thereof, are not copyright protected. (Upphovsrättslagen 9 §)

An English translation of the Copyright Act is available at sweden.gov.se.

Schweiz

In Switzerland, copyright is covered in the Copyright Act (Urheberrechtsgesetz, URG, SR 231.1. See also w:Swiss copyright law). Generally, copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the (last) author. If authorship is unknown, copyright lasts for 70 years after the first publication. However, the increase of the protection term from 50 to 70 years occurred in 1993; since the increase was not retroactive, all works made by authors deceased before 1 January 1943 are in the public domain in Switzerland.

Works not covered by copyright include:

• laws, ordinances, international treaties and other official acts;
• currency;
• decisions, protocols and reports by public authorities;
• patents and patent applications.

(See also template {{PD-Switzerland-official}} and {{Swiss Government Portrait}})

To be eligible for copyright in the first place, a work must be of individual character, i.e. be an individual expression of thought (Art. 2 par. 1 URG). Many photographs are therefore not protected (see {{PD-Switzerland-photo}} for details).

Syria

Syrian Law states that photos and two dimensional artistic works are protected for 10 years starting from the production date, after which they are in public domain.

Taiwan

See #Republic of China above.

Tadschikistan

See: here, copied from [31].

Copyright generally lasts for 50 years after the death of the author. Works not covered by copyright are covered in Article 7.

1. official documents (laws, court decisions, other texts of legislative, administrative or judicial character) and official translations thereof;
2. state emblems and official signs (flags, armorial bearings, decorations, monetary signs and other State symbols and official signs);
3. communications concerning events and facts that have informational character;
4. works of folklore.

Anything that falls under this description can use {{PD-Tajikistan}}.

Türkei

See {{PD-TR-Gov}} and Turkish copyright law. The current copyright law of Turkey provides that copyright owned by a legal entity lasts for 70 years from first publication, and that copyright owned by an individual lasts for 70 years from death. See Law No. 5846 (12 May, 1951, as amended), Art. 27. That law provides that the creator of a work owns the copyright, except where the creator is employed by someone else, including an entity, in which case the employer or entity owns the copyright. Id., Art. 8.

Vereinigtes Königreich

As with the rest of the European Union the basic copyright term in the United Kingdom is life of the author plus 70 years. There are a number of variations on this however. Works in the United Kingdom fall into two categories for the purposes of copyright duration: government works and non-government works. The former are covered by Crown copyright and Parliamentary copyright and their special duration rules and the latter by ordinary copyright duration rules.

Crown copyright

Crown copyright works have a basic term of protection of 50 years from date of commercial publication. For Crown works created before the entry into force of the Copyright Act 1956 on 30 June 1957 other rules apply. Crown copyright photographs created prior to 30 June 1957 have a copyright term of 50 years from creation. Published Crown copyright engravings created prior to 30 June 1957 have a copyright term of 50 years from commercial publication. Unpublished Crown copyright engravings of the period come out of copyright at the end of 2039. Crown artistic works other than engravings and photographs created prior to 30 June 1957 have a copyright term of 50 years from creation.

Further special rules apply to Crown artistic works created between 30 June 1957 and the entry into force of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 on 1 August 1989. Published engravings created in this period are still out of copyright 50 years after commercial publication. Unpublished engravings created in this period come out of copyright at the end of 2039 as before. Published photographs are out of copyright 50 years after publication. Unpublished photographs come out of copyright at the end of 2039. Other artistic works come out of copyright 50 years after creation.

For a summary of these times see the flowchart at [32].

Crown copyright sound recordings are much more simple. Copyright expires 50 years after creation unless the work is commercially published during that period when copyright expires 50 years after first publication.

Parliamentary copyright

Parliamentary copyright was created by the Copyright Designs & Patents Act 1988 and its duration rules are the same as for Crown copyright materials created after 30 August 1989.

Copyright on sound recordings

If the source material is out of copyright, sound recordings leave copyright after 50 years from first publication. Plans are underway to extend this to 70 years.

Ordinary copyright

For ordinary copyright works the largest distinction is between those with a known author and those with a pseudonymous or anonymous author. There are also distinctions in copyright term between artistic works and sound recordings. The commencement dates for the Copyright Act 1957 and the Copyright Designs & Patents Act 1988 are also crucial.

If the work was created after 30 August 1989 and has a known author copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author. If the work was photograph with a known author taken before 30 June 1957 then copyright also expires 70 years after the death of the author. If the work is a non-photograph artistic work with a known author which was created prior to 30 August 1989 then several scenarios can apply:

1. If the work was published during the author's lifetime then copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author.
2. If the work was published before 30 August 1989 and the author died more than 20 years before publication then copyright expires 50 years after publication.
3. If the work was published before 30 August 1989 and the author died less than 20 years before publication then copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author.
4. If the work was not published before 30 August 1989 and the author died after 1968 then copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author.
5. If the work was not published before 30 August 1989 and the author died before 1969 then copyright expires at the end of 2039.

If the author is unknown then the basic time period to bear in mind is 70 years. If the work has an unknown author and was created after 30 August 1989 copyright expires either 70 years after creation or if during that period the work is made available to the public 70 years after that. If the work is a photograph with an unknown author taken before 1 June 1957 then copyright expires 70 years after creation or if during that period the work is made available to the public 70 years after that. If the work was created before 1969 with an unknown author then several scenarios can apply:

1. If the work was published before 30 August 1989 then copyright expires 70 years after first publication.
2. If the work is unpublished and was first made available to the public after 1968 then copyright expires 70 years after the work was first made available to the public.
3. If the work is unpublished and has never been made available to the public then copyright expires at the end of 2039.
4. If the work is unpublished and was first made available to the public before 1969 then copyright expires at the end of 2039.

For a summary of these rules see the Duration of Copyright (UK) flowchart [33].

The rules for ordinary copyright sound recordings are the same as for Crown copyright sound recordings.

Typographical copyright

If scanning a copyright-expired work from a British publication typographical copyright must be borne in mind. This subsists for 25 years from creation of the publication and covers the typographical arrangement of the publication. It does not exist in the United States.

Publication right

One related right to copyright that must be borne in mind in the United Kingdom is publication right. This applies to ordinary copyright works but does not apply to Crown copyright works. If the copyright of an unpublished work has expired (virtually impossible before 2039) then the first publisher of that work is entitled to publication right over that work. Publication right has the same rules as copyright but only lasts for 25 years. It does not exist in the United States.

Database right

If scanning material from a publication from 1982 or later database right must also be borne in mind. This right normally lasts 15 years from creation or substantial amendment of the database. Many books count as databases due to their systematic arrangement of information. Under transitional provisions works created from 1982-1997 are also covered by database right until the end of 2012, ie 15 years after the passage of the original legislation. It does not exist in the United States.

Exceptions to copyright

As with many other countries the UK defines an exception to copyright infringement for artistic works on public display. Section 62 of the Copyright Designs & Patents Act 1988 states that it is not an infringement of copyright to film, photograph, broadcast or make a graphic image of a building, sculpture, models for buildings or work of artistic craftsmanship if that work is permanently situated in a public place or in premises open to the public.

Vereinigte Staaten

Anything published before January 1, 1923 is in the public domain. Anything published before January 1, 1964 and not renewed is in the public domain (search the renewal records for books and maps here). Anything published before March 1, 1989 with no copyright notice ("©", "Copyright" or "Copr.") plus the year of publication (may be omitted in some cases) plus the copyright owner (or pseudonym) is in the public domain.

Photographic works created after January 1, 1978 are protected for 70 years after the death of the creator. Works created but not published before January 1, 1978 are protected for 95 years from the date they were registered for copyright, or 95 (for anonymous or pseudonymous works) or 120 years (for works by individuals) from year of creation, whichever expires first. (see [34] for more information)

Works by the US Government

File:Atlantis Docked to Mir.jpg

Example of a work within the public domain of NASA which is a federal US government agency

A work by the US federal Government is in the public domain.

• Images on government or government agency websites are not necessarily public domain; always look for copyright notices or similar. Especially the images on the favorite website "Astronomy Picture of the Day" are in most cases not within the public domain but copyrighted by their individual authors (so please do not upload images from there to Wikimedia Commons).
• This does not include governments of the individual states.
• This does not include government-funded corporations like Amtrak or the USPS. In particular, the USPS holds copyright on all US postage stamp designs since 1978 [35] (older US stamps are all public domain).
• This also does not include works commissioned by the US Government, but produced by contractors; in this case, the copyright may have been assigned to the US Government (for instance, the copyright of the official Ada programming language manual was assigned to the US Department of Defense).
• Some US government agencies may work in cooperation with other agencies or corporations; this is in particular the case of NASA, which operates the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in cooperation with Caltech, and operates a number of space projects in cooperation with foreign agencies such as ESA and CNES. Only materials solely produced by NASA will be in the public domain. The other agencies may hold copyright on some material, including material published on NASA sites (there will be copyright notices in that case).
• Commercial use of some Federal images, such as identifying insignia or identification, is prohibited however. Fraudulent use (such as wearing military decorations without authorization) is also banned. However, restrictions of this nature are not within the scope of Commons policy.
  • The United States Army Institute of Heraldry— the official custodian of ALL United States governmental images has addressed this issue with its Copyright statement, which informs the reader as to how to meet any commercial needs under this statute.

Jemen

Yemeni Law states that photos and two dimensional artistic works are protected for 10 years starting from the beginning of the publication year. It also states that television screenshots are protected for 3 years starting from the original broadcast date.

See also

• Commons:Currency
• Commons:Stamps/Public domain
• Copyright tags
• en:Wikipedia:Copyright FAQ
• Help:Public domain
• Stock.xchng Policy

External links

Collections of laws:

• UNESCO collection of copyright laws.
• WIPO Collection of Laws for Electronic Access (CLEA).
• CERLALC: Copyright laws of Latin America, the Caribbean states, and Spain and Portugal.
• CIPR: Copyright laws of the CIS nations and the three Baltic states.
• ECAP: Copyright laws of ASEAN countries.
• EuroMed Audiovisual II EU programme; has recent copyright laws of some mediterranean states (from Morocco to Turkey).

Copyright treaties:

• Berne Convention.
• WIPO Copyright treaty.
• EU Council Directive 93/98/EEC on the harmonization of copyright terms in the EU.

Other:

• Circular 38a: International Copyright Relations of the United States, from the U.S. Copyright Office. (A bit dated, some countries are missing.)
• Circular 38b: Highlights of Copyright Amendments Contained in the URAA, from the U.S. Copyright Office.
• 17 USC 104A: Copyright restorations in the U.S. due to the URAA
• Copyright in the USA