Commons:Copyright rules by territory

Shortcut: COM:CRT

Worldwide map of copyright term length

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. The laws of individual countries differ especially in the following points:

• The time for which a copyright applies. In most countries, copyright on works published during the author's lifetime expires 50 or 70 years after the death of the author (p.m.a.).
• 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.

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.

Full details for each country or territory are covered below. Some countries also have individual pages (highlighted in bold), which you can reach directly from the summary table below.

Countries with summary:
Note: Links go to country specific laws sections below summary table.

• Afghanistan
• Albania
• Algeria
• Argentina
• Czech Republic
• France
• Germany
• India
• Indonesia
• Japan
• Mexico
• Netherlands
• Peru
• United Kingdom

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 means 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 a considerable amount 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 (p.m.a.).
• 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.

The Public Domain Calculator by the Europeana Connect project/Österreichische Nationalbibliothek is useful (for people who are not legal newbies) for determining the copyright status of European works in their source nations.

Authorship

• Rules are generally different for works with known authors and works published anonymously or pseudonymously. Works published anonymously or pseudonymously may gain the standard known-author copyright term if authorship is subsequently made public.
• Rules may also be different for works of collective, corporate or government authorship.
• Note that copyright rules based on the death of the author normally assume the work to have been published, and often require the work to have been published during the author's lifetime. Unpublished works, or works published posthumously, may have different rules.

See also Commons:Anonymous works.

Derivative works

Main page: Commons:Derivative works.

Many creative works are derivatives of other creative works. This may be a copyright infringement if the work used is not in the public domain. Exceptions exist for allowing derivatives to be made without infringing copyright; whether and how these apply varies widely across countries, by subject matter, and may depend on a range of circumstances.

See

• Commons:Freedom of panorama
• Commons:Threshold of originality
• Commons:De minimis
• Commons:Copyright rules by subject matter

Summary table

This summary table tries to cover the most common cases for each territory, especially where those cases may be in the public domain. Rarer cases, or cases where no works are in the public domain yet (especially for recent works), may be found in the detailed description of each territory linked from the table. Rare exceptions to standard cases are listed here in footnotes.

This summary table (Commons:Copyright rules by territory - summary) is a work in progress. Feel free to help!

Countries, areas, and entities	Standard copyright term (based on authors' deaths)	Other copyright terms (based on publication and creation dates)	Copyright exemptions	Notes
Afghanistan copyright overview ( Afghanistan and copyright issues)	50 p.m.a.: life + 50 years	50 years from publication anonymous or pseudonymous work published after authors' deaths audiovisual works photographic,painting works 50 years from creation phonogram	Threshold of originality: “photographic works that have been created using an original mode” (Art. 6)	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes (Afghan calendar)
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1967 or earlier}}	{{PD-Afghanistan}} {{PD-Afghanistan}} This work is in the public domain in Afghanistan according to The law on the support the right of authors, composers, artists and researchers (Copy Right Law). (unofficial English translation) because: It is a photograph, painting, or other audiovisual work originally published more than 50 years ago, or It is any other form of protected work and more than 50 years have passed since the death of the last surviving author and the date of original publication. All works published using a pseudonym enter the public domain 50 years after publication, unless the author's identity subsequently becomes known. Afghan copyright law only protects “photographic works that have been created using an original mode” (Art. 6). Important note: Works of foreign (non-U.S.) origin must be out of copyright or freely licensed in both their home country and the United States in order to be accepted on Commons. Works of Afghan origin that were under copyright in Afghanistan on July 29, 2016 may be copyrighted in the U.S. under the URAA. For more information, see U.S. Copyright Office Circular 38A. Works of Afghan origin that were no longer under copyright in Afghanistan on July 29, 2016 are not copyrighted in the U.S. due to a previous lack of copyright relations between the U.S. and Afghanistan.		Edit /Afghanistan-table
Albania	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	70 years from publication anonymous or pseudonymous work photographic or audiovisual work of joint authorship 70 years from creation unpublished photographic or audiovisual work of joint authorship 25 years from production works of applied art	See COM:CRTFULL#Albania	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes Notes: #Albania
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}		{{PD-Albania-exempt}} {{PD-Albania-exempt}} The work published here is subject to use in the public domain in accordance to Article 9 of Albania's Copyright Law of 2005 (No.9380 §). The revised law (No.35/2016 §) ratified by the Albanian Parliament on 31.3.2016 keeps these basic provisions in place: (a) ideas, theories, concepts, discoveries and inventions in a creative work, despite the way they were acquired, explained or expressed; (b) official texts of a legal, administrative, legislative, political nature and their respective official translations; (c) official symbols of the state, symbols of other public organizations and public authorities, such as: coats of arms, seals, flags, emblems, medals, medallions and other signage; (d) means of payment; (e) news and press information; (f) simple data and facts; (g) folk expressions;	Edit /Albania-table
Algeria	50 p.m.a.: life + 50 years (except posthumous work)	50 years from publication anonymous or pseudonymous work published after authors' deaths (posthumous) audiovisual works collective works 50 years from creation as above, where unpublished photographs or works of applied art		Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes Notes: COM:CRTFULL#Algeria
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1967 or earlier}}	{{PD-Algeria-photo-except}} - for photographs published before 1 January 1987 {{PD-Algeria-photo-except}} This Algerian photograph, which was first published prior to January 1, 1987, is currently in the public domain in Algeria because it was granted a term of protection of 10 years from publication by Article 64 of Ordinance No. 73–14 of 3 April 1973. Although the 1973 ordinance was abrogated by Article 166 of Ordinance No. 97–10 of 6 March 1997, which was itself abrogated by Article 163 of the currently applicable Ordinance No. 03–05 of 19 July 2003, this did not lead to a renewal of the copyright of photographs which had already fallen into the public domain, because both the 1997 and the 2003 ordinances contained transitional provisions explicitly disallowing retroactive protection of out-of-copyright works. In order to be hosted on Commons, all works must be in the public domain in the United States as well as in their source country. The copyright of all Algerian photographs published prior to 1987 had expired in Algeria on the U.S. date of restoration (April 19, 1998). Such photographs are thus currently in the public domain in the United States. English | français | +/− Algerian photographs created on or before December 31, 1967 which had never been published as of January 1, 1987 are currently in the public domain in Algeria but not in the United States, as they were still copyrighted on the date of restoration. Photographs whose copyright was restored in the U.S. by the URAA are no longer accepted at Wikimedia Commons.		Edit /Algeria-table
Argentina	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	50 years from publication anonymous or pseudonymous work (works whose copyright is held by institutions) 50 years pma audiovisual works (author defined as last survivor of producer/director/screenwriter/composer) 20 years from publication and 25 years from creation photographs		Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes Notes: COM:CRTFULL#Argentina
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-AR-Photo}} {{PD-AR-Movie}} {{PD-AR-Anonymous}}		Edit /Argentina-table
Czech Republic	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	Anonymous works: 70 years after publication (if author never disclosed) Publication right: 25 years from first publication if copyright has expired before such publication	Threshold of originality: the work must be “a unique outcome of the creative activity of the author”; for photographs and computer programs, it suffices if the work “is original in the sense that it is the author’s own intellectual creation”. Freedom of panorama: see COM:FOP#Czech Republic Government works: see {{PD-CzechGov}}	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes Notes: COM:CRTFULL#Czech Republic
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-EU-no author disclosure}} {{PD-EU-unpublished}}	{{FoP-Czech Republic}} {{FoP-Czech Republic}} The photographical reproduction of the depicted work is covered under the article §33 of the Czech Copyright Act, which states: (1) Copyright is not infringed by anybody who records or expresses by drawing, painting, graphic art, photography or film a work permanently located on a square, in a street, in a park, on a public route or in any other public place; copyright shall likewise not be infringed by anybody who further uses a work so expressed, rendered or recorded. If possible, the name of the author (unless the work is an anonymous work) or the name of the person under whose name the work is being introduced in public, the title of the work and its location shall be indicated. (2) The provisions of Paragraph (1) shall not apply to making a reproduction or imitation of a work of architecture in the form of erecting a building and to the reproduction and distribution of a work in the form of a three-dimensional reproduction. See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#Czech Republic for more information.	Edit /Czech Republic-table
France copyright overview ( Copyright law of France)	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years (except posthumous works, musical works, and works whose author "died for France", which are protected for an additional 30 years)	Anonymous works: 70 years after publication (if author never disclosed) Posthumous works: 25 years from publication	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#France Freedom of panorama: no (but see COM:FOP#France) Government works: no except video, text and graphics published on the site gouvernement.fr (Please use {{Gouvernement.fr}})	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-EU-no author disclosure}} {{PD-EU-unpublished}}		Edit /France-table
Germany copyright overview ( Copyright law of Germany)	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	Anonymous works: 70 years after publication (if author never disclosed) Publication right: 25 years from first publication or first public performance if copyright has expired before such publication or performance, or if the work has never been protected in Germany and the author died more than 70 years before the first publication	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#Germany Freedom of panorama: see COM:FOP#Germany Government works: see {{PD-GermanGov}}	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-EU-no author disclosure}} {{PD-EU-unpublished}}	{{FoP-Germany}} {{FoP-Germany}} The photographical reproduction of this work is covered under the article § 59 of the German copyright law, which states that "It shall be permissible to reproduce, by painting, drawing, photography or cinematography, works which are permanently located on public ways, streets or places and to distribute and publicly communicate such copies. For works of architecture, this provision shall be applicable only to the external appearance." See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#Germany for more information. See also Category:PD Germany license tags	Edit /Germany-table
India copyright overview ( Copyright law of India)	60 p.m.a.: life + 60 years (except posthumous works and photographs, films, sound recordings)	Photographs: 50 years after creation (for creation before 1958) 60 years after publication (for publication after 1957) Films and sound recordings: 60 years after publication Anonymous works: 60 years after publication (if author never disclosed) Posthumous works: 60 years after publication Government works: 60 years after publication	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#India Freedom of panorama: no (but see COM:FOP#India) Government works: free license, use {{GODL-India}} (laws and judgements are in the public domain under {{EdictGov-India}})	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1957 or earlier}}	{{PD-anon-auto-1996}} (for anonymous works published before 1936) {{PD-India-photo-1958}} (photographs created before 1958)	{{FoP-India}} {{FoP-India}} This reproduction is permitted under the Indian Copyright Act of 1957, Section 52, which states: ... (s) the making or publishing of a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of a work of architecture or the display of a work of architecture; (t) the making or publishing of a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of a sculpture, or other artistic work failing under sub-clause (iii) of clause (c) of section 2 ["any other work of artistic craftsmanship"], if such work is permanently situate in a public place or any premises to which the public has access; Note that this does not include copies of paintings, drawings, or photographs, as they do not fall under the referenced sub-clause (iii). They fall under sub-clause (i). (u) the inclusion in a cinematograph film of- (i) any artistic work permanently situate in a public place or any premises to which the public has access; Indian law is modelled on UK law, and in the absence of any specific case law to the contrary it is reasonable to assume that the rules will be similar. See the United Kingdom section for more details. See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#India for more information.	Edit /India-table
Indonesia	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	50 years from publication photography and film literary works, musical works, and paintings (whose copyright is held by a legal entity) anonymous or pseudonymous work	Freedom of Panorama: no	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes Notes: COM:CRTFULL#Indonesia
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-IDNoCopyright}} {{PD-IDGov}} {{PD-IDOld-Art29}} {{PD-IDOld-Art30}}		Edit /Indonesia-table
Japan copyright overview ( Copyright law of Japan)	50 p.m.a.: life + 50 years	Anonymous or Pseudonymous works: 50 years from first publication (if author never disclosed during copyright term) Cooperative works: 50 years from first publication (or creation if unpublished) Films: 70 years from first publication and 38 years after the creator's death if it was published as his work before 1971 Photographs: 10 years from first publication (or creation if unpublished) before 1957 Note: WWII extension for Axis powers - There is an extension for Axis powers in WWII, which is essentially 11 years added to the copyright protection length.	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#Japan Freedom of panorama: except purpose exclusively for commercial use (see COM:FOP#Japan) Government works: Laws, judgements and notice (see {{PD-Japan-exempt}})	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-Japan}}	{{PD-Japan-exempt}} {{PD-Japan-organization}} {{PD-Japan-film}} {{PD-Japan-oldphoto}} {{PD-Japan-audio}}	{{FoP-Japan}} (only reproduction of an architectural work is accepted on Commons) {{FoP-Japan}} Reproduction of the architectural work(s) in this image is permitted under Section 46 of the Copyright Law of Japan, as long as it does not constitute "imitative reproduction of an architectural work and offering it to the public by transfer of ownership of its copies." This permission does not apply to artistic works in general or to buildings that are considered artistic works, unless they are in public domain. See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#Japan for more information.	Edit /Japan-table
Mexico copyright overview	100 p.m.a.: life + 100 years	Anonymous works: ? Government works: 100 years after publication	Freedom of panorama: see COM:FOP#Mexico	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1952 or earlier}} (due to non-retroactive extension of copyright term from 1982 onwards)	{{PD-Mexico}}	{{FoP-Mexico}} {{FoP-Mexico}} The photographical reproduction of this work is covered under the article 148, VII of the Mexican copyright law (Ley Federal de Derechos de Autor), which states that «Literary and artistic works already published may be used, provided that normal commercialization of the work is not affected, without authorization from the copyrightholder and without remuneration, invariably citing the source and without altering the work, only in the following cases: […] VII. Reproduction, communication, and distribution by means of drawings, paintings, photographs, and audiovisual means of works visible from public places». See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#Mexico for more information.	Edit /Mexico-table
Netherlands copyright overview ( Copyright law of the Netherlands)	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	Anonymous works: 70 years after publication (if author never disclosed). Covers anonymous/pseudonymous work, and corporate works with no listed natural author	Freedom of panorama: see COM:FOP#The Netherlands Government works: laws and legal judgements. See also full Netherlands copyright overview	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-EU-no author disclosure}}	{{FoP-Netherlands}} {{FoP-Netherlands}} The photographical reproduction of this work is covered under the article 18 of the Dutch copyright law, which states that “it is not an infringement of copyright to reproduce and publish pictures of a work, as meant in article 10, first paragraph, under 6°[1] or of an architectural work as meant in article 10, first paragraph, under 8°[2], which are made to be permanently located in a public place, as long as the work is depicted as it is located in the public space. Where incorporation of a work in a compilation is concerned, not more than a few of the works of the same author may be included”. [1] drawings, paintings, works of architecture and sculpture, lithographs, engravings and the likes [2] drafts, sketches and three-dimensional works relating to architecture, geography, topography or other sciences Note that photographs are not included in Item 6. They are separately listed at Item 9 and are therefore not covered by FOP. See Commons:Freedom of panorama#Netherlands for more information. See also Category:PD Netherlands license tags	Edit /Netherlands-table
Peru copyright overview ( Copyright law of Peru)	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	Collective works, computer programs and audiovisual works: 70 years from publication or 70 years from creation if unpublished Anonymous works: 70 years after publication (if author never disclosed) Simple photographs: 70 years from publication Publication right: 10 years from first publication of unpublished public domain works	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#Peru Freedom of panorama: yes, see COM:FOP#Peru Government works: no	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}		{{FoP-Peru}} {{FoP-Peru}} This reproduction is permitted under the Peruvian copyright law of April 23, 1996, article 43(e). Peru has full "freedom of panorama", allowing reproducing artworks on streets, squares, or other public places or on the outside façades of buildings by means different from the original technique. The reproduction must not interfere with the author's exclusive rights to exploitation. This is protected both by national law and the Andean Community treaty. See Commons:Freedom of Panorama#Peru for more information.	Edit /Peru-table
United Kingdom copyright overview ( Copyright law of the United Kingdom)	70 p.m.a.: life + 70 years	Crown copyright: 50 years from first commercial publication, but works except engravings created prior to 30 June 1957: 50 years from creation Anonymous works Photographs created before 30 June 1957: 70 years after creation if unpublished, 70 years after publication if published within 70 years of creation Posthumous works Non-photographic works, published posthumously before 1945, where author died 20 years or more before publication: 50 years after publication	Threshold of originality: see Commons:TOO#United Kingdom Freedom of panorama: see COM:FOP#United Kingdom	Berne/UCC: yes Until year end: Yes
	{{PD-old-auto|author died 1947 or earlier}}	{{PD-UKGov}} {{PD-UK-unknown}} {{PD-EU-no author disclosure}} {{PD-EU-unpublished}} {{PD-UK-posthumous-non-photo-1996}}	{{FoP-UK}} {{FoP-UK}} The photographic reproduction of this work is covered under United Kingdom law (Section 62 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988), which states that it is not an infringement to take photographs of buildings, or of sculptures, models for buildings, or works of artistic craftsmanship permanently located in a public place or in premises open to the public. This does not apply to two-dimensional graphic works such as posters or murals. See Commons:Freedom of panorama § United Kingdom for more information.	Edit /United Kingdom-table

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

Edit
/Afghanistan

Works are considered in the public domain in Afghanistan according to The law on the support the right of authors, composers, artists and researchers (Copy Right Law). (unofficial English translation) because:

• It is a photograph, painting, or other audiovisual work originally published or broadcast more than 50 years ago, or
• It is any other form of protected work and more than 50 years have passed since the death of the last surviving author and the date of original publication.

All works published using a pseudonym enter the public domain 50 years after publication, unless the author's identity subsequently becomes known.

Albania

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.

Albanian Laws on Copyright

Here are some of the orginals, see also wikisource for texts.

• Law 7564 on Copyright
• Law 8594 ammendments on Copyright
• 8630 on copyright
• 8826 on copyright

Algeria

Current 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. However, all photographs which were first published before January 1, 1987 are in the public domain, see {{PD-Algeria-photo-except}}.

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.

Angola

In 2014, the Angolan National Assembly passed Law n.º 15/14, de 31 de julho - Lei dos Direitos de Autor e Direitos Conexos, which replaced the previous 1990 copyright law. The new law came into effect in 2017, by Presidential Decree 125/17 of 12 June.

Extension

• Copyright in Angola lasts for life of the author + 70 years (life of the author + 45 years for photographs and applied arts); (§72º1 & §73º2); unpublished works get 15 years of additional protection (§76º4);
• Anonymous and collaborative works are protected for 70 years after being published (§73º1);
• Copyright of anonymous works belongs to who publishes the work, at least until the original author is found (§9º);

Types of protection

• Photographic works are protected when organized on such a way that transmits a journalistic, artistic or aesthetic message, showing originallity on its creation (§10º);
• Architecture erected in Angola is protected, along with any works of art included in the buildings (§2º); the author of a work of architecture, urbanism or design is the creator of its global conception, as well as the project (§15º);

Other

• Traditional learning and use are made the same as literary, artistic and scientific works (§2º);
• The works are protected by the mere fact of being created, no matter what may be its expression, and independently of its content, value, destiny and divulgation to the public (§2º);

Argentina

See templates for details.

• {{PD-AR-Photo}}: photographs—not drawings or other works—published in Argentina 20 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.

The original copyright law of Argentina (Ley 11.723) from September 30, 1933 had a general copyright term of 30 years p.m.a. In 1957, this was increased to 50 years p.m.a. by Decreto-Ley 12.063/57, published in the Boletin Oficial on October 11, 1957. In 1997, the term was again increased to 70 years p.m.a. by Ley 24.870, published in the Boletin Oficial on September 16, 1997. This extension to 70 years re-copyrighted works on which the earlier 50-year term had already expired, but the new 70-year term had not expired yet (see Ley 24.870, or art. 84 of the current Argentine copyright law). For photographic works the duration of copyright is twenty years from the date of the first publication (article 34 of last version of 11723 law, updated (August 13, 1998) by law 24249 art 1).

Armenia

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.

On June 15, 2006 new law was passed, according to which duration of copyright was prolonged to 70 years after death of author, last death of co-author, or 70 years after being published, for work which remained anonymous. The new law also prolongs copyright for those works, which have become PD according to previous law, but are still copyrighted according to new law (e.g. less then 70 years passed from author's death).

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.

Australia

Government-produced works

According to [10], 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 1968 should be in the public domain.

Use {{PD-AustraliaGov}} in this case.

Non-government works

Presently, the Australian Copyright Act 1968[11] 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 in February 2008. Prior to these amendments the time limit was 50 years. The amendments were not retroactive, copyrights that had expired were not revived [12]

• 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.[13]
• For published works, the copyright expires 70 years after the death of the author.[14]
• For previously unpublished works, the copyright cannot expire less than 70 years after the first publication of the work. [15]
• For anonymous/pseudonymous works, the copyright expires 70 years after the first publication of the work.[16]

Following this logic:

• All published works whose author deceased before 1 January 1955 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 1955 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 1955 will not be out of copyright until 2026.
• All anonymous/pseudonymous works published before 1 January 1955 are in the public domain.
• Unpublished works are not in the public domain.

Note:

• Photographs (published or unpublished) taken prior to midnight on the 31st December 1954 are in the public domain[17], photographs taken on/after 1st January 1955 are not PD unless prescribed by the copyright owner.

See {{PD-Australia}} and {{PD-Australia-currency}}.

Austria

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 a public space might not be used to produce an object similar to the original.

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.

• § 7. (1) Officials, ordinances, official decrees, announcements and decisions as well as official or official works of the type referred to in § 2, items 1 or 3, exclusively or primarily for official use shall not be protected by copyright.

Azerbaijan

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.

Bahamas, The

According to the Statute Law of The Bahamas - Chapter 323 the duration of copyright is 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the author dies. If a work is anonymous, pseudonymous or made for hire, copyright in that work expires at the end of the period of 70 years from the year of its first publication or a term of one hundred years from the year of its creation, whichever expires first. The Bahamas has freedom of panorama for architecture, and 2D and 3D artistic works on display in places or premises open to the public.

Bangladesh

The Copyright Act 2000 of Bangladesh gives works a basic protection of sixty years after the death of the author. There is Freedom of panorama for "making of a drawing, engraving or photograph of an architectural work of art, or a sculpture kept in a public place". Works of the government are copyrighted until 60 years after creation.

Belarus

The Law On Copyright and Adjacent Rights 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. Freedom of panorama exists in a specified way: direct shots of not-PD statues, artworks, etc. are copyright violation.

Belgium

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

The 1994 law has been replaced by a new copyright law starting 1 January 2015.

Belize

According to the Belize's Copyright Act of 2000, literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic works are protected for 50 years after the death of the author. If the author is unknown, the works are protected for 50 years after publication. Sound recordings and films are protected for 50 years after they are made.

Benin

The Law of 2006 (French) gives a term of 70 years pma.

Bhutan

According to the International Property Division of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Bhutan joined the Berne Convention in 2004. Copyright applies automatically and is not required to be registered in Bhutan.

Bolivia

Copyright law of Bolivia at WIPO (en) at the Wayback Machine (archived on 3 January 2017)

Botswana

Copyright in Botswana is governed by Chapter 68:02 Copyright and Neighboring Rights adopted in 2006. Copyright is protected 50 years from the death of the author (10.1) or last-surviving author (10.2). For collective works, audiovisual works (10.3), anonymous works, or pseudonymous works (10.4), copyright is protected 50 years from the date of publication. For works of applied art, copyright is protected for 25 years from creation (10.5).

Bosnia and Herzegovina

See also: Commons:Copyright tags#Bosnia and Herzegovina

• Works of authors who died in 1945 or earlier are public domain both in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the United States. Works of authors who died in 1946 or later are copyrighted.
• An exception applies to the photographic and similarly-made works, and the works of applied art, which are considered free if published before 1 January 1971.
• The publication right applies for all works, published for the first time on 11 August 2010 or later, even if the copyright has already expired. It lasts for 25 years starting 1 January of the year following the year of the publication.
• There is no Commons-suitable freedom of panorama in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Details

• Full text of Bosnia and Herzegovina's copyright law from 2010: in Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian and English.
• Full text of Bosnia and Herzegovina's copyright law from 2002: in Bosnian and English.
• Works of authors who died in 1951 or earlier are public domain in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Works of authors who died in 1952 or later are copyrighted. Note however that the URAA date for Bosnia and Herzegovina is 1 January 1996, which means that works made by people who died on or before December 31, 1945 were public domain on the URAA date. A similar case applies to photographs and works of applied art, which are public domain in Bosnia and Herzegovina if published before 1 January 1977, but are again copyrighted in the United States if published on 1 January 1971 or later.
• Unprotected creations (see article 8): ideas, concepts, and principles; official texts (and accompanying material); political and court speeches; daily news; folk literary and artistic creations.
• Duration of copyright: see article 55–62 – generally 70 years after death of the author except for anonymous works (70 years after anonymous publication).

Brazil

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.

Government works

There are no official response to the Article 2.4 of the Berne Convention, to give or not protection to official texts, in its implementation as Federal Decree nº 75.699 of 1975. Only in 1988, with the new Fededeal Constituion (translation) some freedom of access was expressed,

• Article 5th (inciso XIV), ensure "everyone access" to information for work (tipically access to obligation norms);
• Article 216 (§ 2nd) states the "mandatory deductible access" (no pay for law-documents).

After, in 1998, the exclusion from Berna protection of this kind of works was expressed by article 8, items I and IV, of the Copyright law. It excludes legislative and juridic documents, but not all works (ex. cited maps, tables, etc.) created by the federal government.

See {{PD-BrazilGov}}. Note: there are a special clause to add in the CC0 implicit license of legislative documents, make by tradition, that obligates the copies to add a red notice "This text does not substitute the original published in the Official Gazette".

URAA

See {{PD-Brazil-URAA}} for compatibility between URAA and works in the public domain in Brazil.

Some examples to help define which photos are, and are not, "artistic creations", and therefore object of protection under the 1973 copyright law:

• OK The facade of the Jung Frau building, in Joinville, as well as partial views of the city, when photographed in an obvious simple way, without employment of any special ("diferenciada") technique" TJ-SC - Apelacao Civel : AC 111630 SC 2002.011163-0 (2006): "não se considera criação artística as fotografias tiradas por profissional do ramo que retratam de forma manifestamente singela, sem o emprego de qualquer técnica diferenciada, o frontispício de um edifício residencial e a vista parcial da cidade, em observância a contrato de prestação de serviços entabulado com empresa do ramo imobiliário e com destino publicitário previamente ajustado entre as partes"
• OK Mere documental, descritive photographs in general, such as photographs documenting social reunions: TJ-SC - Apelacao Civel : AC 111630 SC 2002.011163-0 (2006): ""mera documentação fotográfica, sem caráter artístico, afasta a incidência do direito de autor, "... tornando possível o uso de terceiro sem menção do nome do fotógrafo, pois, conforme lei brasileira, somente a fotografia artística (pela escolha do objeto e condiçõe de execução) se inscreve dentre as obras protegidas." (...) [segue exemplo ilustrativo] fotografias documentárias de reuniões sociais - Autor que na época estava do desempenho de funções junto ao réu - Inexigível a referência ao nome do fotógrafo por não se tratar de trabalho artístico - Falta de originalidade, criatividade, valor estético ou de furo de documentação "
• OK TJ-PR - Apelação Cível : AC 946589 PR Apelação Cível - 0094658-9 (2000) "As fotografias destinadas a documentos de identidade, produzidas por máquinas automáticas, não são obras artísticas. (...) Também não devem alcançar a proteção do direito de autor as fotografias meramente técnicas, em que se procura uma reprodução tal qual de certo objetivo, sem a menor preocupação artística."
•  Not OK TJ-MG : 2933464 MG 2.0000.00.293346-4/000(1) (2000) "as fotos [...] denotam caráter artístico, caracterizando-se pela originalidade, criatividade e técnica da sua autora, elementos que dela não se podem excluir como reveladores, a princípio, de uma obra de arte. Não são elas, como pretende o apelante, meras constatações ou reproduções de imagens para fins publicitários, ou instantâneos comuns"

Bulgaria

Life+70 years (EU)

• {{PD-BG-exempt}} – for works exempt from copyright under Bulgaria law.
• {{PD-BulgarianGov}} - for government works exempt from copyright under Bulgaria law.

Burma

According to the paper "Legal Status of Intellectual Property Rights in Myanmar" by U Tin Ko Win (2006) and the WIPO Lex website as of November 2010, copyright law in Burma (Myanmar) is governed by the Burma Copyright Act 1914, which is based on the UK Copyright Act 1911.

• Photographs. The copyright in a photograph expires 50 years after the date of the making of the original negative from which the photograph was directly or indirectly derived. The author of the work is the owner of the negative at the time it was made: Burma Copyright Act, First Schedule, section 21.

• Original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works.

As regards original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works (but not photographs), copyright lasts for 50 years after the author's death: Burma Copyright Act, First Schedule, section 3; and see MODiNS.net.

The copyright in a work of joint authorship expires:

• 50 years after the death of the author who first dies; or
• upon the death of the author who dies last;

whichever period is longer: First Schedule, section 16(1).

However, where a literary, dramatic or musical work, or an engraving (but not some other type of artistic work), is concerned, if the work had not been published (or, in the case of a dramatic or musical work, performed in public) at the date of the author's death (or, for a work of joint authorship, the date of the death of the author who died last), the copyright in the work expires 50 years after the work is published, or performed or delivered in public, whichever occurs first: First Schedule, section 17(1).

• Freedom of panorama. It is not an infringement of copyright to make or publish paintings, drawings, engravings or photographs of (1) a work of sculpture or artistic craftsmanship permanently situated in a public place, or (2) an architectural work of art (except that architectural drawings or plans may not be produced): First Schedule, section 2(1)(iii). Artistic work is defined as including "works of painting, drawing, sculpture and artistic craftsmanship, and architectural works of art and engravings and photographs", which suggests that works of artistic craftsmanship do not include paintings, drawings, sculptures, engravings, photographs and architectural works of art. An "architectural work of art" is any building or structure having an artistic character or design or any model for such building or structure, but does not include processes or methods of construction: First Schedule, section 35(1).

• Government works. Copyright in a work prepared by or published by or under the direction or control of any government department belongs to the Government, and expires 50 years after the date of first publication of the work: First Schedule, section 18.

Cambodia

According to Cambodia's Law on Copyright and Related Rights, enacted in 2003:

• Copyright expires 50 years after the death of the author (or last surviving author for a work of collaboration)
• For anonymous and pseudonymous works, copyright expires 75 years after publication. If not published within 50 years of its creation, copyright expires 75 years after it was made accessible to the public. If not made accessible to the public within 50 years of its creation, copyright expires 100 years after creation. If the identity of the author is revealed or is established beyond doubt of the public before this period of expiration, copyright instead expires 50 years after the death of the author.
• For collective, audiovisual, or posthumous works, copyright expires 75 years after publication. If not published within 50 years of its creation, copyright expires 75 years after it was made accessible to the public. If not made accessible to the public within 50 years of its creation, copyright expires 100 years after creation.
• Certain works are ineligible for copyright protection, including: "Constitution, Law, Royal Decree, Sub-Decree, and other Regulations. Proclamation (Prakas), decision, certificate, other instructed circulars issued by state organizations. Court decision or other court warrants."

Cameroon

According to Cameroon's Law on Copyright and Neighboring Rights, enacted in 2000:

• Copyright lasts for 50 years after the death of the author
• For anonymous and pseudonymous works, copyright lasts for 50 years after publication
• Coats of arms, decorations, currency marks and other official insignia are not protected by copyright
• There is no freedom of panorama

Canada

All photographs (except those subject to Crown Copyright, for which see below) 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.

Works subject to Crown Copyright enter the public domain 50 years after publication, except for certain very rare exceptions (see WP:Crowncopy).

Chile

See Template talk:PD-Chile and {{PD-Chile}}.

China

People's Republic of China

According to the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国著作权法) in effect in Mainland China:

• Article 5: The law does not apply to those specified in Template:PD-PRC-exempt.
• Article 16: A work created by a citizen when fulfilling the tasks assigned to him by a legal entity or another organization shall be deemed to be a service work. Unless otherwise provided in Paragraph 2 of this Article, the copyright of such a work shall be enjoyed by the author, but the legal entity or organization shall have a priority right to exploit the work within the scope of its professional activities....
• Article 20: The rights of authorship, alteration and integrity of an author shall be unlimited in time.
• Article 21: For the rights provided in Items (5) through (17) of Paragraph 1 of Article 10 of this Law:
  • A work of a citizen: the term of protection of the rights and the right of publication shall be the lifetime of the author and 50 years after his death, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after his death. In the case of a work of joint authorship, such term shall expire on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the death of the last surviving author.
  • The copyright belongs to a legal entity or another organization, or in respect of a service work where the legal entity or organization enjoys the copyright (except the right of authorship): the term of protection of the rights and the right of publication shall be 50 years, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of such a work, however, any such work that has not been published within 50 years after the completion of its creation shall no longer be protected by this Law.
  • A cinematographic work or a work created in a way similar to cinematography, or a photographic work: the term of protection of the rights and the right of publication shall be 50 years, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of such a work, however, any such work that has not been published within 50 years after the completion of its creation shall no longer be protected by this Law.
• Article 22: In the following cases, a work may be exploited without the permission from, and without payment of remuneration to, the copyright owner, provided that the name of the author and the title of the work are mentioned and the other rights enjoyed by the copyright owner by virtue of this Law are not infringed upon:
  (1) use of a published work for the purposes of the user's own private study, research or self-entertainment;
  (2) appropriate quotation from a published work in one's own work for the purposes of introduction of, or comment on, a work, or demonstration of a point;
  (8) reproduction of a work in its collections by a library, archive, memorial hall, museum, art gallery or similar institution, for the purpose of the display or preservation of a copy of the work;
  (10) copying, drawing, photographing, or video recording of an artistic work located or on display in an outdoor public place;...
  The provisions in the preceding paragraph shall be applicable to the limitations on the rights of publishers, performers, producers of sound recordings and video recordings, radio stations and television stations.
• Article 60: The rights of copyright owners, publishers, performers, producers of sound recordings and video recordings, radio stations and television stations as provided in this Law, of which the term of protection specified in this Law has not yet expired on the date of this Law's entry into force, shall be protected in accordance with this Law. (The same thing has also been written in Article 55 of the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China dated 1990 (中华人民共和国著作权法 (1990年))).

According to the Implementing Regulations of the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国著作权法实施条例) in effect in Mainland China:

• Article 13: In the case of a work of an unknown author, the copyright, except the right of authorship, shall be exercised by the lawful holder of the original copy of the work. Where the author has been identified, the copyright shall be exercised by the author or his heir in title.
• Article 16: The using of copyright enjoyed by the State shall be managed by the State Council copyright administration departments.
• Article 17: In the case of posthumous works, the right of publication may be exercised by the author's heir in title or other behested beneficiary within a period of 50 years, unless the author expressly had stated otherwise. In the absence of an heir in title or other behested beneficiary, the said right shall be exercised by the lawful holder of the original copy of the work.
• Article 18: In the case of a work of an unknown author, the protection term in relation to the rights as mentioned by item 5 to item 17 of first paragraph of Article 10 of the Law shall be 50 years ending on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of the work. Article 21 of the Law shall be applicable after the author of the work has been identified.

According to the General Principles of the Civil Law of the People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国民法通则) Article 100, photos of regular people may not be used for profit (commercially) without their consent.

Hong Kong

According to Chapter 528 Copyright Ordinance, 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.

If the work in question satisfies the criterion mentioned above, then tag the image with {{PD-HK}}.

Works by the Government

According to Chapter 528 Copyright Ordinance, Section 182 Government copyright, the Government copyright applies to all works made by an officer of the Government. The Government copyright expires after 125 years from the end of the calendar year when the work was made.

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 (Taiwan)

According to the Copyright Act of the Republic of China in effect in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu:

• 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.

Colombia

According to the Colombian Law 23 of 1982 on Copyright, Articles 11, 21-29, amended by Law 44 of 1993, Article 2 and Law 1520 of 2012, Articles 4, 6 and 10, the author rights expire eighty (80) years after the death of the author or the death of the last coauthor. Where the copyright has been transferred by means of an act between living persons, the protection period still remains for eighty (80) years after the death of the author. The rights for collective works and anonymous works expires eighty (80) years from the date of publication, and for cinematic works, eighty (80) years after the movie's premiere (end of production). In the act, the term "anonymous" is defined to include "unknown" authors.

In all cases where a literary, scientific or artistic work has as its owner a legal entity or an official body or any institution under government public law, the term of protection shall be deemed to be seventy (70) years as from the date of publication.

In all cases where the applicable term of protection starts on the date of publication, the said term shall be understood to end on December 31 of the relevant year.

The author and the work source must be acknowledged when reused in Colombia, except if the author is unknown.

Congo, Democratic Republic of the (formerly Zaire)

The copyright law of 1986 (Ordinance-Law No. 86-033 of April 5, 1986 on the Protection of Copyright and Neighboring Rights) states that photographs enter the public domain 25 years after they are first published (Article 77). Non-photographic work enter the public domain when the author has died more than 50 years ago (Article 74), or, for anonymous or pseudonymous works, when they were published more than 50 years ago (Article 76).

As for government works, "official acts of authority" ("actes officiels de l’autorité") are ineligible for copyright protection. All other government publications are copyrighted.

Congo, Republic of the

Copyright in the Republic of the Congo is governed by the Law on Copyright and Neighboring Rights, enacted 1982. Copyright is protected for 50 years after the death of the author (Art. 61) or last surviving author (Art 62), or 50 years after the publication of an anonymous or pseudonymous work (Art 63). Photographs are protected 25 years from creation (Art 65), and cinematographic works for 50 years from creation (Art 64). "Decisions of courts or of administrative bodies and official translations thereof" are not eligible for copyright protection.

Costa Rica

Copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the author (see en:List of countries' copyright length).

Costa Rica's current intellectual copyright law is:

• Law 6683, as amended by Law 8834 of 3 May 2010 (in Spanish)

An English translation is available for the previous revision to the copyright law:

• Law 6683, as amended by Law 7979 of 1 June 2000

Government works

According to Costa Rica's intellectual property law (Law 6683, as amended by Law 8834 of 3 May 2010):

Artículo 63°.- El estado, los consejos municipales y las corporaciones oficiales gozarán de la protección de esta ley, pero , en cuanto a los derechos patrimoniales, los tendrán únicamente por veinticinco años, contados desde la publicación de la obra, salvo tratándose de entidades públicas, que tengan por objeto el ejercicio de esos derechos como actividad ordinaria; en cuyo caso la protección será de cincuenta años.

The English translation from the 2000 revision (text of this article was unchanged between 2000 & 2010 revisions):

Article 63. The State, the municipal councils and the official corporations shall enjoy the protection of this Law, but, as far as economic rights are concerned, only for 25 years from the date of publication of the work, except in the case of public bodies whose purpose is the exercise of such rights as their normal activity, in which case protection shall be for 50 years.

"Economic rights" corresponds to copyright, since the law ("Law" in Article 63) covers intellectual property rights—not just copyright. The law also covers "moral rights", which are a form of non-copyright restriction.

For currency, see Commons:Currency#Costa Rica.

Côte d'Ivoire

Copyright in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) lasts for 99 years after the death of the author for works published within the lifetime of the author. Copyright lasts 99 years from publication for photographic or audiovisual works or works of applied art; anonymous or pseudonymous works; and posthumous works. Côte d'Ivoire has the rule of the shorter term.

• Loi no. 96-564 du 25 juillet 1996 (Art. 45 for copyright length)

Croatia

Copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the author (Art. 99, Copyright and Related Rights Act 197/2003). The Yugoslav copyright act (Zakon o autorskom pravu) was in place until 1999, [18] therefore the following applies:

• Works of authors who died in 1948 or earlier are public domain in Croatia. Works of authors who died in 1949 or later are copyrighted.
• An exception applies to the photographic and similarly-made works, and the works of applied art, which are public domain in Croatia and in the United States if published in 1970 or earlier.
• There is Commons-suitable freedom of panorama in Croatia.

Czech Republic

According to the Czech Copyright Law [19], §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.)

Danzig Free State (1920–1939)

German law as amended to 1910 was applicable (Copyright then expired 50 years after death of the author), thus licences will in most cases be {{PD-old-70}} and {{anonymous work}} (50 years after publication, Berne Convention).

Denmark

According to the Danish law on authors rights of 2010-02-27 (English translation by the Danish Ministry of Culture), photographic images are protected for 50 complete calendar years after the image's creation and photographic works are protected for 70 years after the death of the author.

The definition of a photographic work, as opposed to image is not precisely defined. However, one of the foremost lawyers in Denmark on intellectual property and author's rights (Peter Schønning), states that for a photograph to be a photographic work it must display "the author's own intellectual creation and reflects his personality". Lacking actual court decisions however, interpretation is still subjective. On Commons a deletion request in 2012 on a regular portrait photo concluded, that it was too simple to be considered photographic work, as were a another post-processed portrait photo in a discussion in 2011, whereas another deletion request in 2009 on a portrait photo of a man sitting with a book in a certain stance was concluded being a photographic work.

Certain maps produced by the Danish government in 1814 or later are subject to perpetual copyright.[20][21] This is covered by section 92 of the Danish copyright law. Currently, all maps made by da:Det Kongelige Søkort-Arkiv in 1814 or later, all maps made by da:Generalstabens topografiske Afdeling in 1831 or later and all maps made by their successors remain copyrighted in Denmark. The rights currently belong to da:Geodatastyrelsen.

Djibouti

See also: Template:PD-Djibouti.

In chapter 5 of the 1996 law copyright law n°114/AN/96/3e L (in French), copyright expired 25 years after author's death (art. 59). In the case of photographs and applied art works, copyright expired 25 years after the work is created (art. 63). In the case of cinematographic works, copyright expired 25 years after the work is created or released (art. 62). In 2006 a new law was passed (copyright law n°154/AN/06/5ème L (in French), which non-retroactively increased the term to 50 years after the author's death (art. 12), and increased the term for cinematographic works to 50 years from publication (art. 15). The term for photographs and applied art remains at 25 years from creation (art. 16).

Dominican Republic

• Generally, copyright expires 50 years pma. However, photographs are "50 years from first publication or public display or, failing that, from the making thereof", and "Audiovisual works shall be protected for 70 years from first publication or presentation or, failing that, from the making thereof, without prejudice to the rights in original works incorporated in productions the protection of which is subject to the general periods of protection provided for in this Law."

• FOP is very broad, covering "Works permanently located on public thoroughfares, streets or squares may be reproduced by means of painting, drawing, photography or audiovisual fixations, and such reproductions may be distributed and communicated publicly. With regard to works of architecture, this provision shall apply only to their external aspect." Note that "works" has no modifiers, so text is included.

• The full text of the law, in both Spanish and English, is available at http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/details.jsp?id=1191.

Ecuador

• Copyright expires 70 years after death of copyright owner.
• Copyright of anonymous or pseudonymous works expires 70 years after first publication.
• For more information see the "Intellectual Property Law (Codification No. 2006-13)" (English translation)

Egypt

Egyptian law states that works are protected for 50 years pma, after which they are in public domain.

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

• Law on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights, Law No. 82, 2002

Eritrea

Per articles 1648 et seq. of the Provisional Code of Eritrea of 1993, copyright lasts during the author's life, or 50 years from publication, whichever is later. Photographs (per article 1662) are only protected if they are printed in a book or are part of a collection, or if they bear the name and address of the author or their agent.

Estonia

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.

Ethiopia

Works first published in Ethiopia and is now in the public domain because its copyright protection has expired by virtue of the Proclamation No. 410/2004 on Copyright and Neighboring Rights Protection, enacted 2004. The work meets one of the following criteria:

• It is an anonymous, pseudonymous or posthumous work and 50 years have passed since the date of its publication
• It is a collective or audiovisual work and 50 years have passed since the date of its publication
• It is a photographic work, and 25 years have passed since the date of its creation or its publication if it is later.
• It is another kind of work, and 50 years have passed since the year of death of the author (or last-surviving author)
• It is "any official text of a legislative, administrative or of legal nature, as well as official translations thereof"

Faroe Islands

According to the Faroese law (http://www.logir.fo/foldb/llofo/2013/0000036.htm):

• Works are protected for the term of life of the author plus 70 years (= {{PD-old-70}}) (§ 53, 1)
• Anonymous works are protected with a copyright term of 70 years after the work was made available to the public if the author never disclosed their identity (= {{Anonymous-EU}}) (§ 53, 2)
• Photographic images are protected for the rest of the year they were created + 50 full years. (§ 58)
• Stamps are public domain - see OTRS permission on {{Faroe stamps}}

Fiji

According to the Fiji Copyright Act of 1999, the following works are automatically protected with no requirement to register:

• Literary works: dramatic works, translations, adaptations, computer programs, periodicals, tables, compilations, typographical arrangements
• Artistic works: graphics, paintings, drawings, diagrams, maps, plans, photographs, sculptures, architecture, musical works
• Films and audio-visual works
• Audio recordings
• Broadcasts, cable programs, communication works

The copyright term for most works is 50 years following the death of the author, or 50 years after publication. This includes works by the government, although "Bills, Acts, subsidiary legislation, parliamentary debates, reports of the Royal Commission, Commissions of Inquiry, Ministerial or Statutory Inquiries and the judgments of courts and tribunals" are generally not covered by copyright. The copyright term for typographical arrangements is 25 years.

Finland

The Finnish Copyright Act

– current version in Finnish

– current version in Swedish

– an unofficial translation in English published by the Finnish Ministry of Justice (a pdf file)

Works of art

Copyright subsists until seventy (70) years have elapsed from the year of the author's death or, in the case of a work having two or more authors whose contributions do not constitute independent works, from the year of death of the last surviving author. Copyright in a cinematographic work subsists until seventy years have elapsed from the year of the death of the last of the following to survive: the principal director, the author of the screenplay, the author of the dialogue and the composer of music specifically created for use in the cinematographic work. (Section 43 of the Copyright Act)

The copyright in a work that is made public without mention of the author's name or generally known pseudonym or pen name subsists until the end of the seventieth (70) year after the year in which the work was made public. If the work is published in parts, the duration of copyright shall be calculated separately for each part. (§ 44.1) However, if the identity of the author is disclosed during this period, the copyright subsists according to the general principle (70 years from the year of the author's death). (§ 44.2) The copyright in a work that is not made public and whose author is unknown, subsists until seventy years have elapsed from the year in which the work was created. (§ 44.3)

Anyone who for the first time publishes or makes public a previously unpublished work or a work not made public, which has been protected under Finnish law and the protection of which has expired, shall obtain a right in the work as provided in section 2 of the Copyright Act. The right shall subsist until twenty-five years have elapsed from the year in which the work was published or made public. (Section 44 a)

Photographs that are not works of art

According to the Act copyright expires for such photographs as are not considered "works of art" 50 years after the photograph was made (Section 49a of the Act). Photographs considered to be "works of art" are protected normally for 70 years after the death of the works creator (Section 43).

The difference between a photograph and a photographic work of art is not precisely defined. To qualify as a work of art, the photograph must express personal vision such that no other person can be expected to have produced a similar image. As an example, the (legally not binding) statement by the Finnish Copyright Council 2003:6 states that this photograph of Paavo Nurmi "-- is, despite its historical importance, a regular photograph of contemporary events. The photograph does not demonstrate original and personal contribution on the part of the photographer and so it cannot be regarded as -- a photographic work (of art)." See partial English translation.

An amendment to the Copyright Act (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.

Photographs featuring works of art exhibited in public spaces can only be used for non-commercial purposes other than in certain contexts (similar to "fair use"), unless it is clear that the work is not the main subject in the photo (freedom of panorama). Taking photographs of buildings is explicitly allowed, but photographing single, private homes or yards may be illegal based on privacy laws.

Photographs of people

The law regarding images of living people is unclear and the advice below is mostly deduced from recommendations, case law and legal literature.

Photos of people who are of public interest (famous politicians, artists, sportsmen) and who are carrying out their public duties or going about their usual work may be published without consent. In case of politicians, public officials and important persons in economical life, photos of private life may also be published in certain cases, where the information is important for their role and for public interest.

Photos of regular people in public places may only be published without their consent if the person is clearly not the main subject of the image and the picture does not cause damage, suffering or despise to the person in the picture. Photographs of public events or regular life in the streets should be unproblematic.

However, if the person can be identified, the image may not be used in advertisement (commercially or non-commercially) without consent. Even when a person is not clearly identifiable, using a picture with the person as the main subject may require their consent. The images should be marked with {{personality rights}} as the uploader may be held responsible for allowing such use.

Coats of arms

The textual, and in many cases the graphical, representations of Finnish coat of arms of municipalities, regions and provinces are considered to be part of decisions of public bodies and therefore they are not protected by copyright.

According to the opinions of the Finnish Copyright Council 1997:11 and 1998:5 even the graphical representation is thought (at least in these cases) not to be protected by copyright. In the former case also the graphical representations were part of the decisions of the municipalities (whether they could be considered works of art was thought to be irrelevant), in the latter the alterations made did not meet the requirements for an original work of art. Neither are the coats of arms of historical provinces and other historical coats of arms protected by copyright (if there has been any copyright, it has expired).

Coats of arms of new entities should be analysed on a case-by-case bases: usually they are based on old coats of arms and not eligible but there is no guarantee, unless they are included in public decisions.

Some unofficial coats of arms, e.g. for former municipalities, which never had official coats of arms, are private creations under copyright.

Reproductions of out-of-copyright works

Main page: Commons:Reuse of PD-Art photographs#Nordic_countries.

National recommendations (JHS 189) for open licensing in Finland is CC-BY and most of the open digital archives are following it. A digitised work (particularly of a three-dimensional object) could lead to protection by a related right as a non original photograph. Copyright council has made the statement TN 2017:15 that states that the start time of copyright protection of a photograph is when the photograph is taken and reproductions of out of copyright photographs are copies and they don't get a new copyright protection.

France

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/France

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). This applies only if publication occurs within 70 years of creation (see Article L132-3).

See below for important extensions to copyright.

Images from public web sites

Note that French government services often use professional photographers who are not government employees to make official photographs. These photographers then typically sell usage rights of the photograph 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 web sites to Commons. Thanks.

Gouvernement.fr

Video, text and graphics published on the site gouvernement.fr are licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY 3.0 FR). Be careful, this does not apply to photographs, however, it is possible to import images taken from videos. Please use {{Gouvernement.fr}}

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.[22][23]. The judgment regarding Giovanni Boldini's work was broke too, by the same court : [24].

In practice, only subsist extensions for authors "Mort pour la France", but even this is subject to debate.

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. [25]

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 [26], 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 [27].

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 Terreaŭx 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.

Georgia

According to Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (1999) as well as newer 2010 law copyright lasts 70 years pma.

Germany

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/Germany

Freedom of panorama

Main page: COM:FOP#Germany.

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 (section 59 UrhG). This right is called Panoramafreiheit (freedom of panorama). The alteration of images uploaded under this provision is generally prohibited, though exceptions apply (section 62.1 and 62.2 UrhG).

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.

Ghana

Online version of the 2005 Copyright Act (Act 690) for Ghana: [28].

Most works of individual authors are protected during the life of the author and 70 years after the author's death (Section 12). Anonymous or pseudonymous works (Section 14), and works of corporate bodies (Section 13) are protected for 70 years after creation or publication, whichever date is the later.

Note: Several special cases and exceptions for government works and specific types of works apply, see online text [29] for more details.

Greece

The terms of WIPO copyright treaty have been introduced with Law 3184/2003. See also [30] 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 published in December 1997 (article 8, paragraphs 5, 6 and 7), the duration of the copyright was extended to 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. A publisher of an unpublished work, for which the economic right has expired, has a 25-year publication right starting from the date of publication. Typesetting and pagination of a printed work is protected for 50 years after publication.

Exemptions from copyright

There are a few exemptions from copyright, defined in earlier Law 2121/1993, Part 2, paragraph 5. 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 (coins only) 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 antiquities 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 Government Gazette issue B-1491/2005-10-27, paragraph 2.1.5. However, such images are still acceptable on Commons, see Commons:Image_casebook#Museum_and_interior_photography.

Guatemala

See Decree Number 33-98. In general, works subject to copyright protection enjoy that protection for the life of the author plus seventy-five years after his or her death. (Ch.V, ¶43.) In the case of works created by two or more authors, the period shall start after the death of the last coauthor. In the case of an anonymous or pseudonymous works, the term of protection shall be counted from the first publication or, failing that, of their "realización" (Eng: "realization") (Ch.V, ¶45.))

Guinea-Bissau

While Guinea-Bissau is a party to the Berne Convention since 1991, and the TRIPS Agreement since 1995, as of 2013 there were still no signs of any replacement the colonial copyright Law No. 46,980 of April 27, 1966 (life of the author + 50 years).

Haiti

According to the Décret sur les Droits d'Auteur of 9 March 2006, general copyright protection is 60 years after death. (art. 20 to 24).

The only exception are photographic works, which are protected for 25 years after the end of the year the work was created (art. 25).

Hungary

According to the Hungarian Copyright Act (Act No. LXXVI of 1999 on copyright) (English translation, consolidated text as of 6 September 2010):

• Copyrightable works. A work is in the public domain in the following cases:
  • Published works by known authors. Seventy years have passed since 1 January of the year following the year in which the author died (or, if there were joint authors, the year in which the author dying last died): Articles 31(1) and (2).
  • Published works by unknown authors, and collective works. Seventy years have passed since 1 January of the year following the year in which the work was first disclosed: Articles 31(3) and (5). (In the case of a work by an unknown author, if the author becomes known during this time the preceding paragraph applies.)
  • Unpublished works by unknown authors. Seventy years have passed since the creation of the work: Article 31(7). However, after this period has passed, a person who legally discloses the work enjoys a publication right in respect of it, and is entitled to the copyright of the work for 25 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which the work was first disclosed: Article 32.
• Non-protected works. The following works do not enjoy copyright protection:
  • Official works. Provisions of law, other legal instruments of state administration, judicial and authority decisions, authority or other official announcements and documents, and standards and other like provisions made obligatory by legislative acts: Article 1(4).
  • Facts and daily news. Facts and daily news that serve as a basis for press information: Article 1(5).
  • Ideas, principles, etc. Ideas, principles, concepts, procedures, methods of operation and mathematical operations: Article 1(6).
  • Folklore. Expression of folklore: Article 1(7). (Note, however, that works of an individual and original nature that are inspired by folk art are subject to copyright.)
• Freedom of panorama. There is freedom of panorama for fine art, applied art and architecture erected with a permanent character outdoors in a public place: Article 68(1).

Images of people require their consent, except for public performances: Civil Code (Act No. IV of 1959), section 80.

Iceland

According to the Copyright Act No. 73 of May 29, 1972, as last amended by Act No. 97 of 30 June 2006:

• Copyrightable works.
  • Authors' works (except cinematographic works). Copyright in an author's work expires 70 years after the end of the year in which the author died, or, in the case of a jointly authored work, in which the last surviving author died: Article 43.
  • Cinematographic works. Copyright in a cinematographic work expires 70 years after the end of the year in which the last survivor of the following persons died:
    • the principal directors;
    • the authors of the manuscript (including the authors of the dialogue); and
    • the composers, if the music was composed specially for the cinematographic work: Article 43.
  • Photographs that are not artistic works. The copyright in a photograph that is not an artistic work expires 50 years after the end of the year in which it was taken: Article 49.
  • Anonymous works.
    • Copyright in an anonymous work expires 70 years after the end of the year in which it was presented. However, if the author becomes known within that period, Article 43 applies. If an anonymous work is not presented, the copyright in it expires 70 years after the end of the year in which it was created: Article 44. A work is regarded as having been presented if it has been performed with authorization or shown publicly, or if copies of it have been published (that is, offered for sale, loan or rental or otherwise distributed to the public in appreciable quantity with proper authorization): Article 2.
    • When a work has not been publicly presented within the period of protection mentioned in Article 43 or 44, the person who first presents the work after the period of protection may exercise a right to commercial exploitation of the work equivalent to that enjoyed by the author for 25 years from the end of the year of the presentation: Article 44a. A work is regarded as having been publicly presented if performed or shown at a workplace employing ten or more people: Article 2.
  • Recordings of performances. A performer's right in a performance expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the performance occurred, or, if a recording of the performance has been distributed to the public, 50 years from the end of the year in which the recording was first distributed: Article 45.
  • Audio and video recordings. Audio and video recordings may not be reproduced or publicly distributed without the producer's consent unless 50 years from the end of the year in which the original recording was made, or, if a recording has been distributed to the public, 50 years from the end of the year in which the recording was first distributed: Article 46.
• Non-copyrighted works.
  • Government works. Acts, regulations, administrative provisions, court rulings and similar official documents, as well as official translation of such documents, are not copyrighted: Article 9. In addition, unless prohibited by court order, it is permissible to print, make an audio recording, or otherwise copy and present proceedings of public meetings of official representatives and documents publicly submitted during such meetings which concern such representatives, and "debates on questions concerning the public good which take place at gatherings to which the public has access or are broadcast": Article 22.
• Freedom of panorama. A limited form of freedom of panorama which is not free enough for the Commons exists. Buildings and works of art permanently situated outdoors in public locations may be photographed, but only for non-commercial purposes. If such works are the "principal motif" of photographs which are used for marketing purposes, the authors of the works are entitled to payment unless the photographs are for a newspaper or for television broadcasting: Article 16.

India

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/India

According to the Copyright Act 1957 (as amended):

• Photographs, films, sound recordings, government works, works of public undertakings and works of international organizations. The following works enter the public domain when 60 years have passed from 1 January of the calendar year following the year in which the work was published: sections 25–29.
  • Photographs. Photographs created before 1958 are in the public domain 50 years after creation, as per the Copyright Act 1911. Photographs published 1958 or after entered public domain 60 years after publishing.
  • Cinematograph films.
  • Sound recordings.
  • Works that the Government is the first owner of. (A work is a Government work if it is made or published by or under the direction or control of (1) the Government or any of its departments, (2) any Legislature in India; or (3) any court, tribunal or other judicial authority in India: section 2(k).)
  • Works that a public undertaking is the first owner of. (A public undertaking is (1) an undertaking owned or controlled by the Government, (2) a Government company as defined in section 617 of the Companies Act 1956 of India, or (3) a body corporate established by or under any Central, Provincial or State Act: section 17(dd).)
  • Works of international organizations.
• Works (other than photographs) by known authors published during their lifetimes. A literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph) published within the author's lifetime enters the public domain when 60 years have passed from 1 January of the calendar year following the year in which the author died or, where the work is of joint authorship, the author dying last died: section 22. Works by authors who died before 1941 entered public domain after 50 years and copyright has not been restored.
• Published works (other than photographs) by unknown authors. A literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph) published anonymously or pseudonymously enters the public domain when 60 years have passed from 1 January of the calendar year following the year in which the work was first published. However, if the identity of the author is disclosed within this period, the preceding paragraph applies: section 23.
• Works by known authors published posthumously. A literary, dramatic or musical work or an engraving not published before the author's death or, where the work is of joint authorship, the death of the author dying last, enters the public domain when 60 years have passed from 1 January of the calendar year following the year in which the work or an adaptation of that work was first published: section 24(1). In this context, a literary, dramatic or musical work has been "published" if it has been performed in public or records of the work have been sold or offered for sale to the public: section 24(2).
• Freedom of panorama. There is no infringement of copyright when one makes or publishes a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of:
  • a work of architecture or the display of a work of architecture (section 52(s)); and
  • a sculpture or a work of artistic craftsmanship permanently situated in a public place or any premises to which the public has access (section 52(t)). (Work of artistic craftsmanship in this context does not include paintings, drawings, engravings or photographs: section 52(t) read with section 2(c)(iii) (definition of artistic work).)
• Works by the Government of India can be uploaded under {{GODL-India}} (central government only, not state governments).
• Laws and other legislative documents can be uploaded under {{EdictGov-India}}

Note: For the purposes of this Act, "publication" means making a work available to the public by issue of copies or by communicating the work to the public. (Page 5 of Copyright Act 1957)

Indonesia

Indonesian Copyright Act No. 19, 2002 (in Indonesian) is inherited from the Netherlands and retains the same distinction between works with "no copyright" (tidak ada hak cipta) and works that may be used "without infringement of Copyright" (tidak dianggap sebagai pelanggaran hak cipta).

• No copyright. According to Article 13, the following works have no copyright:
  • any result of open meetings of state institutions;
  • laws and regulations;
  • state addresses or government official speeches;
  • court decisions and judicial orders; or
  • decisions of arbitration boards or of other similar agencies.

These works are in the public domain and should be tagged with {{PD-IDNoCopyright}}.

• May be used without infringement of copyright. According to Article 14, the following classes of works may be used without infringement of copyright:
  • publication and/or reproduction of the symbol of the state and the national anthem in accordance with their original nature;
  • publication and/or reproduction of anything which is published by or on behalf of the government, except if the copyright is declared to be protected by law or regulation or by a statement on the work itself or at the time the work is published; or
  • repetition, either in whole or in part, of news from a news agency, broadcasting organization, and newspaper or any other resources, provided that the source thereof shall be fully cited.

There are no restrictions on commercial use, and Article 1 (6) defines "reproduction" as "to increase the number of a Work, either as a whole or its substantial parts using either the same or different material, including the changing of the form or mode of a work permanently or temporarily", thus allowing derivative works. These may be uploaded to Commons and tagged with {{PD-IDGov}}.

• Expired copyright - Article 29. According to Article 29, the copyright on:
  • books, pamphlets, and all other written works;
  • dramas, musical dramas, dances, choreographic works;
  • all forms of arts such as paintings, engravings, sculptures;
  • batik arts;
  • songs or music with or without lyrics;
  • architecture;
  • sermons, lecturers, addresses and other works of utterance;
  • visual aids for educational and scientific purposes;
  • maps;
  • translations, interpretations, adaptations, anthologies

lasts for the life of the author and for 50 years after the author dies. If it is held by a legal entity, it lasts for 50 years after the initial publication (Article 30 [2]). When the copyright expired, these may be uploaded to Commons and tagged with {{PD-IDOld-Art29}}

• Expired copyright - Articles 30. According to Article 30, the copyright on:
  • computer programs;
  • cinematographic works;
  • photographic works;
  • data-bases;
  • works resulting from adaptations;
  • typographical arrangement of a published work

lasts for 50 years after the initial publication. When the copyright expired, these may be uploaded to Commons and tagged with {{PD-IDOld-Art30}}.

Exclusion: Article 15 defines additional classes of works that may be reused with conditions or only for specific purposes (eg. "for the purposes of advocacy", "solely for education and science", "unless such reproduction is of a commercial purpose"). These works do not qualify as free content and may not be used on Commons.

Note: Photographic works from Indonesia published before 1971 may be in the public domain in the United States if they were published without a copyright notice and not published in the US within 30 days after their Indonesian publication. Law No. 6 of April 12, 1982 concerning Copyright, as amended by Law No. 7 of September 19, 1987, the copyright law in effect at the time of the URAA, prescribed a 25-year post-publication copyright for photographic works, and as such works published before 1971 would have been public domain at the time of the URAA.

Iran

According to the Law for the Protection of Authors, Composers and Artist Rights (English translation by the Iranian Ministry of Science and Higher Education)

• Copyrightable works, such as literary, musical works, paintings, designs and decorative writings, architectural works and buildings, carpet and rug designs, sculptures and photographs are in public domain in the following cases:
  • The creator(s) died more than 50 years ago. (Reformation of article 12 - 22 August 2010)
  • The creator(s) died before 22 August 1980, for works that their copyright expired before 22 August 2010 according to the 1970 law.
    • In the case of works of joint authorship, the date of the death of the last surviving author shall be considered alone for the calculation of the time of protection.
• "Article 16. In the following cases, the author's financial rights will be valid for a period of 30 years from the date of publication or public presentation:

1. Photographic or cinematographic works.

2. In cases where the work belongs to a person of legal position."

Note that this speaks only to financial rights and does not limit the author's exclusive right to publish, etc. The work is therefore not in the public domain.

See also Intellectual property in Iran and Iranian calendar. Since Iran is not part of any international copyright treaty, works published there are public domain in the United States and many other nations.

Iraq

Iraq's copyright law from 1971 protected most works for 25 years from the date of death; snapshot photos were protected for five years from publication and corporate/government works were copyrighted 30 years from publication. (See here for the 1971 law text and the later amendment in English, and here for the original law in Arabic).

In 2004, the CPA non-retroactively amended the law such that the economic rights of author is protected for lifetime of the author and for 50 years from the date of his death, with no exception for simple photographs; corporate/government works are now protected for 50 years from publication.(ART 20).

Also, the economic rights relating to the authors of collective works, other than authors of works of applied art, shall be protected for 50 years from the date on which the work was published or made available to the public for the first time.

Works which had expired under the previous law remain public domain.

There is one claim that the 2004 amendment has not yet been implemented.[31]

• {{PD-Iraq}}
• Iraq intellectual property related information on WIPO website
• AGIP information on Iraq

Ireland

According to sections 24 and 35 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 2013, prior to 1943-01-01) 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.

Chapter 5 - Ownership of Copyright: at the Wayback Machine (archived on 21 December 2016)

• Article 34. Works Created by Employees: The employer is the first owner of copyright in a work made by an employee in the course of his service and during the period of his service, unless otherwise agreed.
• Article 35. Commissioned Works: (a) In a work made pursuant to a commission, the first owner of the copyright therein, wholly or partially, shall be the author, unless otherwise agreed as between the commissioning party and the author, expressly or impliedly. (b) In a work which is a portrait or a photograph of a family event or other private event, made pursuant to a commission, the first owner of the copyright therein shall be the commissioning party.
• Article 36. State Ownership of Works: The state shall be the first owner of a work made by, or commissioned for, the State or by an employee of the State in consequence of his service and during the period of his service; In this section, "State employee" – includes soldiers, policemen and any other person who holds a position according to a statute in a State entity or institution.
• Article 40.Duration of Copyright in Work Published Anonymously: If no name of a person appears on a work as the author of such work, nor is the author of such work commonly known to the public, or appears on such work a pseudonym of a person not commonly known to the public, then copyright in such a work shall subsist for a period of 70 years from the date such work was first published; If such a work was not published until the end of 70 years from the date of its creation, the copyright therein shall subsist for a period of 70 years from the date of its creation; however where the author's identity becomes publicly known during the period of copyright, then the provisions of sections 38 or 39, respectively, shall apply.

Please note that images distributed by the Israeli Government Press Office are copyrighted. They are not in the public domain. See their copyright statement.

Freedom of Panorama applies; please see Commons:Freedom of panorama#Israel for details and a marker template which should be used on the file's page if a file is using Freedom of Panorama.

Italy

As of 2018, the 2010 version at WIPO of the Copyright law of Italy is current (see similar English translation of superseded 2003 version at WIPO).

Since the 2001 version at WIPO, 70 years after the year of the creator's death for individual works (Art. 25, Art. 32 for photographs defined in Art. 2.7); 70 years after the year of first publication for anonymous or pseudonymous works (Art. 27); 70 years after the year of the creator's death for each creator's individual work in collective works (Art. 26 bis); for magazines, newspapers and other periodic works as a whole, 70 years after the year of first publication (Art. 26). Years are "counted in every case from the first of January of the year following that of the author's death or that in which any other event provided for in this Law has occurred" (Art. 32 ter, quoted from English translation of 2003 version at WIPO). A few exceptions are:

• "Non-creative" photographs: Italian copyright law provides for a shorter term of 20 years since creation. However, which kinds of photographs are considered "simple photographs" is rather vague; this rule is difficult to apply accurately, and hence should be used on Commons very carefully. Artistic photographs enter the public domain 70 years after the author's death. "Simple photographs" include reproductions of figurative art and still frames from movies. See {{PD-Italy}}.
• Audio recordings that were created and published in Italy at least 50 years ago, of a work which is itself in the public domain: These are in the public domain. Article 75 of Italian copyright law treats audio recordings as a special case. See {{PD-Italy-audio}}.
• Texts of official acts published and distributed by the Italian State or Italian public administrations: These are in the public domain, unless the copyright has been reserved explicitly. See {{PD-Italy-EdictGov}}.
• Works of the Italian government: 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.

In Italy there are restrictions on photography of ancient monuments and antiquities, see {{Soprintendenza}} and COM:FOP#Italy. Note that in Italy, the rights of photographs made by a photographer who is working for a commissioner belong to the commissioner (Art. 88).

According to article 52, paragraph 2 of the Digital Administration Code, data and documents published by Italian public administrations without any explicit license are considered "open by default" (with exception of personal data). In this case, data and documents without explicit license can be used for free, also for commercial purpose, like CC-BY license or with attribution, as described in the National Guidelines of Agency for Digital Italy.

Jamaica

According to The Copyright Act of Jamaica, 1993 and The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2015 No.13 copyright expires:

• 95 years after the death of the author (per §5 of the amendment)
• 95 years after when made available to the public for works of unknown authorship (per §6 of the amendment)
• 95 years after creation when the copyright in a work created by an employee is owned by the employer (per §9 of the amendment).

Prior to the enactment of the term extension to 95 years in 2015, the former copyright term was 50 years. Per section 29 of the amendment, the term extension is retroactive to 1 January 2012. Jamaican authors who died on or before 31 December 1961 remain in the public domain in Jamaica.

Japan

According to the Japanese Copyright Act, 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 copyright of a work in the name of an organization expires 50 years after publication, or 50 years after the creation if the work is not published within 50 years after creation (Article 53). The preceding provision shall not apply when the author registers the work to the copyright office while the protection period specified in the preceding provision (Article 53-2). Since June 18, 2003, cinematographic works are exceptionally protected for 70 years, instead of 50 years, after the publication, or 70 years after the creation if the film is not published within 70 years of the creation (Article 54).

For audio recordings, the term is 50 years after publication. See {{PD-Japan-audio}} for details.

However, all movies produced in Japan prior to 1953 and directed by a person who died more than 38 years ago are in the public domain. See template {{PD-Japan-film}} for details.

Works corresponding to the following are not eligible for copyright (Article 13).

1. the Constitution and other laws and regulations;
2. public notices, instructions, circular notices and the like issued by organs of the State or local public entities, incorporated administrative agencies ... or local incorporated administrative agencies ...;
3. judgments, decisions, orders and decrees of courts, as well as rulings and judgments made by government agencies in proceedings of a quasi-judicial nature;
4. translations and compilations prepared by organs of the State or local public entities, incorporated administrative agencies or local incorporated administrative agencies of [any of] the materials listed in the preceding three items.

Copyright protection for photographs published on or before December 31, 1956 has been ended, whether the author is alive or not.

It should be noted that the term of protection for works from 1970 or before is the longer of the term under the old Copyright Act and that under the current Copyright Act. This provision especially affects the copyright status of cinematographic works.

Jordan

Jordanian Law states that Photos and Applied Arts are protected for a period 25 years starting January 1st of the creation year, after which they are in public domain.

Kenya

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. The Copyright Act, 2001, Part III, Section 23 - 2014 revision (WIPO source)

Kosovo

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008. As at 18 November 2010, the declaration had been recognized by 72 countries. Not surprisingly, Serbia is not one of these countries, and continues to assert sovereignty and law-making power over Kosovo. Despite Kosovo having its own Assembly, ultimate responsibility for the administration of the territory lies with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Kosovo, who leads the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). UNMIK was established on 10 June 1999 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244.

• UNMIK documents. According to the "Addendum on Copyright in United Nations Publications: General Principles, Practice and Procedure" (UN Administrative Instruction ST/AI/189/Add.9/Rev.2), para. 2, the following UN documents are in the public domain:

(a) Official Records: a series of printed publications relating to the proceedings of organs or conferences of the United Nations. They include verbatim or summary records, documents or check-lists of documents, issued in the form of annexes to those records, including periodic supplements, such as the quarterly ones of the Security Council; and reports to those organs of their subordinate or affiliated bodies, compilations of resolutions, certain reports of the Secretary-General and other selected publications, which are issued in the form of supplements;

(b) United Nations documents: written material officially issued under a United Nations document symbol, regardless of the form of production, although, in practice, the term is applied mainly to material offset from typescript and issued under a masthead. The term also applies to written material issued simultaneously or sequentially in the form of documents and publications;

(c) Public information material: publications, periodicals, brochures, pamphlets, press releases, flyers, catalogues and other materials designed primarily to inform about United Nations activities. The term does not include public information that is offered for sale, which may be subject to copyright registration.

UNMIK documents of the above nature are therefore in the public domain.

• Other works. According to the Law No. 2004/45 on Copyright and Related Rights adopted by the Assembly of Kosovo and issued by UNMIK:
  • Copyrightable works.
    • In general, copyright in a work expires 70 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which the author's death occurs: Law No. 2004/45, Articles 62.1 and 62.9. Where a work is produced by more than one author, the copyright expires 70 years from the death of the last surviving co-author: Article 62.4.
    • If a work is anonymous or pseudonymous, copyright expires 70 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which the work was lawfully disclosed: Law No. 2004/45, Articles 62.2 and 62.9. A work is not considered as pseudonymous if the pseudonym leaves no doubt as to the identity of the author, or the author's identity is disclosed within 70 years from 1 January of the year following the year of his or her death: Articles 62.3 and 62.9.
    • In the case of a collective work, copyright expires 70 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which the work is lawfully disclosed: Law No. 2004/45, Articles 62.5 and 62.9.
    • When a term of protection does not run from the author's death and the work was not lawfully disclosed, copyright expires 70 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which it was created: Law No. 2004/45, Article 62.6.
  • Non-protected creations. The following works do not have copyright protection and are thus in the public domain (Law No. 2004/45, Article 12):
    • Ideas, principles, instructions, procedures, discoveries and mathematical concepts per se.
    • Official laws, rules and other regulations.
    • Official material and publications of parliamentary, governmental and other organizations with powers of public office.
    • Official translations of regulations and other official materials, as well as international agreements and other instruments.
    • Applications and other acts in administrative and court procedures.
    • Official materials published for the information of the public.
    • Expressions of folklore.
    • News of the day and various information which have the character of usual press reports.
  • Freedom of panorama. Only a limited form of freedom of panorama exists in Kosovo. Works permanently placed in public streets, squares, parks or other generally accessible public places may be used freely. However, they may not be reproduced in a three-dimensional form, used for the same purpose as the original work, or used for direct or indirect economic gain: Law No. 2004/45, Article 54. Because of the restriction against the use of derivative works for economic gain, photographs relying on the limited freedom of panorama in Kosovo cannot be uploaded to the Commons.

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.

Laos

According to the Lao People's Democratic Republic's Intellectual Property Laws No. 08/NA of December 24, 2007, in force on April 14, 2008:

• Copyrightable works.
  • Works by identified individuals. The copyright in a work by an identified individual author expires 50 years from the date of the author's death or, if the work is by joint authors, the date of the last surviving author's death: section 93(1).
  • Works by pseudonymous individuals. The copyright in a work by a pseudonymous author expires 50 years after the work was created. If the identity of the author of such a work becomes known, the preceding paragraph applies: section 93(2).
  • Works by organizations. The copyright in an unpublished work by an organization expires 50 years after the work was created. If the work is published, the copyright expires 50 years from the date of first publication: section 93(2). (Note: because the English translation of the law is unclear, it is uncertain whether the last sentence applies only to works by organizations or to all works. In line with the precautionary principle, this guideline has been drawn up to maximize rather than minimize authors' copyrights.)
• Artistic works and folklore. The term artistic works and folklore is defined as, among other things, compilations of creations based on the traditions of communities or groups of people reflecting the ways of life of such communities, and includes (1) folktales, rhymes, mottoes and proverbs; (2) folk songs, native vocals and native music; (3) native choreography, music, ceremonies and competitions; and (4) musical instruments, paintings, drawings, coloured pictures, engravings and architectural designs created with any native materials. Artistic works and folklore may be used so long as the source is stated and the original value of such works is preserved.
• Non-protected works. The following works are not eligible for copyright protection (section 76):
  • Information characterized as news.
  • Any juristic acts, administrative rules, judicial documents and official translations.
  • Procedures, systems, practicing methods, definitions, principles and statistics.
• Freedom of panorama. There is a limited form of freedom of panorama in Laos which may not be sufficiently free for purposes of the Wikimedia Commons. On the one hand, works of fine art, photographs, reports and adapted arts for presentation to the public may be photographed or video-recorded without authorization from copyright owners and without the payment of remuneration: sections 96(1) and 96(1.8). On the other hand, the reuse of the photographs and video-recordings is restricted in the following ways: (1) the reuse must not prejudice the rights or normal benefits of the owner of the works; and (2) the derivative works cannot be used in architectural works, works of fine art or computer programs: sections 96(2) and (3).

Latvia

According to the Latvian copyright law (as last amended in 2007), copyright protection generally lasts 70 years after the death of the author (section 36). A few types of works are exempt from copyright (section 6); see COM:CT section.

The term of neighbouring rights for recordings is 50 years according to section 55 (2) of the Latvian copyright law (also check the copyrights of the possibly recorded works).

See also #Russia and former Soviet Union.

Note that the Latvian law was 50 years pma until 6 April 2000, so that works made by people who died on or before December 31, 1945 were PD on the URAA date, January 1, 1996. .     Jim . . . . (Jameslwoodward) (talk to me) 10:53, 22 March 2013 (UTC)

Lebanon

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. See {{PD-Lebanon}}.

The previous copyright law of Lebanon, Law No. 2385 of January 17, 1924, had the same rules, with one notable exception: photographs were copyrighted until 50 years after their initial publication (article 153). See {{PD-Lebanon-Photo}}. Use this tag only for photos first published before 1949.

Libya

This image requires updating because: This section is based on law No. (9) for 1968. According to this page, the current law is No. 7 of 1984. In doing so, you could add a timestamp to the image. Please notify the uploader with {{subst:update-note|1=Commons:Copyright rules by territory|2=This section is based on law No. (9) for 1968. According to this page, the current law is No. 7 of 1984.}} ~~~~

According to the Copyright Protection Law of Libya (Libyan Law No. (9) for 1968), a work is copyrighted if:

• the author is a Libyan national, whether the work is published, acted or presented for the first time in Libya or in a foreign country;
• the author is a foreign national but the work is published, acted or presented for the first time in Libya; and
• the author is a foreign national and the work is published, acted or presented for the first time in a foreign country, if the law of that country provides protection for Libyan authors for their works published, acted or presented for the first time in Libya: Article 50.

Note: Libya is a party to the Berne Copyright law in 1976, which requires life + 50 years copyright length. The 1968 national law on copyright stated Life + 25, but not less than date of creation + 50 years.

• Copyrightable works
  • Works by identified individuals published in author's lifetime. The copyright in a work by an identified individual author published in the author's lifetime expires either 50 years from the date of first publication of the work, or 25 years after the death of the author if this is longer. If a work is created by more than one author, the period of protection is calculated from the date of death of the last surviving author: Article 20.
  • Works published after author's death. The copyright in a work first published after the author's death expires 50 years after the date of death: Article 22.
  • Works by anonymous or pseudonymous individuals. The copyright in a work by an anonymous or pseudonymous individual author expires 25 years from the date of first publication of the work. If the author's identity is revealed within this period, the first paragraph applies: Article 21.
  • Works by other legal entities. The copyright in a work by a public or private legal entity expires 30 years from the date of first publication of the work: Article 20.
  • Mere transmission of scenery in photographic and cinematic works. The copyrights in photographic and cinematic works amounting to the "mere mechanical transmission of scenery" expire five years from the date of first publication of the work: Article 20.
• Privacy rights (Article 36).
  • A photographer may not show, publish or distribute a photograph unless the people depicted in the photograph have consented, unless the photograph is of a public event or of officials or persons enjoying public renown, or the public authorities have given permission for its publication for the general welfare. Notwithstanding the preceding, no photograph may be shown or circulated if doing so would result in detriment to the honour, reputation or social standing of the person depicted in the photograph.
  • On the other hand, a person depicted in an engraving, painting, photograph, sculpture or other portrait has the right to authorize its publication in magazines, newspapers and similar publications even if the photographer does not consent, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.
• Non-protected works. The following works are not subject to copyright, if they are not characterized by innovation, arrangement or any other personal effort worthy of protection (Article 4):
  • A collection made up of various works such as verse, prose and music anthologies and other collections. However, each individual work making up the collection is copyrighted.
  • A collection of work that has become public property.
  • A collection of official documents such as texts of laws, decrees, regulations, international agreements, legal judgements and various official documents.
• Freedom of panorama. Libyan law does not provide for freedom of panorama.

See {{PD-Libya}}.

Lithuania

• See also: Commons:Copyright tags#Lithuania
• REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA - LAW AMENDING THE Law on Copyright and Related Rights (Official translation)
• Wipo: Law on Copyright and Related Rights No VIII-1185 of May 18, 1999 (as amended on 19 January 2010 – by Law No XI-656)

Article 34 and 35 state that the copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the (last surviving, in case of co-authors) author. In case of anonymous and pseudonymous works the copyright lasts 70 years after publication (unless the author discloses his identity during this period). Article 36: If the work is first published after the expiration of copyrights the publisher enjoys 25 years protection after this publication.

A selection of not protected works (see Article 5): ideas; some administrative, legal or regulative texts (but apparently not all government works); state symbols (but may be otherwise protected); folklore works. See Article 4 for a list of protected works.

Since Lithuania is a post-Soviet state so also see section #Russia and former Soviet Union.

Macedonia, Republic of

Copyright in the Republic of Macedonia is governed by the Law on Copyright and Related Rights adopted by the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia on 8 September 2010.

• Copyright works. A work is a copyright work if it is, among other things, a written, spoken, musical, dramatic, photographic, audiovisual, fine art, architectural, applied art, or a cartographic work.
  • Identified author. The copyright in a work by an identified author expires 70 years from 1 January of the year after the year of the author's death: Article 55 read with Article 60. If the work is created by a number of co-authors, the copyright expires 70 years from 1 January of the year after the year in which the last surviving co-author dies: Articles 56 and 60.
  • Anonymous and pseudonymous works: The copyright in an anonymous work expires 70 years from 1 January of the year after the year in which the work is first disclosed to the public in a legal manner. The same rule applies to a pseudonymous work unless the true identity of the author is known, or the author discloses his or her identity within 70 years from 1 January of the year after the year in which the first legal disclosure of the work occurs, in which case the 70 p.m.a. rule applies: Articles 57 and 60. If an unpublished work is anonymous, or pseudonymous with the identity of the author unknown, the copyright in it expires 70 years from 1 January of the year after the year in which the work was created: Articles 58 and 60.

• Freedom of panorama. Copyrighted architectural or sculptural works permanently exposed in streets, squares, parks or other public places may be used freely.: Article 52.

• Official government texts. Official texts of political, legislative, administrative and judicial nature and their official translations are in the public domain: Article 16.

Malaysia

According to The Copyright Act 1987 (Act 332) under Section 17-22, copyright for most works subsists until 50 years after the death of the author. The following were published works, artistic works, sound recording, films and broadcasts.

According to the Section 23 works by the Government, Governmental Organizations and International organizations are subject to copyright until 50 years after publication. Text of laws, judicial opinions, and other government reports are free from copyright (Section 3 - the definition of "literary work").

Malawi

According to the Malawian Copyright Act of 1989, the copyright terms of Malawi are as follows:

• Photographic works: 25 years since the end of the year of first publication
• Computer programs: 10 years since the end of the year in which it was first sold, leased, or licensed
• Audio-visual work: 50 years since the end of the year in which it was first made available to the public
• Other types of work:
  • Works by individual authors: 50 years since the end of the year of the author's death
  • Works by anonymous, corporate, or government authors: 50 years from the date of publication

Written laws, court decisions, and official reports published by the government are not eligible for copyright protection. Also, published or broadcast news of the day is not eligible for copyright protection.

Any expressions of Malawian folklore (such as folk tales, folk poetry, folk songs, folk dances, traditional costumes, etc.) are copyrighted by the government of Malawi in perpetuity.

See {{PD-Malawi}} for further information.

Mali

Copyright law in Mali is governed by Fixant le régime de la propriété littéraire et artistique en République du Mali, enacted in 2008. Copyright is protected for 70 years after the death of the author. Copyright does not apply to "official texts of legislative, administrative or judicial, or their official translations".

Marshall Islands

The Marshall Islands has not enacted any legislation concerning copyright and is not party to any convention or treaty regarding copyright (overview). The only legislation protecting intellectual property rights is the Unauthorized Copies of Recorded Materials Act, 1991, which prohibits the unauthorized sale, copying/transfer for sale/profit, or commercial use (eg. public performance for profit) of sound & audio-visual recordings only. The Act does not apply if (§204):

• the "person who owns the master [disc/film/record/etc] is not a citizen of [the Marshall Islands";
• the master sound recording or audio-visual work "was not created, originated, produced or otherwise recorded in the [Marshall Islands]";
• the copied work is "intended for or in connection with a radio or television broadcast transmission that is available to the public without charge, or for historic, cultural or archival preservation or related purposes"; or
• the work is copied solely for personal use "with no intent to capitalize commercially on such reproduction."

The four exemptions listed will not apply if they contradict the text of any international treaty (whether it specifically focuses on intellectual property or not) which is ratified by the Marshall Islands.

The Marshall Islands is party to several treaties which contain minor clauses relating to intellectual property, although it appears that most of these relate to specific and minor issues not related to the types of works that Wikimedia Commons hosts. For example, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture states that "[recipients of seeds from foreign countries party to the treaty] shall not claim any intellectual property or other rights that limit the facilitated access to the plant genetic resources for food and agriculture".

Mauritania

According to the 2012 copyright act Loi No 2012-038 relative à la propriété littéraire et artistique, protection last for 70 years after the death of the author. In the case of photographic works and works of applied art, protection last for 70 years after the date of creation (Article 58. La durée de protection des droits patrimoniaux sur l’œuvre photographique ou l’œuvre des arts appliqués est de soixante dix (70) ans à compter de la fin de l’année civile de la réalisation de l’œuvre.).

Mauritius

2014 copyright act: File:Mauritius Copyright act from 2014.pdf PART III - FEATURES OF ECONOMIC RIGHTS 15. Duration of copyright

• (1) The economic and moral rights shall be protected during the lifetime of the author and for 50 years after his death.
• (2) For a work of joint authorship, the economic and moral rights shall be protected during the life of the last surviving author and for 50 years after his death.
• (3) For an audiovisual work, the economic and moral rights shall be protected for 50 years from the date on which the work was made or first made available to the public by publication, or by any other means, whichever date is the latest.
• (4) For a work published anonymously or under a pseudonym, the economic and moral rights shall be protected for 50 years from the date on which the work was made or first made available to the public, by publication or by any other means, whichever date is the latest, where the author’s identity is revealed or is no longer in doubt before the expiration of the said period, the provisions of subsection (1) or (2) shall apply, as the case may be.
• (5) For a work of applied art, the economic and moral rights shall be protected for 25 years from the making of the work.
• (6) Every period provided for under the preceding subsections shall run to the end of the calendar year in which it would otherwise expire.

Type of work	Copyright term	Additional Information
Single author	Life + 50 years after death.
Joint authorship	Life + 50 years after death of last surviving author.
Audiovisual works	50 years after first publication or creation.	Whichever is the latest date.
Anonymously published works	50 years after first publication or creation.	Whichever is the latest date. If the author's identity is revealed within the 50 years, use the single or joint authorship information
Applied art	25 years after creation

There is no exception for freedom of panorama for commercial purposes.

Mexico

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/Mexico

Works by known authors

According to the Mexican law (See Art. 29: ) a copyright subsists for the life of the author plus 100 years following the end of the calendar year of death of the last surviving author.

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 1952 are in the public domain (30 years before the non-retroactive extension to 50pma was implemented on 12 January 1982; the extensions to 75pma on January 1, 1994 and 100pma in 2003 were also not retroactive).

Posthumously published works have a term of 100 years after publication, if published within 100 years of the author's death (Art. 29(II)(a)). The length of this term was extended in the same way as others.

Government works

Works created by the Mexican government do not default to PD, being protected 100 years after publication (art. 29). This applies to the federal, state and municipal governments. As with known authors, the term was extended repeatedly in the past. Under the 1928 Federal Civil Code, the government could hold not copyright.

{{PD-MX-exempt}} states: "Copyright shall not apply to shields, flags or emblems of any country, state, municipality or political division; names, acronyms, symbols or emblems of international governmental organisations, or any other organization officially recognized; or legislative, regulatory, administrative or judicial texts, as well as their official translations." {{PD-Coa-Mexico}} says the same.

Anonymous works

Current treatment of anonymous works is not clear; the 1996 Act does not mention them. In 1982 the term for anonymous works was extended to 50 years after publication, with anonymous works entering the public domain after 50 years where the authorship is not disclosed within those 50 years.

Specific rules

1996 Act and subsequent reforms On the URAA date (1996-01-01), the Copyright Act of 1982 was still applicable.

• Plastic or photographic works: 100 years plus the death of the author. Art. 92 bis.
• Unoriginal databases: 5 years plus creation date. Art. 108
• Collective works (groups music, choirs, orchestras, ballet and theater companies): 75 years plus:
  • recording date of a sound work or
  • first broadcast (tv and radio) or
  • first interpretation of a work not recorded

Art. 122

• Books: 50 years plus date of publication of the first edition. Art. 127
• Sound works: 75 years plus recording date. Art. 134
  • URAA date: 30 years plus recording date (art. 30). Was public domain all works recorded until 1965-12-31.
• Films: 50 years plus the date of filming. :Art. 138
• Broadcasting works: 50 years plus first broadcast (tv and radio). Art. 146

Copyright term extensions

• 1928: 50 years for scientific works, 30 years for artistic works; registration was required within 3 years of publication.
  3 years from publication if published between 1928 (?) and 13 January 1948 and not registered for copyright within three years from publication or within six months from 14 January 1948. (due to non-retroactive extension of copyright term from 1948 onwards)
• 1947 and 1956: Copyright Acts
• 1963: 30 years
• 1982: extension to 50 years
• 1996: extension to 75 years
• 2003: extension to 100 years

Freedom of panorama

Main page: COM:FOP#Mexico.

Monaco

The duration is fifty years, p.m.a. The Monaco Copyright law.

Mongolia

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

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

Morocco

The copyright law of 2000 states at art. 25 to 29 that protection last for 70 years after the death of the author. There is no special provision for photographic work.

Mozambique

Mozambique's copyright law is defined by the Law No. 4/2001 of February 27, 2001. (Previous to this, Copyright was defined by the Code of Copyright Law No. 46,980 of April 27, 1966.)

Article 22(1) provides copyright protection for 70 years after the death of the author or last surviving author. Article 24(1) provides copyright protection for anonymous or pseudonymous works "for 70 years from the date on which the work is legally published for the first time." Article 5a exempts the following from copyright protection: "official texts of a legislative, administrative or judicial nature, or to official translations thereof".

Myanmar

See Burma, above.

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

Netherlands

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/Netherlands

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) may be freely distributed (this includes modifications and derivatives) 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 Dutch copyright law 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.

Posthumously published works before 1995 have a copyright until 50 years after publication (pre-1995 law's term), or 70 years after the death of the author (post-1995 law's term), whatever duration is the longest (art. 51 transitional clause).

Outside Europe

The information applies to the part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in Europe. In the Caribbean Netherlands (part of the Netherlands proper as well), the Auteurswet BES applies, with a copyright duration of 50 years after the death of the author. This law is based on the corresponding law of the Netherlands Antilles (auteursverordening 1913), which is also the same as in Curaçao, Aruba (s:nl:Auteursverordening (Aruba))and Sint Maarten (auteursverordening).

New Zealand

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 they were made or broadcast to the public, whichever is later. Works of artistic craftsmanship industrially applied are protected for 25 years after being industrially applied. (Source: New Zealand Ministry for Economic Development)

Nicaragua

Copyright in Nicaragua is governed by the Ley de Derechos de Autors y Derechos Conexos (No. 312), enacted in 2001. Copyright is protected for 70 years after the death of the author (Art. 27) or last surviving co-author (Art. 29). Copyright of anonymous or pseudonymous works expires 70 years after first publication (Art. 28).

An amending law enacted in 2006 (Law No. 577), has eliminated (Art. 5) what amounted to FOP in the law of 2001.

Nigeria

"# Literary, musical or artistic works other than photographs: Seventy years after the end of the year in which the author dies; in the case of government or a body corporate, seventy years after the end of the year in which the work was first published.

1. Cinematograph films and photographs. Fifty years after the end of the year in which the work was first published.
2. Sound recordings. Fifty years after the end of the year in which the recording was first made.
3. Broadcasts. Fifty years after the end of the year in which the broadcasting first took place."

There is no exception for government works -- quite the opposite, they are very broadly covered: " Copyright shall be conferred by this section on every work, which is eligible for copyright and is made by or under the direction or control of the Government, a State authority or prescribed international body."

see http://www.nigeria-law.org/CopyrightAct.htm

North Korea

Copyright Law of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea:

• Article 12: Documents for state management, current news or information data shall not be the object of copyright unless commercial purpose is pursued.
• Article 23: The property rights to a copyrighted work shall be protected from the moment of its publication to the 50th year after the death of its author. The property rights to a joint copyrighted work shall be protected from the moment of its publication to the 50th year after the death of the last survivor of the co-authors.
• Article 24: The property rights to a copyrighted work or a copyrighted visual art work whose author is an institution, enterprise or organization shall be protected for up to 50 years from the moment of its publication.

Norway

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 are protected until no less than 15 years after the photographer's death and no less than 50 years after publication. The distiction between work of art ("fotografiske verk") and other photos ("fotografiske bilder") is not clearly described, but it is believed that the photographer should add something to the mere depiction to make it a work of art. Under the former photo law, protection ended 25 years after creation, provided that more than 15 years had passed since the photographer's death or the photographer is unknown. The image is in the public domain if this older term already had expired as of 29 June 1995.

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, proposals, 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, 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.

"Copyright in a Government work shall, where Government is the first owner of the copyright therein, subsist until fifty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the work is first published." Chapter 5.

Paraguay

Paraguay passed a new copyright law in 1998. This law instituted longer terms of copyright and applied them retroactively, even for works that were in the public domain due to the expiry of their original copyright (see article 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 after its creation (article 135). Simple photographs are those which fail to meet the general definition of a "work" in Art. 2.16 of the 1998 law: "“work”, any original intellectual creation in the literary or artistic field".

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

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/Peru

Peruvian copyright law, signed under the Manuel Prado administration, had a 20 year protection over images starting in January 1, 1962. All images published in Peru prior to 1976, whose protection lasted until 1996 (and by which time a new 70 year protection was imposed by the Alberto Fujimori administration), are in the public domain.

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".

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). Peru also has a publication right with a term of 10 years since the publication.

Simple photographs have a copyright term of 70 years counted from the first of January of the year following that of the taking of the photograph (Art. 144), Simple photographs are those which fail to meet the general definition of a "work" in Art. 2.17 of the 1996 law: work: any personal and original intellectual creation.

The Philippines

• Literary and artistic works. Protected for fifty (50) years after the death of the author. (sec 213)
• Works of joint authorship. Protected for fifty (50) years after the death of the last surviving author. (sec 213.2)
• Anonymous or Pseudonymous works. Protected for fifty (50) years from the date on which the work was first lawfully published (sec. 213.3) except if the identity of the author(s) are revealed before expiration of protection, in which case sec 213 and 213.2 applies.
• Applied art. Protected for twenty-five (25) years from date of making. (sec 213.4)
• Photographs and audio-visual works. Protected for fifty (50) years from publication. In case of unpublished works, protected for fifty (50) years from date of making. (sec 213.5, 213.6)
• Sound or Image and Sound recordings. Protected for fifty (50) years from the end of the year in which the recording took place. (sec 215)
• Broadcasts. Protected for twenty (20) years from the date the broadcast took place. (sec 215.2)
• 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. (sec 171.11 and 176)

"SEC. 176. Works of the Government. – 176.1. No copyright shall subsist in any work of the Government of the Philippines. However, prior approval of the government agency or office wherein the work is created shall be necessary for exploitation of such work for profit. Such agency or office may, among other things, impose as a condition the payment of royalties. No prior approval or conditions shall be required for the use for any purpose of statutes, rules and regulations, and speeches, lectures, sermons, addresses, and dissertations, pronounced, read or rendered in courts of justice, before administrative agencies, in deliberative assemblies and in meetings of public character."

However, the clause for prior approval is determined to be a non-copyright restriction and can be safely ignored for the purposes of Wikimedia Commons by policy. Therefore works of the Philippine Government is considered to be under the Public Domain. See discussion for {{PD-PhilippineGov}}.

(Republic Act 8293)

Poland

See also: User:Piotrus/PolishCopyright

Public domain

According to the Article 3 of copyright law of March 29, 1926 (valid until 1952) and Article 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: {{PD-Polish}})

According to the Article 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 Article 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 Article 124, put all those images back under copyright protection, for 50 years since the death of the author. An amendment passed in late 2002, effective January 1, 2003, retroactively extended terms to 70 years after the death of an author, and a further amendment was made in April 2004.

Anonymous and pseudonymous works lose copyright protection seventy years "from the date of the first dissemination of the work, unless the pseudonym adopted by the author leaves no doubt as to his identity or the author has disclosed his identity" (Article 36).

Works by the Government and Public administration

According to Article 4, case 2 of the Polish Copyright Law Act of February 4, 1994 (Dz. U. z 2017 r. poz. 880 "normative acts and drafts thereof as well as official documents, materials, signs and symbols 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: {{PD-Polishsymbol}})

In the judgment of 27 February 2009 (V CSK 337/2008), the Supreme Court of Poland stated: "Under the official materials referred to in Article 4 § 2 of the [Polish] Copyright Law Act it should be understood as materials coming from an office or other institution performing public tasks."

Additionally selected government websites publish content on Creative Commons license unless stated otherwise. As of 10 August 2015 ministerial websites had a following copyright status, free licenses are marked green:

List of ministries

Ministry of Digital Affairs - CC BY 3.0 PL Ministry of Interior and Administration - no clear license Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - © Ministerstwo Rolnictwa i Rozwoju Wsi - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Culture and National Heritage - © Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Economy - CC BY SA 3.0 Ministry of Environment - © 1997-2012 Ministerstwo Środowisk - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Finance - © Copyrights Ministerstwo Finansów 2011-2012 - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Foreign Affairs - © 2012 Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Health - © 2013 Ministerstwo Zdrowia - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Infrastructure and Development 2015 Ministerstwo Infrastruktury i Rozwoju - no copyright sign, no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Interior - ©1998-2014 Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Justice - © 2000-2015 Ministerstwo Sprawiedliwości - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Labour and Social Policy - no clear license Ministry of National Defence - © Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej 2015 Ministry of National Education - no clear license Ministry of Science and Higher Education - © 2015 Ministerstwo Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of Sport and Tourism - © Ministerstwo Sportu i Turystyki 2015 - no dedicated copyright page Ministry of State Treasury - © Ministerstwo Skarbu Państwa. Wszystkie prawa zastrzeżone.

Freedom of Panorama

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. See also: Commons:Freedom of panorama#Poland

See also

• Selected and short review of Polish copyright case-law (blog entry, in English)
• The 1994 law in English

Portugal

Works are protected 70 years after the death of the author or last surviving author, or 70 years after publication if the author is anonymous.

• Código do Direito de Autor e dos Direitos Conexos (Portuguese). Main IP laws enacted September 17, 1985, including all amendments up to August 23, 2017.
• Overview of "Code of Copyright and Related Rights (as last amended by Law No. 16/2008 of April 1, 2008)"

under the Portuguese law, the author's moral rights, including and in particular the right to attribution, are perpetual, even after the copyright expires (§9.3).

Photographs

All photographs taken until 30 June 1970 are in the public domain in Portugal, as Decreto-Lei n.° 334/97 de 27 de Novembro, which established the current 70 year protection on photographic works, as well as the 25 year protection on non-published public domain works, specifically applies retroactively only to works that were under protection in EU countries as of 1 July 1995 (§5). In the previous Law No. 114/91 of September 3, 1991, copyright for all photographic works expired after 25 years after the work had been carried out. Copyright of non-published works was specifically voided 25 years after creation of the work. (§34).

In order to have copyright, photographic works are required to be published displaying a) the name of the photographer, b) in the case of photographs of works of plastic art, the name of the author of the work photographed. (§167 of the current 2017 copyright law). Failure to comply this voids the copyright of the work, unless bad faith on the reproduction can be proved. Jurisprudence (2011).

In Portugal photographs have been consistently specifically required to have a significant degree of creativity in order to be copyrighted. §164 of the current 2017 copyright law states that "the choice of a photograph's subject and the conditions of its creation must be deemed to be a personal artistic creation by the author before a photograph may qualify for protection". In 2009, (2nd instance court) Tribunal da Relação de Lisboa ruled as void of copyright for lack of artistic creativity a landscape photograph the author was claiming copyright on due to his choice of the setting, light and other conditions. It was considered by the court "a vulgar photograph resultant from the mere choice of an object, such as a city council building and part of a group of trees, without a minimum of creativity". See also this article at the Instituto Portugues de Fotografia.

URAA

See {{PD-Portugal-URAA}} for compatibility between URAA and works in the public domain in Portugal.

Romania

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. The law is very close to the Spanish copyright law; it has a general copyright term of 70 years p.m.a.. 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). These terms were not extended by the new law for works that were already in the public domain, putting the work of any author who died before January 1st, 1946 in the public domain.

See also:

• {{PD-Romania}} - Romanian version of {{Anonymous-EU}} and {{PD-old-70}} but also covers photographs published more than 70 years ago.
• {{PD-RO-1956}} - covers dictionaries or encyclopedias published before 1976 (20 years from publication)
• {{PD-RO-photo}} - covers artistic photographs published before 1991
• {{PD-RO-exempt}}

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 post-Soviet states too. Works of authors who worked during the Great Patriotic War (Eastern Front of World War II) or participated in it are extended for 4 years (so they become public domain 74 years after their death). In case the author was subjected to repression and rehabilitated posthumously, countdown of copyright protection began not from the death date, but from the rehabilitation date. If the work was first published posthumously, the copyright term is counted from the date of that first publication, unless the author was later rehabilitated, in which case it runs again from that later rehabilitation date.

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

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

See also: {{PD-RusEmpire}} for works published before 1917.

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 Template talk:PD-Soviet.

San Marino

Law exists per [32], and states that the period of protection is 50 years after the death of the author (Legge n. 8 del 25 gennaio 1991 - Tutela del diritto d'autore - Capo III: Durata della protezione).

• For anonymous or pseudo-anonymous works, the duration is 60 years after the date of the first publication (Art.38).
• For audio-visual works (films, sound), the duration is 50 years after the end of the year of first publication date (or 50 years after the production date for unpublished works) (Art.40).
• For photographs, San Marino states that the "protection period for photographs shall be 30 years of the date of production." (Art.84).

See also {{PD-SanMarino}} for the reproduction of the acts of State or government or judicial acts.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian Law.

The general copyright rule is 50 years pma. Exceptions:

• Applied art (handcrafted or manufactured) and photographs are under copyright for 25 years from publication.
• Films, sound and artistic works are protected for 50 years from publication.

Protected works are:

1. Written materials like books, booklets and others.

2. Works which are verbally delivered like lectures, speeches,poetry, songs and the like.

3. Dramatic works, plays, shows and similar presentations which involve motion, sound or both.

4. Works which are especially prepared for broadcasting or are presented through broadcasting.

5. Drawings, works of plastic arts, architecture, decorative art and artistic embroidery and the like.

6. Sound and audio-visual works.

7. Applied art works, whether handcrafted or manufactured.

8. Photographic works and the like.

9. Illustrations, geographical maps, designs, plans, sketches and sculptured works related to geography, topography, architecture and science.

10. Three Dimensional works of geography, topography, architecture or science.

11. Computer programs.

12. Protection shall include the title of a work, if it is of creative nature, and not a common expression indicating the subject matter of the work.

Serbia

Serbia is 70 years pma. Works by unknown author are 70 years after publication. FOP is very broad:

"Article 51 Any work that is permanently displayed in a street, a square or some other open public place may be reproduced in two dimensions and its copies thus made may be put on the market as will as communicated to the public in some other way, without the author's permission and without paying remuneration."

Law on Copyright and Related Rights (2009)

Singapore

Singapore Copyright Act

See Commons:Copyright tags#Singapore for specific copyright tags.

Freedom of panorama

• The copyright in sculptures and other works of artistic craftsmanship "situated, otherwise than temporarily, in a public place, or in premises open to the public, is not infringed by the making of a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of the work or by the inclusion of the work in a cinematograph film or in a television broadcast". However, the definition of "artistic work" for this purpose explicitly excludes paintings, drawings, engravings and photographs, and therefore freedom of panorama does not apply to, among other things, two-dimensional works such as posters or other flat artworks even if they are permanently displayed in a public place.

• The copyright in a building or a model of a building is not infringed by the making of a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of the building or model or by the inclusion of the building or model in a cinematograph film or in a television broadcast.

Literary, dramatic and musical works published in author's lifetime; and artistic works other than photographs

The following works are in the public domain upon the expiry of 70 years after the end of the calendar year in which the authors of the works died:

• Published literary, dramatic and musical works.

• Published and unpublished artistic works other than photographs.

Posthumously published literary, dramatic and musical works, and engravings

If, before the death of the author of a literary, dramatic or musical work —

• the work had not been published;
• the work had not been performed in public;
• the work had not been broadcast;
• the work had not been included in a cable programme; and
• records of the work had not been offered or exposed for sale to the public;

the work is in the public domain upon the expiry of 70 years after the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published, performed in public, or broadcast, or included in a cable programme, or records of the work are first offered or exposed for sale to the public, whichever is the earliest of those events to happen (that is, the work was made available to the public before or in 1947).

If, before the death of the author of an engraving the work had not been published, the work is in the public domain upon the expiry of 70 years after the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published (that is, it was first published before or in 1947).

Anonymous and pseudonymous literary, dramatic and musical works

An anonymous or pseudonymous literary, dramatic and musical work is in the public domain if 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published (that is, it was first published before or in 1947). (The work ceases to be in the public domain if at any time before the 70-year period expires the identity of the author of the work is generally known or can be ascertained by reasonable inquiry.)

Photographs

A photograph is in the public domain in the following situations:

• If it was taken before 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which it was taken (that is, it was taken before or in 1947).
• If it was taken on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which it was first published.

Published editions of work or works

A published edition of a work or works is in the public domain in the following situations:

• If it was first published before 10 April 1987.
• If it was published on or after 10 April 1987, 25 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which it was first published.

The copyright in a published edition protects the typographical format of the edition, which is separate from any copyrights in the work recorded. Therefore, even if the copyright in the typographical format has expired, the distinct copyright in the text (which is a literary work) and in illustrations or photographs (which are artistic works) may still be subsisting. Do not upload files containing such works unless another licence such as {{PD-SG-lifetimepub}} or {{PD-SG-photo}} is applicable.

Cinematograph films

A cinematograph film is in the public domain in the following situations:

• If it was made before 10 April 1987.
• If it was made on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published.

Sound recordings

A sound recording is in the public domain in the following situations:

• If it was made before 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the recording was made (that is, it was made before or in 1947).
• If it was made on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the recording was first published.

Television broadcasts, sound broadcasts and cable programmes

A television broadcast, sound broadcast or cable programme is in the public domain in the following situations:

• If the broadcast was made or the cable programme included in a cable programme service before 10 April 1987.
• If the broadcast was made or the cable programme included in a cable programme service on or after 10 April 1987 —
  • The television or sound broadcast is a repetition of a broadcast made before that date.
  • 50 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the broadcast was first made or the cable programme was first included in a cable programme service.

Government works

• A literary, dramatic or musical work made by or under the direction or control of the Government is in the public domain if 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published by or under the direction or control of the Government.

• An artistic work made made by or under the direction or control of the Government is in the public domain in the following situations:
  • If it is a photograph —
    • made before 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was made.
    • made on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published.
  • If it is an engraving, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published.
  • If it is an artistic work other than an engraving or a photograph, if 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was made.

• A cinematograph film made by or under the direction or control of the Government is in the public domain in the following situations:
  • If it was made before 10 April 1987, it is an original dramatic work that is in the public domain, and photographs forming part of the film are also in the public domain (see the preceding paragraphs).
  • If it was made on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published.

• A sound recording made by or under the direction or control of the Government is in the public domain in the following situations:
  • If it was made before 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the expiration of the calendar year in which the recording was made.
  • If it was made on or after 10 April 1987, 70 years have passed since the end of the calendar year in which the recording was first published.

Slovakia

• English translation of the Slovak copyright law as of 2004 Wayback Machine archive page.
• Slovak copyright law in Slovak language.
• In general, Slovak law provides for pma 70 years.
• 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.

• Publicator's right, 25 years.

Slovenia

• Works of authors who died in 1944 or earlier are public domain in Slovenia. Works of authors who died in 1945 or later are copyrighted.
• An exception applies to the photographic and similarly-made works, and the works of applied art, which are considered free if published before 1 January 1970. This also includes still images of videos if these images were published before 1970.
• The publication right applies for all works, published for the first time on 29 April 1995 or later, even if the copyright has already expired. It lasts for 25 years starting 1 January of the year following the year of the publication.
• There is no Commons-suitable freedom of panorama in Slovenia.

Free works

• Copyright protection shall not be afforded to:

• ideas, principles, discoveries;
• official legislative, administrative and judicial texts;

• This also encompasses the national coat of arms, the municipal coats of arms, the anthem, urban planning maps, drawings of traffic signs, sketches and plans from the patent file after the official publication of the patent, and other similar material published due to a state jurisdiction as part of the official text, its annex or independently.
• Translations of texts mentioned hereby should enjoy copyright protection, unless they are published as official texts.

• folk literary and artistic creations;
• certain photographs that are not an "individual intellectual creation of the photographer". Trampuž specifically cites the following types of images:

• automated routine photographs (avtomatizirani rutinski posnetki); specifically listed: photographic automates (pri fotografskih avtomatih), traffic safety images (v prometni varnosti), images taken as part of the technical protection of objects (pri tehnični zaščiti objektov), meteorological and satellite photographs (meteorološki in satelitski posnetki)
• routine photographs for documents (rutinski posnetki za dokumente)
• average amateur photographs (povprečne amaterske fotografije - družinski, počitniški posnetki ipd.)
• routine press photographs (rutinski fotoreporterski posnetki: tiskovna poročila, člen 48/I tč. 4)

These, however, can often become an author's work, which is judged from case to case. In numerous actual cases, they have also been recognised as copyrighted.

Freedom of panorama

• No Commons-suitable FOP. According to the Article 55 of the Slovenian Copyright and Related Rights Act, there is only limited freedom of panorama in Slovenia:

Works permanently placed in parks, streets, squares, or other generally accessible premises may not be reproduced in a 3D-form, used for the same purpose as the original work, or used for economic gain. The source and authorship of the work must be indicated, if the latter is indicated on the work used.

Copyright duration

• The copyright starts to run on 1 January of the year following the year of the initial event (e.g. if the creator of the work died in 1975, his works will become public domain in 2046). [Note: The word author below refers to the creator (author, artist, architect, designer) of any creative work.]

• for the life of the author and for 70 years after his death, unless otherwise provided by the aforementioned Act
• in the case of coauthors, for 70 years from the death of the last coauthor;
• in the case of anonymous and pseudonymous works, for 70 years after the lawful disclosure, except of the author reveals his identity or there's no doubt about who is the author (in this case, for 70 years after his death)
• in the case of collective works, for 70 years after the lawful disclosure (for the work to be a collective work, it must not be an inseparable whole, there must be a special contract about its creation signed, and the number of individual authors must be large);
• in the case the copyright can't run from the death of the author and the work was not lawfully disclosed, for 70 years after the creation of the work;

Related rights duration

• The related rights start run from the day of the event:

• in the case of performances, for 50 years after the performance or in the case of its lawful disclosure, 50 years after its first publication;

• the performers' rights have expired for performances from before 29 April 1990;

• in the case of sound recordings, for 50 years after the day of the production of the recording or in the case of its lawful disclosure, 50 years after its first publication;

• the sound recording producers' rights have expired for recordings from before 1 January 1975;

• in the case of unpublished free works, for 25 years after the day of the lawful publication (the publication right);

• this applies only for works, published for the first time on 29 April 1995 or later.

• in the case of critical or scientific publications of free works, for 30 years after the day of the first lawful publication;
• in the case of continued works, the term is separately calculated for each of the composing parts);
• in the case of collections, insignificant changes do not lengthen the duration of the copyright on the collection.

Threshold of originality

The threshold of originality in Slovenia depends on the field of creativity. If the maneuvering space of the possible creativity is narrower, it requires more creativity for a work to be copyrighted. In this regard, the following court cases are relevant:

Applied arts

• VSL0069492 - the design of a couch set has been found to be below the threshold.
• VS0011606 - the design of a selling stand has been found to be above the threshold.

Architecture

• VSL00432 - only the works that constitute an original artwork are copyrighted; the renovation plan of Ljubljana Castle as well as the newly built and (at least some of) the renovated parts of the castle count as such.

Titles

• VS07924 - the title "Brez zavor" (meaning "Without inhibitions") has been found to be below the threshold.

Other restrictions

• In Slovenia there are restrictions on;

• photography of public monuments and cultural heritage, see COM:FOP#Slovenia and {{SpomenikSVN}}.
• publication of reproductions of public archives. An authorisation of the archival institution is needed for any publication. See the Archives and Archival Institutions Act.
• the usage of the national flag, the coat of arms, and the anthem; see the Act Regulating the Coat-of-Arms, Flag and Anthem of the Republic of Slovenia and the Flag of the Slovene Nation.

Related acts

• Copyright and Related Rights Act (valid since 2007) (English translation).
• Zakon o avtorskih in sorodnih pravicah (the copyright act in Slovene)
• Protection of Documents and Archives and Archival Institutions Act (PDAAIA)
• 1978 Yugoslav Copyright Act (Zakon o autorskom pravu)

Somalia

According to the 1977 Copyright Law - Law No. 66 of 7 September 1977, Somali law includes copyright protection lenth of Life + 30 years for registered works. However, under this law, registration of the copyrighted work was required to obtain protection, and there is no longer anywhere to register copyrights (if there ever was).

Somalia has recently passed a new law relating to copyright (see Article 38), but it does not specify a duration and is unclear. See also a media article.

Somalia is not a party to any International Copyright laws (Berne, UCC, TRIPS/WTO)

There are records of a copyright office existing prior to being destroyed in the civil war in 1991. The United States Copyright Office declares the state of copyright relations with Somalia to be "unknown"[33], as opposed to "none".

South Africa

Admissible as it was photographed 50+ years after the death of the author

According to the Copyright Act 1978 (No. 98 of 1978) of South Africa (as at 25 June 2002):

• Photographs and cinematograph films. The copyright in photographs and cinematograph films expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the work (1) is made available to the public with the copyright owner's consent; or (2) is first published, whichever is longer. If a work is neither made available to the public or published within 50 years of the making of the work, its copyright expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the work was made: section 3(2)(b).
• Literary, musical and artistic works (except photographs).
  • Identified author.
    • Unpublished works. The copyright in an unpublished literary, musical or artistic work (except a photograph) by an author whose identity is known expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the author dies (section 3(2)(a)) or, if the work is jointly authored by more than one author, in which the last surviving author dies (section 3(4)).
    • Published works. If a literary, musical or artistic work, or an adaptation of it, has been published, performed in public, offered for public sale, or broadcast, its copyright expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the first of these acts is done: section 3(2)(a). In general, a work is "published" if copies of it have been issued to the public with the copyright owner's consent in sufficient quantities to reasonably meet the public's needs, having regard to the nature of the work: section 1(5)(a). A cinematograph film or sound recording is published if copies of it have been sold, let, hired, or offered for sale or hire: section 1(5)(b). However, publication does not include performing a cinematograph film, musical work, or sound recording; broadcasting a work; exhibiting a work of art; or constructing a work of architecture: section 1(5)(d).
  • Anonymous or pseudonymous works. Copyright in an anonymous or pseudonymous work expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the work is made available to the public with the copyright owner's consent, or in which it is reasonable to presume that the author died, whichever is shorter. If the author's identity becomes known before this period expires, then the work is treated as a work by an identified author for the purpose of determining when its copyright expires: section 3(3).
  • Government works. The copyright in a literary, musical or artistic work (except for photographs) created by the Government of South Africa expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the work was first published: section 5(3).
• Broadcasts, programme-carrying signals, published editions and sound recordings. Copyright in the following works expires 50 years from the end of the year in which the specified act occurs:
  • Broadcasts – when the broadcast first takes place: section 3(2)(d).
  • Programme-carrying signals – when the signals are emitted to a satellite: section 3(2)(d).
  • Published editions – when the edition is first published: section 3(2)(f). (A "published edition" is the first print by whatever process of a particular typographical arrangement of a literary or musical work: section 1(1).)
  • Sound recordings – when the recording is first published: section 3(2)(c).
• Works in which no copyright subsists. No copyright subsists in the following works (section 12(8)):
  • Official texts of a legislative, administrative or legal nature, or in official translations of such texts.
  • Political speeches or speeches delivered in the course of legal proceedings. (However, the author of speeches has the exclusive right to create a collection of such speeches.)
  • News of the day that are mere items of press information.
• Limited freedom of panorama. There is only a limited form of freedom of panorama in South Africa which is not sufficient for Commons purposes. Section 15(3) of the Act states: "The copyright in an artistic work shall not be infringed by its reproduction or inclusion in a cinematograph film or a television broadcast or transmission in a diffusion service, if such work is permanently situated in a street, square or a similar public place." Since there is no mention of photographs, there is no freedom of panorama exemption that would permit photographs of artistic works to be taken without infringing the copyright in the works.

South Korea

For photographs and most other works, copyright persists until 70 years after the death of the last surviving creator. See Articles 39–44 of the Copyright Act^(outdated) for exact details.

For audio files and broadcasts, the term of protection ends 70 years after creation. According to Article 86 of the Copyright Act^(outdated):

The protection period of neighboring rights shall come into effect from the following date and continue to subsist for a period of 70 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.)

South Sudan

Article 198 of the Constitution of the South Sudan declares that "All laws of South Sudan shall remain in force [...] unless new action are taken [...]." As there is no new South Sudanese copyright law at this time, the Sudanese one is still in force there.

Section 35 of the Investment Promotion Act (2009) states: "The Government shall protect the intellectual property rights of all persons and investors in Southern Sudan and shall enforce rights to trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other intellectual property rights in accordance with any related international conventions to which the Republic of the Sudan is a signatory."

For Sudan's copyright laws, see the Sudan section below.

Spain

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 (art. 27), as from the first of January of the year following his/her death (art. 30). If the "intellectual property" of the work is not 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 publication (art. 27.1), as from the first of January of the year following publication. However, works of authors who died before December 7, 1987 (or were published before said date, in case of anonymous works) are dealt with by the 1879 law, which sets a protection time of 80 years post mortem auctoris (art. 6 1879 law).

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".

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka copyright is 70 years pma. There is a strong Fair Use provision and no FOP.

"Copyright covers original literary and artistic works: writings such as books, computer programs, articles, oral works such as speeches and lectures, dramas, musical works, films, drawings, paintings and photographs. The works such as databases and translations are also protected."

The exception for government and other works is very limited:

"Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 6 and 7, no protection shall be extended under this Part —

(a) to any idea, procedure, system, method of operation, concept, principle, discovery or mere data, even if expressed, described, explained, illustrated or embodied in a work ;

(b) to any official text of a legislative, administrative or legal nature, as well as any official translation thereof ;

(c) to news of the day published, broadcast, or publicly communicated by any other means."

Sudan

Sudan's first copyright law—The Copyright and Neighboring Rights Protection Act 1996—entered into force on 19 December 1996 and does not protect works already in the public domain. Sudan became a party to the Berne Convention on 28 December 2000.

Copyright protection lasts 25 years from the date of first publication for "photographic pictures and cinematographic films and other audiovisual works", works first published after the author's death, and works anonymously or with an unknown pseudonym (see {{PD-Sudan-photo}}). For all other protected works, the copyright is the author's life plus 50 years. For joint works where the contribution of each author is indistinguishable, the length of copyright is calculated from the death of the last surviving author.

Government works

Copyright does not extend to state emblems and symbols or official documents. "'Official documents' means the official documents issued by the State or its institution, corporation or unit and which, by virtue of their specialization, are issued for publication to the public, including laws, Presidential or administrative orders, international agreements and judicial judgments, but not including military documents, secret agreements and deliberations of secret sessions in courts or legislative bodies."

Sweden

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-photo}}.

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.

Catalogs and charts containing compilations of a great amount of information, or being the result of a considerable investment, are under copyright for 15 years after the year of their creation, or, if they have been published within 15 years from production, for 15 years after the year of publication. (Upphovsrättslagen 49 §).

Switzerland

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. The increase of the protection term from 50 to 70 years occurred in 1993 and was not retroactive, but since the change was more than 20 years ago, no works are in the public domain under the life+50 term that would not also be in the public domain under the current life+70 rule.

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

[34] 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. Although architectural drawings can be copyrighted, architecture cannot, so buildings may be freely photographed.

Taiwan

See #China, Republic of (Taiwan) above.

Tajikistan

See: here, copied from [35].

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-TJ-exempt}}.

Tanzania/Tanganyika

The general copyright term, both before and after independence, is 50 years after the death of the last surviving author. See: see page 2 of this WIPO document: so prior to 1966 {{PD-UKGov}} applies.

In 1999 a new copyright law was passed Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act, 1999 and the law became operational from December, 31, 1999 (see page 9 of this case study). Also see [36], where the same 50-year pma term applies, except for anonymously or pseudonym works where the term is 50 years after creation, publication or being made available to the public, whichever is the latest. Audio-visual works are copyright for 50-years from creation and works of applied art are copyright for 25 years.

For all post 1999 cases {{PD-Tanzania}} would apply.

Thailand

Copyright law in Thailand governs the legally enforceable rights of creative and artistic works under the Copyright Act BE 2537 (1994). Copyright is automatically protected and does not need registration; however, works can be filed with the Department of Intellectual property (DIP). Disputes are first heard in the Intellectual Property and International Trade Court.

The copyright term is as follows:

• For works except those described below, the copyright term is the life of the author plus 50 years. When the author is a legal entity or an anonymous person, the copyright term is 50 years from the date of authorship, or 50 years from the date of first publication if it was published within that period.
• For photographic works, audiovisual recordings, motion pictures, sound recordings, or broadcast works, the copyright term is 50 years from authorship, or 50 years from first publication if it was published within that period.
• For Works of applied art (defined as a work which takes a composition of works such as drawings, paintings, sculpture, prints, architecture, photography, drafts, or models for utility or functional use), the copyright term is 25 years from authorship, or 25 years from first publication if it was published within that period.
• For works created under employment or contract with the government, the copyright term is 50 years from authorship, or 50 years from first publication if it was published within that period.

Public domain Republication of works after the expiration of the copyright term does not reset the copyright term. Thai state documents are public domain, though creative works produced by or commissioned by government offices are protected by copyright.

There is a FOP exception for all artistic works (including works of painting or drawing, sculpture, lithography, architecture, photographic works, works of illustration, and works of applied art). The exception covers architecture wherever it is located, but other works are covered by the exception if they are permanently located in a public place.

Tunisia

According to the Copyright Protection Law of Tunisia (Law No. 94-36 of February 24, 1994, on Literary and Artistic Property), enacted 1994, amended 2009, a work is out of copyright if:

• It is a photographic work, and 50 years have passed since the date of its creation
• It is an anonymous, pseudonymous, or posthumous work and 50 years have passed since the date of its publication
• It is another kind of work, and 50 years have passed since the year of death of the author (or last surviving author)
• It is one of the "official texts of legislative, administrative or legal nature and their official translations"

Before July 5, 2009, a photographic work was protected for 25 years from creation. Pictures taken before July 5, 1984 have already been placed into the public domain.

See {{PD-Tunisia}}.

Turkey

See {{PD-TR}} 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.

Turkish copyright law states that laws, rules, regulations, notifications, circular letters and juridical decisions which are officially promulgated or announced are not protected by copyright.

Uganda

According to the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act 2006 (Act 19 of 2006) of Uganda:

• Copyrighted works.
  • Photographs. The copyright in a photographic work expires 50 years after the date of the making of the work: section 13(7).
  • Audiovisual works, sound recordings and broadcasts. The copyright in an audiovisual work, a sound recording or a broadcast expires 50 years after the date of the making of the work or the date the work is made available to the public with the author's consent: section 13(5).
  • Other works. The copyright in some other type of work expires after the periods stated below:
    • Identified authors. If the work is by an identified author, 50 years after the author's death, or, where the work is of joint authorship, after the death of the last surviving author: sections 13(1) and (2).
    • Anonymous and pseudonymous authors. If the work is published anonymously or under a pseudonym, 50 years after the date of first publication. However, if before this time the identity of the author becomes known or is no longer in doubt, the preceding paragraph applies: section 13(4).
    • Corporations and other bodies. If the copyright is owned by a corporation or other body, 50 years from the date when the work is first published: section 13(3).
• No copyright in public benefit works. There is no copyright in the following works (section 7):
  • enactments, including Acts, statutes, decrees, statutory instruments and other laws made by the Legislature or other authorised bodies;
  • decrees, orders and other decisions by courts of law for the administration of justice and any official translations from them;
  • reports made by committees or commissions of inquiry appointed by the Government or any agency of the Government;
  • news of the day, namely, reports of fresh events or current information by the media whether published in a written form, broadcast, internet or communicated to the public by any other means.
• Freedom of panorama. A work of art or architecture may be used in a photograph, an audiovisual work or a television broadcast without infringing the author's copyright and without the author's consent where the work (section 15(1)(g)):
  • is permanently located in a public place; or
  • is included in the background or is otherwise incidental to the main object in the photograph, audiovisual work or television broadcast.

United Kingdom

Edit
/United Kingdom

As with the rest of the European Union, the basic copyright term in the United Kingdom is life of the author plus 70 years. (The author must be a natural person and cannot be a corporation.) 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 [37].

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.

The Ordnance Survey OpenData licence has been designed to be compatible with Creative Commons BY 3.0 and appears to be okay.

Some works published from 2010 are available under the UK Open Government Licence which is meant to be compatible with the CC BY 3.0 licence. See {{OGL}}.

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. For a summary of these rules see the flowchart [38]. (This means that some works whose copyright expired before the 1988 act came into force were brought back into copyright.)

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

Known author

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 is a 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.

Unknown author

Main page: Commons:Anonymous_works#United_Kingdom.

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.

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 2040) 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

Freedom of panorama

Main page: COM:FOP#United Kingdom.

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.

Threshold of originality

Main page: Commons:TOO#United_Kingdom.

Some works are not original enough to be eligible for copyright protection. The level of originality required for copyright protection in the United Kingdom is very low.

United States

US copyrights for works first published in US, excluding audio works

Anything published before January 1, 1923 is in the public domain. Anything published before January 1, 1964 and whose copyright was not renewed is in the public domain (search the Copyright Renewal Database, Stanford University for books, or renewal records for books and maps). Anything published before January 1, 1978 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 also in the public domain. Anything published in or after 1978 but before March 1, 1989 with no copyright notice is in the public domain unless the work's copyright was registered within 5 years of the work's initial publication.

Works which were first published outside the US (and not subsequently republished in the US within 30 days) on or after January 1, 1923 may be copyrighted in the US by virtue of the URAA (Uruguay Round Agreements Act) even if the work's US copyright previously expired due to a failure to comply with US copyright formalities (copyright renewal and inclusion of a copyright notice.) In general, such works had their US copyright restored if the work was out of copyright in the US due to noncompliance with US formalities but still under copyright in its country of origin on the URAA date. (For most countries, the URAA date is January 1, 1996.) Works first published in the US are not affected by the URAA.

The US copyright situation for sound recordings (including those published before 1923) is a complicated special case. Recordings fixed on or after February 15, 1972 are covered by federal copyright and therefore are subject to the same copyright rules as other works. Recordings fixed prior to February 15, 1972 may be copyrighted under common law and/or state laws which do not always have the same formalities and limitations as US federal copyright. (Works other than sound recordings are subject only to federal copyright.) More details are available in this Wikilegal report. Under current federal copyright law, all state copyrights on sound recordings will be annulled on February 15, 2067, and on that date recordings subject to state statutory and/or common law copyright will enter the public domain.

Works created after January 1, 1978 are protected for 70 years after the death of the creator. Works created before 1978 and first published after or in 1978 are protected for the earlier of 95 years from publication or registration for copyright or 120 years from creation (for anonymous or corporate works) or 70 years after death of the creator for known authors; if it was published in 1978-2001, that copyright is extended to December 31, 2047 if it's shorter. (Thus no works first published with permission of the copyright holder between 1978 and 2001 in the US are out of copyright.)

U.S. copyright law applies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands, but does not apply in American Samoa.

Copyright Law of the United States

Works by the US Government

A work by the U.S. federal Government is in the public domain. This applies certainly within the United States; it may, however, not apply in other jurisdictions. See the CENDI Copyright FAQ list, 3.1.7, the U.S. Government's own statement to that effect, but also this discussion.

Example of public domain work created by NASA, a U.S. federal government agency

• 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). Images on certain military websites (e.g. AKO) frequently are creations of military members in their individual capacities (e.g. soldiers on patrol using their personal cameras). These images may not be in the public domain, but they are very hard to distinguish from works of military photographers, and they rarely contain copyright information.
• This does not include governments of the individual states. The work of most state and local governments are subject to copyright, but there are some exceptions.
• This does not include government-funded corporations like Amtrak or the USPS. In particular, the USPS holds exclusive copyright to all US postage stamp designs since 1978 [39] (older US stamps are all considered 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 are in the public domain. The other agencies may hold copyright on some material, including material published on NASA sites (in these cases there will be copyright notices— please look for them to determine copyright status).
• The government sometimes publishes images with statements about non-copyright restrictions (like the White House photostream). This does not affect copyright.
• 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 such images has addressed this issue with its Copyright statement, which informs the reader as to how to meet any commercial needs under this statute.

Edicts of Government

• Edicts of Government are always public domain in whole or in part and applies to such works whether they are Federal, State, or local as well as to those of foreign governments. This includes judicial opinions, administrative rulings, legislative enactments, public ordinances, and similar official legal documents. Precedence is that citizen are expected to understand the law and that there can be no copyright assertion of laws or court decisions. Edicts of government may or may not overlap with works by the U.S. Government.

Uruguay

According to the uruguayan laws 9.739, 17.616 and its amendments, the literary, scientific or artistic works are protected for 50 years after the death of the author. If the work is anonymous or pseudonymous the protection lasts for 50 years after the lawful disclosure. {{PD-Uruguay}} and {{PD-Uruguay-anon}} are available.

Vanuatu

Vanuatu's basic copyright law covers all of the usual works and lasts for 50 years pma for most works and for 25 years pma for works of applied art. Copyright for collective works (other than a work of applied art) and an audiovisual work lasts for the longest of 50 years after creation, first made available to the public, or first published. There is no FOP provision. see http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/details.jsp?id=10729

The Vatican state

The current copyright law of the Vatican State was enacted 19 March 2011. The Italian text can be found here.Vatican law supplements the Italian Copyright Act (l. 633, 6 April 1941), which applies in the territory of the Holy See (generally, 70 years after the author's death).

The main points of the Papal copyright:

• Exclusive right on the use of the Pope’s image and voice for purposes other than religious, cultural and educational (art. 3)
• Exclusive right on “purely documentary” reproductions of cultural heritage for 70 years from the fixation (art. 4)
• The Holy See owns all copyrights in the works published under its name or created on its commission (art. 5).

Venezuela

From Venezuelan "Law on Copyright" (1993-08-14), works first published in Venezuela fall into the public domain when:

• It is the text of laws, decrees, official regulations, public treaties, judicial decisions and other official acts. (Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 1, Article 4)
• It is an audiovisual work, a photograph, a broadcast work or a computer program and 60 years have passed since its publication. (Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 2, Article 26)
• It is an anonymous or pseudonymous work and 60 years have passed since publication (unless the pseudonym leaves no doubt as to identity). (Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 2, Article 27)
• It is another type of work and 60 years have passed since the last surviving author's death. (Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 2, Article 25)

Vietnam

• "Cinematographic works, photographic works, works of applied art and anonymous works have a term of protection of seventy five years from the date of first publication. For cinematographic works, photographic works and works of applied art which remain unpublished within twenty five years from the date of fixation, the term of protection is one hundred years from the date of fixation."
• All other works are protected for 50 years after the death of the last surviving author.
• Cinematographic works, photographic works, dramatic works, works of applied art and anonymous works that were published 50 years or more prior to January 1, 2010 are still in the public domain.
• The Vietnamese Copyright Law (en)
• 2009 amendment

Yemen

Yemen WIPO treaty signing provides the following:

- TV or Film rights 25 years from creation - Photographs 10 years from creation - Literary works are life + 30 years

However, Yemen signed the Berne agreement on 14 July, 2008. It will come into force (minimum life + 50 years) on 10 October 2024.

See also

• Commons:Wikilivres – a companion site not operated by the Wikimedia Foundation which follows Canadian copyright rules
• Commons:Stamps/Public domain

External links

• UNESCO Collection of National Copyright Laws
• http://copyrightexceptions.eu/