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CIRCULAR

50

This circular is intended as a guide to registering musical 

compositions with the U.S. Copyright Office. For specific 

information, see chapter 800 of the Compendium of U.S. 

Copyright Practices.

1

Musical Compositions

The Copyright Act provides in section 102(a)(2) for copyright protection in “musical works, including any accompanying words,” that are fixed in some tangible medium of 

expression. Musical works include original compositions 

and original arrangements or other new versions of earlier 

compositions to which new copyrightable authorship has 

been added.

Copyright protection gives the owner of copyright in a 

musical composition the exclusive right to make copies, prepare derivative works, sell or distribute copies, and perform 

or display the work publicly. The owner of copyright may 

also authorize others to exercise the exclusive rights.

The copyright in a musical work includes the right to 

make and distribute, or to authorize, the first sound recording of a performance of the musical composition. Once a 

musical composition is published in the United States on 

phonorecords, others are permitted to make subsequent 

sound recordings of the musical composition subject to a 

compulsory licensing provision in the copyright law.2 For 

more information, see Compulsory License for Making and 

Distributing Phonorecords (Circular 73A).

Musical Compositions Versus Sound Recordings

A musical composition and a sound recording are two separate works. A registration for a musical composition covers the 

music and lyrics, if any, embodied in that composition, but it 

does not cover a recorded performance of that composition. 

This circular provides information 

about registering musical 

compositions with the U.S. Copyright 

Office. It introduces the difference 

between a musical composition and a 

sound recording under copyright law 

and offers guidance about

• Completing a copyright application

• Submitting a deposit

• Registering multiple unpublished 

musical compositions

Copyright Registration for

Musical Compositions
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 2

For example, the song “Rolling in the Deep” and a recording of Aretha Franklin singing “Rolling in 

the Deep” are two distinct works. The song itself (i.e., the music and the lyrics) is a musical composition, and a recording of an artist performing that song is a sound recording.

In most cases, a musical composition and a sound recording must be registered separately with 

the Copyright Office. However, in limited circumstances, a sound recording and the underlying 

musical composition can be registered with one application, filing fee, and deposit. For information 

about registering a sound recording, see Circular 56. For information about registering a musical 

composition together with a sound recording, see Circular 56A.

Copyright Registration

To register a claim to copyright in a musical composition, you must submit the following to the 

Copyright Office: (1) a completed application form; (2) a nonrefundable filing fee; and (3) the required 

“deposit copies” of your work. This circular highlights issues common to registrations of musical 

compositions. For more guidance on registering a musical composition, see chapter 800, section 802.9, 

of the Compendium. For general registration information, see Copyright Registration (Circular 2).

note: Copyright Office fees are subject to change. For current fees, see Copyright Office Fees

(Circular 4), available on the Office’s website at www.copyright.gov or call the Office at (202) 707-3000 

or 1-877-476-0778 (toll free).

Mistakes in applications lead to delays in registration, so it is important to complete the application accurately. Instructions for completing an online application appear in the “help” text that 

accompanies the application. Here are some tips regarding common points of confusion.

Type of Work

• At the beginning of the application, select “Work of the Performing Arts” on the “Type of Work” 

screen. The questions in the application are based on the type of work you select. If you select 

the wrong option, you will need to start over.

Title

• Provide the title of the musical composition you are registering exactly as it appears on the 

work itself.

Publication

“Publication” occurs when copies or phonorecords of a work are distributed to the public by sale or 

other transfer of ownership or by rental, lease, or lending. Publication also occurs when a copyright 

owner offers to distribute copies or phonorecords of a work to a group of persons for the purpose 

of further distribution, public performance, or public display. A public performance or display of a 

musical composition does not, in and of itself, constitute publication.

• If the work has not been published, state that the work is “unpublished.” 

• If the work has been published, give the month, day, and year that the copies or phonorecords 

were first distributed to the public or first offered to a group of persons for further distribution, public performance, or public display.
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 3

Year of Completion

The year of completion is the year in which the version of the work you are registering was first fixed 

in writing or recorded in any other tangible form.

• If you are registering a work that was written or recorded over a period of time, or a work that 

constitutes a new version of an earlier work, give the year of completion of the final work or 

new version.

Author

The author of a musical composition is the person who wrote or created the music and lyrics, if any, 

unless the work is a work made for hire.

• If the music was created as a work made for hire, give the name of the employer, not the 

person who actually created the music.

note: Check “Made for Hire” only if the work was prepared by an employee within the scope of his 

or her employment or commissioned by a third party (1) as a contribution to a compilation or a 

collective work, (2) as part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, or (3) as a musical arrangement with an express written agreement signed by both parties that the work would be considered 

a work made for hire. For more information, see Works Made for Hire (Circular 30).

Type of Authorship 

• Specify what the author created in the copy or phonorecord that accompanies the application. 

• If you are registering a musical composition, you can describe authorship in terms of the lyrics, 

the music, and/or the musical arrangement.

• If you are also registering artwork, photographs, or liner notes that appear on the copy or phonorecord, include a brief statement to that effect in the “Other” field.

• If you are registering a compilation or a collective work, such as an album, describe the 

authorship and the material included in the claim by stating “Compilation of Musical Compositions” in the “Other” field.

note: Do not include elements that are not present in the copy or phonorecord. Do not include elements that are not protected by copyright, such as ideas, concepts, names, or titles.

Limitation of Claim

• If you are registering a musical work that contains preexisting material, identify that material 

in the “Material Excluded” field, and identify the new material in the “New Material Included” 

field. If the preexisting material has been registered with the Copyright Office, include the registration number and year. Complete this space only if the work being registered contains an 

appreciable amount of material that 

» was previously published;

» was previously registered in the U.S. Copyright Office;

» is in the public domain; or

» is not owned by the claimant named in the application.
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 4

Leave this space blank if the work does not contain an appreciable amount of any of this kind of 

material. For more information, see chapter 500, section 507 of the Compendium.

Deposit Requirements

To register your musical composition, you must send a deposit of the work to the Copyright Office. 

This deposit should be a complete copy of the work being registered. A complete copy means that 

the deposit is legible, is assembled in orderly form, is labeled with the title of the work, and includes 

everything to be covered by the registration. 

Where possible, the Copyright Office encourages you to upload the deposit in an acceptable file 

format through the online registration system. Deposits may also be mailed to the Office following 

the directions in the shipping slip generated from the “Submit Your Work” screen. Once a deposit 

has been submitted, it becomes part of the public record and cannot be returned.

How you submit your deposit depends on the format in which the musical composition is produced and whether and where it is published. The table below provides the deposit requirements of 

some common formats for musical compositions. If you are registering a work first published outside the United States, you can generally submit one complete copy of the score as first published.

Format of Musical 

Composition

Publication Status of the Work

 Unpublished Published in the United States

Print copies only Upload one complete copy Send one complete copy of the 

best edition of the printed work

Digital copies only Upload one complete copy of the digital work

Physical and digital 

sheet music

Upload one complete copy Send one complete copy of the 

best edition of the physical format

Physical recording 

only

Upload one complete phonorecord2 Upload or send one complete 

phonorecord

Digital recording 

only

Upload one complete phonorecord Upload one complete 

phonorecord

Both print copies 

and recordings

Upload one complete copy or 

phonorecord

Send one complete copy of the 

best edition of the printed work

Both digital copies 

and recordings

Upload one complete copy or 

phonorecord

Upload one complete copy of the 

best edition of the digital work

Solely in a motion 

picture

Provide a transcription of the entire musical work or a phonorecord 

with the entire musical work and reproductions of the title, credits for 

the soundtrack, and copyright notice for the soundtrack
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 5

Best Edition

A “best edition” is the edition published in the United States at any time before the date of deposit 

that the Library of Congress determines most suitable for its purposes. In the case of musical 

compositions, the Office has set forth best edition requirements only for works published in print 

formats, such as sheet music. Compositions published only as sound recordings or as part of a 

motion picture are not subject to the best edition requirement. If there are multiple printed formats, 

you must decide which format constitutes the “best edition.” Use the following criteria to identify 

the highest-quality edition. For more information, see Best Edition of Published Copyrighted Works 

for the Collections of the Library of Congress (Circular 7B). 

A. Fullness of Score

1. Vocal music

a. With orchestral accompaniment—

i. Full score and parts, if any, rather than conductor’s score and parts, if any. (In 

cases of compositions published only by rental, lease, or lending, this requirement 

is reduced to full score only.)

ii. Conductor’s score and parts, if any, rather than condensed score and parts, if any. 

(In cases of compositions published only by rental, lease, or lending, this requirement is reduced to conductor’s score only.)

b. Unaccompanied: Open score (each part on separate staff) rather than closed score (all 

parts condensed to two staves)

2. Instrumental music

a. Full score and parts, if any, rather than conductor’s score and parts, if any. (In cases of 

compositions published only by rental, lease, or lending, this requirement is reduced 

to full score only.)

b. Conductor’s score and parts, if any, rather than condensed score and parts, if any. (In 

cases of compositions published only by rental, lease, or lending, this requirement is 

reduced to conductor’s score only.)

B. Printing and Paper

1. Archival-quality rather than less-permanent paper

C. Binding and Packaging

1. Special limited editions rather than trade editions

2. Bound rather than unbound

3. If editions have different binding, apply the criteria in I.A.2–I.A.12, in Circular 7B.

4. With protective folders rather than without
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 6

Multiple Musical Compositions

As a general rule, you must submit a separate application, filing fee, and deposit for each work you 

want to register. However, the Copyright Office offers an accommodation for group registration 

of unpublished works. You can use the online registration system to register up to ten unpublished 

songs, song lyrics, or other musical works with one application and fee if you satisfy certain requirements: all works must be created by the same author or authors, all of the authors must be named as 

copyright claimants, and the authorship claim for all authors must be the same. 

note: You may register up to ten unpublished sound recordings along with the musical works 

embodied in those recordings if both works are unpublished, if the copyright claimant(s) for both 

works is the same, and if the applicant chooses “Sound Recording” at the beginning of the application.

In the following examples, Al can register unpublished musical works using one application.

1. Al wrote the music, and Sue wrote the lyrics to each of eight songs. Al must list Sue as an 

author and claimant on the application.

2. Sue wrote the music, and Al and Larry wrote the lyrics to each of four songs. Al must list 

Sue and Larry as authors and claimants on the application.

In the following examples, Al cannot register unpublished musical works using one application.

1. Al wrote the lyrics and music to three songs and co-wrote lyrics and music to four songs 

with Sue. Al would submit two applications: one for the songs he wrote by himself and 

another for the songs he co-wrote with Sue.

2. Sue wrote the music for six songs. Al wrote the lyrics to two of the songs, and Larry wrote 

the lyrics to four of the songs Sue would submit two applications: one for the four songs 

co-written with Larry and another for the two songs co-written with Al.

When completing a group registration application that covers multiple unpublished musical compositions, give titles for each of the individual musical compositions. In addition, name all the individuals who contributed authorship to the musical works included in the group. If the authors are 

members of a performing group, you may state this after each name. Naming a performing group as 

the author without naming the individual members who created the works is not sufficient. For more 

information about group registration of unpublished works, see Multiple Works (Circular 34).
Copyright Registration for Musical Compositions 7

notes

1. This circular is intended as an overview of copyright registration for musical compositions. The 

authoritative source for U.S. copyright law is the Copyright Act, codified in Title 17 of the United 

States Code. Copyright Office regulations are codified in Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations. 

Copyright Office practices and procedures are summarized in the third edition of the Compendium 

of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, cited as the Compendium. The copyright law, regulations, and the 

Compendium are available on the Copyright Office website at www.copyright.gov.

2. A “phonorecord” is a material object in which sounds are fixed and from which the sounds can be 

perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or 

device. Examples include a cassette tape, a vinyl disc, an mp3, or a compact disc. A phonorecord does 

not include sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work.
1 U.S. Copyright Office · Library of Congress · 101 Independence Avenue SE · Washington, DC 20559 · copyright.gov

CIRCULAR 50 REVISED: 08/2023 PRINT: 00/0000 — 0,000

For Further Information

By Internet

The copyright law, the Compendium, electronic registration, application forms, regulations, 

and related materials are available on the Copyright Office website at www.copyright.gov.

By Email

To send an email inquiry, click the Contact Us link on the Copyright Office website.

By Telephone

For general information, call the Copyright Public Information Office at (202) 707-3000 or 

1-877-476-0778 (toll free). Staff members are on duty from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, eastern time, 

Monday through Friday, except federal holidays. To request application forms or circulars by 

postal mail, call (202) 707-9100 or 1-877-476-0778 and leave a recorded message. 

By Regular Mail

Write to

Library of Congress

U.S. Copyright Office

Outreach and Education Section

101 Independence Avenue, SE #6304

Washington, DC 20559-6304