The U.S. Copyright Office is raising service fees starting November 11, following a proposed schedule submitted to Congress in July. The statutory 120-day congressional review period expires on November 11, which means automatic price increases will be implemented across nearly all categories. The move arrives despite efforts across the music industry to deter the Copyright Office from enacting such steep increases.
Administrative costs for all U.S. copyright services will increase by a “disastrous” 43%, while core services for music rightsholders, independent record labels, publishers, and catalog buyers will see fee increases of between 31% and 126%.
Notably for independent labels and artists using the Group Registration for Works on an Album of Sound Recordings (GRAM), filing an album of up to 20 tracks along with artwork and liner notes increases from $65 to $130. Termination rights, which enable artists to reclaim their rights transferred to publishers or labels after 35 years, will become pricier to exercise, increasing from $125 to $275.
“Registration is the gateway to enforcement, and if we price independent creators out of that gateway, we are dismantling the very infrastructure that makes copyright meaningful for the people who need it most,” said Ian Harrison, American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) CEO, urging the Copyright Office to reconsider the proposal back in May.
“Independent artists and the labels and managers who support them have always had to do more with less,” added Lisa Hresko, A2IM COO. “What they cannot do is absorb a 43% fee increase on top of shrinking royalty rates and no leverage to demand more. The Copyright Office should be expanding access to the registration system, not making it more expensive.”
To avoid the November 11 price increase, rights owners and creators can register recordings, lyrics, and compositions now through the official U.S. Copyright Office Registration Portal. Creators are advised to audit their release pipeline and catalog backlog and to register any unfiled singles, EPs, or albums within the next 30 days to lock in current rates. Any unreleased catalog or demos should be registered now using the Group Registration for Unpublished Works before the price hike.
