US COPYRIGHT OFFICE
Copyright Registration
Register the work itself — artwork, photography, written content, software, video — and unlock statutory damages.
Overview
Copyright and trademark protect different things and people mix them up constantly. A trademark protects the name and logo that identify who you are. Copyright protects the creative work itself — the illustration, the photograph, the course, the codebase, the video.
Copyright technically exists the moment a work is fixed in tangible form. What registration adds is teeth: you cannot bring an infringement suit in the United States without it, and if you register before the infringement (or within three months of publication) you become eligible for statutory damages and attorney fees rather than having to prove actual loss. That difference is usually what decides whether pursuing an infringer is economically worth doing at all.
Turnaround
Application prepared within three business days. Copyright Office processing commonly takes several months, but protection runs from your submission date.
Price
$129 + gov. fee
What is included
Everything in copyright registration
Work classification
Literary, visual arts, performing arts, sound recording or single-application — filing under the wrong category causes delay and sometimes refusal.
Authorship and ownership
Work-made-for-hire, joint authorship, contractor-created material and assignments handled correctly, which is where most self-filed applications go wrong.
Group registrations
Photographs, serials and short online works registered in permitted groups rather than one at a time, which saves substantially on government fees.
Deposit preparation
The deposit copy prepared to Copyright Office specification, including redacted deposits for software where you need to protect trade secrets in the source.
Derivative works
Pre-existing material identified and excluded properly so the registration claims exactly what it should.
Certificate handling
We track the application and send you the certificate when it issues.
How it works
What happens, in order
- 01
Tell us about the work
What it is, who created it, when it was made and whether it has been published.
- 02
We prepare the application
Classification, authorship, claim scope and deposit assembled for your review.
- 03
We file
Submitted electronically with the deposit, and the government fee paid.
- 04
Certificate issued
Copyright Office processing takes months, but your effective registration date is the date of a complete submission.
Questions
Copyright Registration FAQs
They cover different things, so often yes. Your logo may be protectable both ways — as a trademark for identifying your business, and as copyright in the artwork itself. Your website copy, product photography and course material are copyright only.
Yes. Late registration is valid and still gives you the right to sue. What you lose is eligibility for statutory damages for infringements that happened before registration, which is why registering early matters.
No. Copyright protects the expression, not the underlying idea, method or concept. Two people can write about the same subject; neither can copy the other’s actual words.
Ask about Copyright registration
We reply to every message within one business day. Or email support@trademarkmeridian.com.
Related
You may also need
Digital Piracy Takedowns
Counterfeit listings, stolen photography and copycat storefronts removed at the platform, usually in days.
From $149 per noticeLearn moreFederal Trademark Filing
Your application classified, drafted and filed with the USPTO, with goods and services written to survive examination.
From $99 + USPTO feeLearn moreBrand Monitoring & Surveillance
Registration does not police itself. We watch the register and the marketplaces and tell you the moment something similar appears.
From $99 per yearLearn moreProtect your brand before someone else does
Start with a free knock-out search. Send us the name and what you sell, and Trademark Meridian will tell you plainly whether it is worth filing.