Claims to copyright in published and unpublished poetry can be registered as literary works in the Copyright Office. The back side of this form letter describes the methods available for applying for copyright registration.

Published collections of poetry and all other copyrightable elements of a unit of publication can be registered on a single application with a single fee if all the poems are owned by the same copyright claimant. Unpublished collections of two or more poems can be registered on a single application with a single fee and a deposit of one complete copy or phonorecord of the collection if all the following conditions are met:

Registration of an unpublished collection of poems extends the benefits of registration to each copyrightable selection in the collection, but only the collection title appears in the Copyright Office’s catalogs and indexes.

See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, for more information about copyright, deposit requirements, and registration procedures.

*NOTE: Copyright Office fees are subject to change. For current fees, please check the Copyright Office website, write the Copyright Office, or call (202) 707-3000.

FL-106, Revised May 2009