For photographers, illustrators and musicians
Register what you post. Collect when it’s taken.
Registry stacks your work into $55 group registrations before the three-month window closes, then builds your Copyright Claims Board case if someone uses it without paying. Flat fees. We never take a share of what you recover.
Your photos never leave your device. You file with the Copyright Office yourself; Registry prepares every step.
January – February
- Photos
- 214
- Form
- Group of published photographs
- Office fee
- $55 (vs $9,630 one at a time)
- File by
Why on time matters
The date you register sets what you can recover.
Most the Copyright Claims Board can award per work registered on time, versus $7,500 per work (and $15,000 in total) for works registered late.
17 U.S.C. §1504(e)(1)Register within three months of first publication and statutory damages still cover copying that began after publication but before you filed.
17 U.S.C. §412Of the 1,920 claims filed at the Board, 1,059 were dismissed after compliance review or for missing proof of service. Paperwork, not the merits.
CCB Key Statistics, data through March 2026The planner
Three folders on your desk.
Drop in your work
Drag a folder of photos or add songs and artwork by hand. Registry reads capture dates on your device and asks when each piece went public.
It stacks the batches
Up to 750 published photos from the same year go in one $55 group, filed before the first one’s three-month deadline. Each batch gets a file-by date and a calendar alarm.
You file in ten minutes
Download the batch’s title list and follow the screen-by-screen guide in the Copyright Office’s eCO system. Log the case number and your proof of date is kept.
The Claim Kit
A case file the Board won’t send back.
The Copyright Claims Board hears claims up to $30,000 without a lawyer, for $100 in Board fees. Two-thirds of claimants already file on their own. The Claim Kit walks you through it so your claim passes compliance review.
- Eligibility check: respondent in the U.S., registration filed, inside three years, a claim the Board hears.
- Damages limits for each work, timely or late, standard or smaller claim.
- Evidence log and a numbered statement of facts written from your answers.
- Compliance pre-check against the reasons claims get returned.
- Service plan, the 60-day opt-out window and every deadline on your calendar.
Work 2 needs a registration number or the case number of a pending application.
Add it under Works, or file the application in the planner first.
Give a complete U.S. street address for the respondent; the Board needs it for service.
Statutory damages: up to $15,000 for “Harbor at dusk” (registered on time) and $7,500 for “Pier 3” (registered late).
Pricing
Flat fees. No percentage. Ever.
Government fees go straight to the government: $55 per group of up to 750 photos at the Copyright Office, and $40 + $60 at the Copyright Claims Board.
- Ledger for up to 25 works
- Three-month deadline for every work
- Claim eligibility and damages check
- Lawyer-help routing
- Unlimited works
- Batch planner for photo groups
- Title lists and the eCO filing guide
- Calendar alarms before each deadline
- Filing log with your case numbers
- Cancel any time
- Full case file for one claim
- Statement of facts builder
- Compliance pre-check
- Service plan and deadline calendar
- Printable claim packet
Questions
Before you file.
Is Registry a law firm?
No. Registry is self-help software. It organizes your facts, applies the published rules and prepares your paperwork; you file it yourself. Only attorneys and supervised law students may represent parties before the Copyright Claims Board (17 U.S.C. §1506(d)). If your case needs one, the lawyer help page shows where to find one.
Do you upload my photos?
No. Files are read in your browser to get capture dates and a small thumbnail. The ledger, your case files and evidence stay in this browser. Download a backup any time and restore it on another device.
Can you file the registration for me?
You file in the Copyright Office’s eCO system, which takes about ten minutes per batch with Registry’s title list and step-by-step guide. You pay the Office’s fee directly.
What happens if the infringer opts out?
Participation at the Board is voluntary: a respondent has 60 days after service to opt out, and the claim is dismissed without prejudice. You can still go to court. Registration on time is what keeps statutory damages and attorney’s fees available there.
Why no contingency fee?
Because the money is yours. Board awards are small — the average reported award is about $3,600 — and a share of that is a lot to give up for paperwork. You pay a flat fee for the tools and keep every dollar the Board awards.
How do I cancel?
Open the planner, choose Membership, and manage or cancel it on Stripe’s billing page. Your ledger stays in your browser either way.