Guides · Timing
The three-month rule.
You own the copyright the moment you make the work. What you can collect when someone takes it depends on when you registered. One section of the Copyright Act sets the clock.
What the statute says
Section 412 takes statutory damages and attorney’s fees off the table in two situations:
- Unpublished work: copying that began before the effective date of registration.
- Published work: copying that began after first publication and before the effective date of registration, unless the registration is made within three months after first publication.
The effective date is the day the Copyright Office has received all three: the application, the copy of the work and the fee (§410(d)).
Three photographers, one stolen photo
Each published the same kind of photo on March 1. It was copied onto a business website on April 10.
| Registered | Statutory damages for the April copying? |
|---|---|
| March 25 (before the copying) | Yes |
| May 20 (after the copying, inside three months of publication) | Yes — the three-month grace period covers it |
| July 15 (after the copying and after June 1) | Not in court for this copying. At the Copyright Claims Board, a lower limit applies |
Why it matters
In federal court
A timely registration lets you ask for statutory damages instead of proving your losses: from $750 to $30,000 per work, up to $150,000 for willful infringement (§504(c)). The court may also award attorney’s fees (§505). Without them, many small cases are not worth bringing.
At the Copyright Claims Board
The Board is more forgiving, but timing still sets the ceiling (§1504(e)):
- Registered on time: up to $15,000 per work.
- Registered late: up to $7,500 per work, and $15,000 for all such works in one case.
- Either way, no more than $30,000 per proceeding.
How to never miss it
Register in batches before each one’s earliest piece turns three months old. For photos, one group registration covers up to 750 published in the same calendar year for $55. How group registration works →
See every deadline in your work
Registry’s planner shows the last safe day for each photo, song or piece of art and puts the file-by dates on your calendar.
Registry is self-help software, not a law firm. This guide explains the statute; it is not legal advice about your case.