This is a Commons tags translation table of the chart created by Peter B. Hirtle of Cornell University, now uploaded as this PDF document. It is a best effort to guide people in determining when media will enter the public domain in the United States.
Beware:
This table is for image and text works. See also the separate sections for Sound recordings and Architectural works.
| Never published, Never registered works | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Type of work | Copyright Term | What was in the public domain in the US as of 1 January 2024 | Commons copyright tag |
| Unpublished works |
Known author with a known date of death: 70 years after the death of author. |
Works from author who died before 1954 |
|
| Unpublished anonymous and pseudonymous works, and works made for hire (corporate authorship) Unpublished works when the death date of the author is not known |
120 years from creation |
Created before 1904 |
|
| Works Registered or First Published in the U.S. | |||
| Date of Publication | Conditions | Copyright Term | Commons copyright tag |
| Before 1929 | None | None. In the public domain due to copyright expiration | {{PD-US-expired}} |
| 1929 through 1977 | Published without a copyright notice | None. In the public domain due to failure to comply with required formalities | {{PD-US-no notice}} |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published without notice, and without subsequent registration within 5 years | None. In the public domain due to failure to comply with required formalities | {{PD-US-1978-89}} |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published without notice, but with subsequent registration within 5 years |
|
|
| 1929 through 1963 | Published with notice but copyright was not renewed | None. In the public domain due to copyright expiration | {{PD-US-not renewed}} |
| 1929 through 1963 | Published with notice and the copyright was renewed | 95 years after publication date | n/a (earliest 2025) |
| 1964 through 1977 | Published with notice | 95 years after publication date | n/a (earliest 2060) |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Created after 1977 and published with notice |
|
|
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Created before 1978 and first published with notice in the specified period | The greater of the term specified in the previous entry or 31 December 2047 |
|
| 1 March 1989 through 2002 | Created after 1977 |
|
|
| 1 March 1989 through 2002 | Created before 1978 and first published in this period | The greater of the term specified in the previous entry or 31 December 2047 |
|
| 2003 or later | None |
|
|
| Anytime | Works prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Government as part of that person's official duties. | None. In the public domain in the United States (17 U.S.C. § 105) |
One of the copyright templates in Category:PD-USGov license tags |
|
Anytime |
Works released into the public domain by the copyright holder. |
None. |
|
| Works First Published Outside the U.S. by citizens of foreign nations[2] or U.S. Citizens Living Abroad. On Commons these cases also need to be free according to copyright terms in the country of publication. These terms are not part of this table. | |||
| Date of Publication | Conditions | Copyright Term | Commons copyright tag |
| Before 1929 | None | In the public domain (But see first special case below) | {{PD-US-expired}} |
| Works Published Abroad Before 1978 | |||
| 1929 through 1977 | Published without compliance with US formalities, and in the public domain in its source country as of URAA date[3] | In the public domain | {{PD-1996}} |
| 1929 through 1977 | Published in compliance with all US formalities (notice, and renewal for pre-1964 works) | 95 years after publication date | (earliest 2025) |
| 1929 through 1977 | Solely published abroad, without compliance with US formalities or republication in the US, and not in the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3] | 95 years after publication date | (earliest 2025) |
| 1929 through 1977 | Published in the US less than 30 days after publication abroad | Use the US publication chart to determine duration | |
| 1929 through 1977 | Published in the US more than 30 days after publication abroad, without compliance with US formalities, and not in the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3] | 95 years after publication date | (earliest 2025) |
| Works Published Abroad After 1 January 1978 | |||
| 1 January 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published without copyright notice, and in the public domain in its source country as of URAA date[3] | In the public domain | {{PD-1996}} |
| 1 January 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published with copyright notice | Use the US publication chart to determine duration | |
| 1 March 1989 or later | Published without copyright notice, and in the public domain in its source country as of URAA date[3] | Use the US publication chart to determine duration | |
| 1 January 1978 or later | Published either with or without copyright notice, and not in the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3] | Use the US publication chart to determine duration | |
| Special Cases | |||
| 1 July 1909 through 1978 | In Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands ONLY. Published in a language other than English, and without subsequent republication with a copyright notice | Treat as an unpublished work until such date as first US-compliant publication occurred | |
| Anytime | Created by a resident of Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Marshall Islands, or Timor-Leste and published in one of these countries. Works from Palau, Somalia or South Sudan may also be included | Not protected by US copyright law until they become party to bilateral or international copyright agreements | {{Copyright notes}} |
| Anytime | Works whose copyright was once owned or administered by the Alien Property Custodian, and whose copyright, if restored, would as of the URAA date[3], be owned by a government | Not protected by US copyright law | {{PD-US-alien property}} |
| Anytime | If published in one of the following countries, the URAA date given above is replaced by the date of the country's membership in the Berne Convention or the World Trade Organization, whichever is earlier:
Afghanistan, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Cook Islands, Comoros, Equatorial Guinea, Grenada, Haiti, Jersey, Jordan, Kiribati, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Malaysia, Micronesia, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nauru, Nepal, Niue, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Samoa, San Marino, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Yemen |
... | ... |
The following information applies only to the sound recording itself, and not to any copyrights in underlying compositions or texts.
| Date of Fixation/Publication | Conditions | What was in the public domain in the U.S. as of 1 January 2024 | Commons copyright tag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unpublished Sound Recordings, Domestic and Foreign | |||
| Prior to 15 Feb. 1972 | Indeterminate | Subject to state common law protection. Enters the public domain on 15 Feb. 2067 | (latest 15 Feb. 2067) |
| 15 Feb. 1972 or later | Life of the author + 70 years. For anonymous and corporate works,[1] 120 years from the date of fixation | Nothing. The soonest anything enters the public domain is 15 Feb. 2067 | (earliest 15 Feb. 2067) |
| Sound Recordings Published in the United States | |||
| Prior to 1924 | None | In the public domain | {{PD-US-record-expired}} |
| 1924 to 1946 | None | 100 years from publication | (earliest 2025) |
| 1947 to 1956 | None | 110 years from publication | (earliest 2058) |
| 1957 to 14 Feb. 1972 | None | Enters the public domain on 15 Feb. 2067 | (earliest 15 Feb. 2067) |
| 15 Feb. 1972 through 1977 | Published without notice (i.e., year of publication, and name of copyright owner) | In the public domain | {{PD-US-no notice}} |
| 15 Feb. 1972 through 1977 | Published with notice | 95 years from publication. 2068 at the earliest | (earliest 2068) |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published without notice, and without subsequent registration | In the public domain | {{PD-US-1978-89}} |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Published with notice | 70 years after death of author, or if work of corporate authorship, the shorter of 95 years from publication, or 120 years from creation. 2049 at the earliest | |
| 1 March 1989 or later | None |
2049 at the earliest |
(earliest 2049), after 2049
|
| Anytime | Sound recordings fixed by an officer or employee of the United States Government as part of that person's official duties. | None. In the public domain in the United States (17 U.S.C. § 105) |
One of the copyright templates in Category:PD-USGov license tags |
|
Anytime |
Works released into the public domain by the copyright holder. |
None. |
|
| Sound Recordings Published Outside the United States | |||
| Prior to 1924 | None | In the public domain | {{PD-US-record-expired}} |
| 1924 to 1946 | None | 100 years from publication | (earliest 2025) |
| 1947 to 1956 | None | 110 years from publication | (earliest 2058) |
| 1957 to 14 Feb. 1972 | None | Enters the public domain on 15 Feb. 2067 | (earliest 15 Feb. 2067) |
| 15 Feb. 1972 through 28 February 1989 | In the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3] or there was US publication within 30 days of the foreign publication (but see special cases) | Subject to state common law protection. Enters the public domain on 15 Feb. 2067 | (latest 15 Feb. 2067) |
| 15 Feb. 1972 through 1977 | Not in the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3]. At least one author of the work was not a US citizen or was living abroad, and there was no US publication within 30 days of the foreign publication (but see special cases) | 95 years from date of publication. 2068 at the earliest | n/a (earliest 2068) |
| 1978 through 28 February 1989 | Not in the public domain in its home country as of URAA date[3]. At least one author of the work was not a US citizen or was living abroad, and there was no US publication within 30 days of the foreign publication (but see special cases) |
|
|
| 1 March 1989 or later | None |
|
|
| Special Cases | |||
| Fixed at any time | Created by a resident of Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Marshall Islands, or Timor-Leste and published in one of these countries. Works from Palau, Somalia or South Sudan may also be included | Not protected by US copyright law because they are not party to international copyright agreements | n/a, n/a, {{PD-Iran}}, {{PD-Iraq}} |
| Fixed prior to 1996 | Works whose copyright was once owned or administered by the Alien Property Custodian, and whose copyright, if restored, would as of URAA date[3] be owned by a government | Not protected by US copyright law | {{PD-US-alien property}} |
| Fixed at any time | If fixed or solely published in one of the following countries, the URAA date given above is replaced by the date of the country's membership in the Berne Convention or the World Trade Organization, whichever is earlier:
Afghanistan, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Cook Islands, Comoros, Equatorial Guinea, Grenada, Haiti, Jersey, Jordan, Kiribati, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Malaysia, Micronesia, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nauru, Nepal, Niue, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Samoa, San Marino, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Yemen |
... | ... |
Architectural plans and drawings may also be protected as textual/graphics works
| Date of Design | Date of Construction | Copyright Status | Commons copyright tag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prior to 1 Dec. 1990 | Not constructed by 31 Dec. 2002 | Protected only as plans or drawings | {{PD-US-architecture}} |
| Prior to 1 Dec. 1990 | Constructed by 1 Dec. 1990 | Protected only as plans or drawings | {{PD-US-architecture}} |
| Prior to 1 Dec. 1990 | Constructed between 30 Nov. 1990 and 31 Dec. 2002 | Building is protected for 70 years after death of author, or if work of corporate authorship, the shorter of 95 years from publication, or 120 years from creation | {{FoP-US}} |
| From 1 Dec. 1990 | Immaterial | Building is protected for 70 years after death of author, or if work of corporate authorship, the shorter of 95 years from publication, or 120 years from creation | {{FoP-US}} |
