eCo Copyright Registration

Why Register?

There’s no excuse not to register your intellectual property for a copyright: it’s cheap ($45, as of February 2026, for one work by a single author, same claimant, not for hire – current fees here, it’s quick to apply (although it does take several months for Copyright Office processing, and the benefits are significant. One big benefit is that you become entitled to your legal fees if you have to sue someone for infringing your registered copyright. That makes it much easier to find a lawyer to take your infringement case, and it adds lots of leverage to your claim. Another is that you become entitled to “statutory” damages, meaning you’re not required to prove your lost sales/licenses.

Online “eCO” Registration Step By Step

The fastest and cheapest registration method for a basic claim for a single work (literary, visual arts, performing arts, including motion pictures and sound recordings) is Online Registration (eCO). eCO benefits include a lower filing fee, the fastest processing time, online status tracking, secure payment by credit or debit card, electronic check (or eCO deposit account), and the ability to upload certain deposit categories directly into eCO as electronic files. To prepare your computer:

1. Disable your browser’s pop-up blocker
2. Disable any 3rd-party toolbars (e.g., Google, Yahoo)
3. Set your security and privacy settings to MEDIUM

eCO is a 3-step process:

1. Application
2. Fee payment
3. Deposit submission

Note that you’ll need to make a payment before you can complete the deposit, either by electronic upload or by mailing hard copies.

Accessing eCO

• Navigate to www.copyright.gov and click on Register – Register a Copyright. This takes you to the Registration Portal. On this page, click to log in to the Electronic Copyright Office (eCO) Registration System.
• Next, log in. If you’re a new user, register.
• Under Copyright Services, click on “Register a New Claim.”
• Then click on “Start Registration.”
• Select “Type of Work.” Click “Next” to advance.
• From the drop-down menu, add the title type and the name of the work. Click “Save” then “Next.”
• Indicate published status. Continue on through the menu.
• Once you’ve completed the application and made payment, you should see “Payment Successful” displayed. Hit “continue” at the top right of the screen.

Deposit Copies

The last part of the process is sending deposit copies of the work you’re registering. If you intend to mail hard copies, click on the “Create Shipping Slip” button at the bottom of the page. After it appears, click the blue Shipping Slip link to view and print a shipping slip to attach to your work(s). Make sure you attach a slipping slip directly to each work or set of works you submit. To avoid damage to your intellectual property, such as cassettes, CDs, DVDs, photographs, etc., and to prevent complications caused by Capitol Hill security measures, ship your deposit copies in boxes rather than envelopes. If you intend to upload a copy of your work(s) electronically, click the green “Select files to upload” button. Then browse to select the correct file(s) you want to upload and submit them by clicking the blue “Start Upload” button. After uploading is complete, click the green “Complete your submission” button to finish the process. If you’re uploading large files, first compress them by “zipping” them. The maximum file size is 500 MB.

• Here’s a list of acceptable file types for upload.
• Here’s a demo of the eCO process.