Copyright term (Copyright)



The Copyright term of a musical work ends after the death of the performer, a fixed period since the first publication of the recording and/or after the death of the composer.

The headquarters of the Public Domain Project are located in Küsnacht (Switzerland), therefore all articles in our MediaWiki and/or phonogram documents (flac files) are based under the Swiss copyright law.

European Union

 * 70 years after the first publication
 * After the death of the performer, but not before the expiration of the term of copyright
 * 70 years after the composer's death
 * The protection period begins from December 31st of that year, in which the event is set (e.g. death: 15 May 1941; public domain: 1 January 2012)

Switzerland

 * 50 years after the first publication
 * After the death of the performer, but not before the expiration of the term of copyright
 * 70 years after the composer's death
 * The protection period begins from December 31st of that year, in which the event is set (e.g. death: 15 May 1941; public domain: 1 January 2012)

United States

 * Corporate authorship: 120 years after creation and 95 years after the first publication date
 * Individuals: life of the author plus 70 years and 95 years after the first publication date
 * Note: Additional works made in 1923 or afterwards that were still protected by copyright in 1998 will not enter the public domain until 2019 or afterward.
 * See also: Copyright Term Extension Act