How long does a song's copyright last?

The length of a song's copyright is one of the basic clocks behind the music deals described on our entertainment law page: it decides who has to be asked for permission, and until when. Writers planning their estates, heirs managing a catalog, and artists who want to record or sample an older tune all run into it. This page covers the musical work itself, the melody and lyrics. A recording of the song is a separate work with its own term. If you want a refresher on what copyright covers in the first place, start with our post on what a copyright is.

How to work out a song's term, step by step

1. Date the song. Note the year it was written, and the year it was first published with notice or registered, if either happened before 1978.
2. List the writers. Name every writer, and note whether the song was made for hire or released anonymously or under a stage name.
3. Pick the rule. Songs created in 1978 or later follow section 302; songs copyrighted before 1978 follow section 304; older songs never published or registered follow section 303.
4. Check renewal. For a song copyrighted before 1964, look for a renewal registration made in its 28th year.
5. Find the dates of death. For a life-based term, you need the date the last surviving writer died.
6. Add the years and round up. Count forward and run the term to December 31 of the final year, then check the recording on its own clock.

How long does copyright last for songs written since 1978?

A song created on or after January 1, 1978 is protected from the moment it is created and fixed, and the term is the writer's life plus 70 years (17 U.S.C. 302(a)). Many songs have more than one writer. For a joint work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire, the 70 years start at the death of the last surviving author (302(b)). If one co-writer dies in 2030 and the other in 2050, the song is protected through December 31, 2120.

A separate clock can matter too: a writer, or the writer's heirs, can sometimes terminate a transfer the writer signed on or after January 1, 1978, in a window that generally opens 35 years after the grant (17 U.S.C. 203).

What if the song was a work for hire or released under a pseudonym?

Then the term is not tied to a lifetime. For a work made for hire, an anonymous work or a pseudonymous work, copyright lasts 95 years from the year of first publication or 120 years from the year of creation, whichever expires first (302(c)).

Writers who release under a stage name have a choice here. If the identity of the author of an anonymous or pseudonymous work is revealed in the Copyright Office's registration records, or in a statement recorded with the Office, before the term ends, the term switches to life plus 70 years (302(c)). Listing your legal name when you register a song's composition and recording is one way to do that.

Why does every term end on December 31?

Because the statute rounds up to the end of the year. Every term under sections 302 through 304 runs to the end of the calendar year in which it would otherwise expire (17 U.S.C. 305). A song written in 1985 by a writer who died in February 1990 is protected through December 31, 2060, not February 2060.

How long do songs published before 1978 last?

Older songs run on the system of the 1909 Copyright Act, carried into the current law with longer numbers. Copyright was secured when a song was published with a proper notice, or when it was registered as an unpublished work, and it lasted a first term of 28 years with a chance to renew. Renewed copyrights can now last 95 years in total: a 28-year first term plus a 67-year renewal term (17 U.S.C. 304; Copyright Office Circular 15A).

Renewal is where many older songs fell away. For works copyrighted before January 1, 1964, a renewal registration had to be made in the 28th year, and if it was not, protection ended permanently at the end of that year. For works copyrighted from 1964 through 1977, renewal is automatic and filing is optional (Copyright Office Circular 22). Under the 1909 law, publishing without the required notice also generally cost the work its copyright.

One rule matters for songs in particular. Distributing a record before 1978 did not count as publishing the song on it (17 U.S.C. 303(b)). A song that came out only on records before 1978, and was never registered or otherwise published, may therefore still count as unpublished. Works in that position came under federal law on January 1, 1978, take the post-1978 terms, and could not expire before December 31, 2002; if published by the end of 2002, they last at least through December 31, 2047 (303(a)).

Can a writer get the song back before the term ends?

Often, yes, through termination. It does not shorten the copyright; it changes who owns it for the rest of the term. Termination is not available for a work made for hire, and the writer or heirs must serve a written notice 2 to 10 years before the effective date and record a copy with the Copyright Office before that date (203(a)(4); 304(c)(4)). Notices of termination are filed on paper with the Office's cover sheet unless the filer is in its electronic pilot program, and the paper fee is $125 for one work (Copyright Office fees; 37 CFR 201.10(f)). Our page on getting your rights back 35 years after you signed them away walks through the notice, service and recording steps.

Which songs entered the public domain on January 1, 2026?

Songs first published in the United States in 1930. The longest term for a copyright secured before 1978 is 95 years, so a 1930 copyright ran through December 31, 2025. Circular 15A, revised in April 2026, states that all works published in the United States before January 1, 1931 are in the public domain. On January 1, 2027, songs published in 1931 follow, if they were renewed; unrenewed ones lost protection decades ago.

Can the song and the recording expire at different times?

Yes, and they often do. A recorded song usually contains two works: the music and lyrics being performed, and the recorded sounds themselves (Circular 22). Recordings fixed before February 15, 1972 are not under federal copyright at all (17 U.S.C. 301(c)). They have a separate federal protection with its own end dates, explained on our page about federal protection for pre-1972 sound recordings.

Take a song first published in 1930. The song is now in the U.S. public domain, but a record of it first published in 1930 stays protected through December 31, 2030: 95 years after publication plus a 5-year transition period (17 U.S.C. 1401(a)(2)). A new recording of that song may be free to make while sampling the original record still needs permission.

How can you check whether an older song is still protected?

Circular 22 suggests three approaches. Examine a copy for the notice, date and publisher. Search the Copyright Office's records, including the online catalog, which covers 1978 to the present, and the older Catalog of Copyright Entries, which lists earlier registrations and renewals. Or ask the Office to run the search for you. The Office cautions that even all three may not give a conclusive answer.

Foreign songs need extra care. Certain foreign works that lost U.S. protection for failing a formality, including failure to renew, had their copyright restored as of January 1, 1996 (Circular 15A). For habits that keep your own catalog easy to trace, see our post on smart copyright strategies for creators.

What changes the answer

• Whether it is a joint work. The last-survivor rule applies only to a work its writers prepared intending their contributions to merge into inseparable or interdependent parts of a whole (17 U.S.C. 101). Our article on music copyright ownership disputes shows how unclear co-writing setups go wrong.
• Whether it is really a work for hire. A song qualifies if an employee wrote it within the scope of the job, or if it was commissioned for a listed use, such as part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, under a written agreement both sides signed (101). Our page on who owns a music video shows that audiovisual category at work.
• Renewal and notice. For songs copyrighted before 1964, a missed renewal ended protection after 28 years (Circular 22).
• The song's country. Certain foreign songs that lost U.S. protection over a formality had copyright restored as of January 1, 1996 (Circular 15A).
• A new arrangement. A later arrangement is protected only in its new material, and it does not extend the original song's term (17 U.S.C. 103(b)).

A worked example

Common mistakes

• Counting the 70 years from the first co-writer's death instead of the last.
• Assuming every pre-1978 song lasts 95 years, when unrenewed songs from before 1964 expired after 28.
• Treating a song as free because its recording is, or the reverse.
• Calling a commissioned song a work for hire without a qualifying category and a signed writing.
• Assuming a song released only on records before 1978 was published, when 303(b) says it was not.
• Letting a termination window close because no one counted the years from the grant.

What to do this week

1. List your songs with the years each was written, published and registered.
2. Search the renewal records for anything copyrighted before 1964.
3. Pull every publishing or administration deal signed since 1978 and work out its termination window, using our music publishing page for how those deals are structured.
4. For a sample or a reissue, check the recording's own date, and follow our guide to clearing a music sample if either part is still protected.
5. Register your newer songs, budgeting with our page on copyright registration cost and timing.

Frequently asked questions

What if you cannot find out when a writer died?

Anyone with an interest in a copyright may record a statement of a writer's date of death with the Copyright Office (17 U.S.C. 302(d)). After 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, a certified report showing nothing to indicate the writer is living or died less than 70 years before gives you a presumption that the writer has been dead at least 70 years, and good faith reliance on it is a complete defense (302(e)).

Do you need a license to record a song in the public domain?

Not for the song itself. A later arrangement you copy may still be protected in its new material, and any older recording you use needs its own check. Our page on cover song licenses explains the license for songs that are still protected.

Who owns a song's copyright after the writer dies?

A copyright can pass by will or under the state laws of intestate succession, like other personal property (17 U.S.C. 201(d)(1)). Termination rights pass separately, under the family shares set by 203(a)(2). Families managing a catalog can start with our Atlanta IP and entertainment lawyer page.

Does registering a song make its copyright last longer?

No. The term comes from sections 302 to 305, not from registration. Registration matters for enforcement and, for a writer using a stage name, can switch the term to life plus 70 years.

Can you use old songs freely once they expire?

Yes for the song, which anyone may then perform, record or adapt. Our post on ways to legally use copyrighted works covers the public domain alongside other options.

Zala IP Law advises songwriters, artists and publishers on copyright registration, licensing and catalog questions. If you need to know whether an older song is still protected, or want to plan for your own catalog, request a consultation or call 404-313-1701.