A brief summary of copyright law in the UK
The Statute of Anne (1710) was the first law on copyright in the UK. In recent times, its continued influence on regulations in the early 21st century have been addressed.

The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 is the main statute that governs copyright law in the UK. 

On 1 June 2014, this was amended by the following regulations
Guidance on further changes implemented on 1 October 2014 has been created by the Intellectual Property Office and can be found at: 
These include a new exception to copyright for parody caricature, pastiche and improvements to rules on how you can use quotations was implemented. This allows the limited use of copyright material without the permission of the copyright holder, but only to the extent that the use is fair and proportionate.

The changes allow much more freedom in copyright law for third parties to use copyright works for a variety of economically and/or socially valuable purposes, without the need to seek permission from copyright owners. At the same time, the changes are also supposed to protect the interests of copyright owners.

An unofficial consolidation of the Act and recent changes can be found in an illustrative revised draft of the law deposited in the libraries of the Houses of Parliament. See  illustrative draft of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (PDF, 2.94MB, 319 pages)

Copyright exemptions

Official Guidance

Exemptions to copyright protection relate to the following categories
  1. Non-commercial research and private study
  2. Text and data mining for non-commercial research
  3. Criticism, review and reporting current events
  4. Teaching
  5. Helping disabled people
  6. Time-shifting
  7. Personal copying for private use
  8. Parody, caricature and pastiche
  9. Certain permitted uses of orphan works
  10. Sufficient acknowledgment
  11. Fair dealing
  12. Technological protection measures

This is a useful official publication 
Back to COPYRIGHT menu

Official website: UK Intellectual Property Office

Copyright advice from the UK government via the UK Intellectual Property Office

Scope of copyright
  • What is Intellectual Property?  Intellectual property (IP) can allow you to own things you create in a similar way to owning physical property. You can control the use of your IP, and use it to gain reward.
  • Copyright - Copyright applies to Art 
  • Copyright applies to artistic works including photographs - Copyright applies to original artistic works such as paintings, drawings, engravings, sculptures, photographs, diagrams, maps, works of architecture and works of artistic craftsmanship.
  • Intellectual Property Office - Copyright applies to... - Copyright applies to many things (each of these has a link which explains more on the website)Original works: Most works must be original to have copyright protection.Websites and the internet: The same rules apply on the internet as with other media

Copyright registers and registration
  • Intellectual Property Office - Automatic right - There is no official registration system for copyright in the United Kingdom (UK) and most other parts of the world. There are no forms to fill in and no fees to pay to get copyright protection.So long as you have created and fixed, for example in wr
  • Intellectual Property Office - Copyright registers - There is no official copyright register because copyright is automatic. There are certain steps you can take to protect your rights, but you do not have to register anywhere.

How long copyright lasts
  • How long copyright lasts - The length of time a copyright work is protected will depend upon the category or type of work and is usually calculated from the death of the creator.
  • How long copyright lasts - Frequently asked questions - How long does copyright last?* Is there any protection after copyright expires?* What is extended and revived copyright?* How long does copyright last in unpublished works such as manuscripts?

Ownership and Orphan works
  • Intellectual Property Office - Ownership of copyright works - Ownership of copyright works - each of these is explained in more detail on the websiteCreator and first owner: The creator of an original copyright work is usually the first owner.Works created for an employer: The same rule does not apply for works

Intellectual Property Office: RSS Feed

Copyright in Plain English
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WARNING - NONE of the non-official sites which provide basic guidance on copyright appear to have been updated for the recent changes

  • Artists Resale Right
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The Artist’s Resale Right (ARR) entitles creators (‘authors’) of original works of art (including paintings, engravings, sculpture and ceramics) to a royalty each time one of their works is resold through an auction house or art market professional. The right to this royalty lasts for the same period as copyright, so since January 2012 ARR has applied to qualifying works by artists who have been dead for less than 70 years.

Official Guidance

Copyright Societies
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Two organisations were set up in the UK in 2006 to help administer the royalties associated with the recently introduced Artists' Resale Right. In general I have to say I'm much more impressed by the DACs website when compared to the ACS website - but I can't comment on the services they offer.

The Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS) 


DACS is a not-for-profit visual arts rights management organisation. DACS campaigns for the rights of visual artists and pays them royalties that help sustain their practice and livelihood.
The Artists Collecting Society (ACS)


The Artists' Collecting Society (ACS) was set up in 2006 as a not-for-profit company dedicated to the administration of the Artist's Resale Right. It's a one-stop-shop for rights licensing and copyright and ARR management.

Copyright: Other relevant organisations
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  • The British Copyright Council was founded in 1965 to protect and promote the principles of copyright in the UK. It is primarily a consultative body and liaison committee and does not operate a copyright advice service.
  • EUR-Lex provides direct free access to European Union law. eg EUR-Lex - 32001L0029 - EN - Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society
  • Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) : Copyright Information CLA provides a basic introduction to UK copyright