The Commonwealth Government owns copyright in most of the records held by the National Archives as they are official records produced by Commonwealth government agencies. The Commonwealth is not the copyright owner for records in the Archives collection that were not made by the government, for example letters written by private individuals to the government, or documents provided by other governments. Although such records are the property of the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth cannot give permission to reproduce them as it is not the copyright owner.
The National Archives makes copies of records in its custody available to researchers for the purposes of their research. Any copies of records you receive are provided on the understanding that you use them for research or study or in order to seek permission to publish. In general, you may only proceed to publish or otherwise reproduce a copy of a document received from the Archives if:
The Copyright Act permits some copying without the express permission of the copyright owner. If a copyright use can be characterised as 'fair dealing', the Copyright Act provides that it does not infringe copyright. Fair dealing allows you to, for example, reproduce a reasonable portion of a work for research or study, criticism or review, news reporting or professional legal advice.
If you wish to reproduce a record held in the collection of the National Archives, it is your responsibility to determine:
Use the guidance provided below to determine if a work is still in copyright.
The National Archives' collection includes examples of all categories of records referred to below. Much of the material in the collection (eg the files produced by Commonwealth public servants in the course of their employment) comes under the category of 'unpublished literary works'. Copyright in this material remains indefinitely, and you will need to seek permission for any use not covered by fair dealing.
Where the Crown owns copyright | |
|---|---|
| Published literary, dramatic or musical works (includes published official records) | 50 years after the end of the year in which the work is first published |
| Unpublished literary, dramatic, musical works | Copyright subsists indefinitely |
| Artistic works | 50 years from the end of the year when made |
| Photographs taken before 1 May 1969 | 50 years from the end of the year when made |
| Photographs taken after 1 May 1969 | 50 years from end of year of first publication |
Where the Crown does not own copyright | |
| Literary, dramatic or musical works published before the author's death | 70 years after the end of the year in which the author dies |
| Literary, dramatic or musical works not published or performed during the author's lifetime | 70 years after the end of the year in which first published or performed |
| Unpublished literary, dramatic or musical works | Copyright subsists indefinitely |
| Artistic works | 70 years after the end of the year of artist's death |
| Photographs first published anonymously or under a pseudonym | 70 years from the end of the year in which the photograph was first published |
| Photographs | 70 years from the end of year when first published |
| Television and sound broadcasts | 50 years from the making of the broadcast |
From 1 January 2005 the period of protection for material in which copyright subsisted on that date was extended, except for material in which the Crown holds copyright. The new periods of protection are shown in the table above. The extended protection does not revive copyright in material in which copyright had already expired before 1 January 2005.
Approach the National Archives for advice in the first instance if you need permission to publish copies of any records from our collection (email: copyright@naa.gov.au). We can advise you whether or not copyright in the document is held by the Commonwealth.
If the Commonwealth does not own the copyright, you will need to trace and seek the permission of the copyright owner. If the Commonwealth owns copyright in the document, and the document has not been published before, you will need the permission of the Commonwealth government agency that produced the document, or, if the original agency no longer exists, the agency which currently carries out that function.
If the document has already been published by the Commonwealth, you will need to seek permission from:
Commonwealth Copyright Administration
Copyright Law Branch, Attorney-General's Department
Robert Garran Offices
National Circuit
Barton ACT 2600Website: www.ag.gov.au/cca
An online copyright request form is available from the Administration's website.
This fact sheet provides general information and should not be relied upon as a substitute for legal advice.
Comments or other feedback can be sent to archives@naa.gov.au
updated February 2009