Tell the Copyright Office: Don’t Raise Registration Fees

ASMP National · 2026-10-23T09:59:57+0100

Tell the Copyright Office: Don’t Raise Registration Fees

The proposed fee schedule would raise the cost of registering a group of photographs from $55 to $85. With ASMP, NANPA is asking every Member to send a letter to the Copyright Office. Use the tool below to help generate yours.

October 5, 2026·2 Min Read

Take Action

Send Your Letter in Three Steps

1Open the letter tool.
2Add your own experience.
3Email the letter to the Copyright Office.

Send Your Letter

Day 83 of 120

Congress received the proposed schedule July 14. The 120-day review period does not itself establish an effective date.

In July, the U.S. Copyright Office sent Congress a proposed fee schedule that would raise the price of the applications photographers use most. The Office may institute new fees after the statutory 120-day period unless Congress enacts a law disapproving the schedule. The passage of that period is not an announcement that the fees have taken effect. Read the Copyright Office’s July 14 notice.

A week in the field can mean thousands of new frames. For U.S. works, registration is generally required before filing a federal infringement suit. Timely registration also affects eligibility for statutory damages and attorney’s fees. Higher fees could put registration further out of reach for photographers.

Black-and-white photograph of the jagged peaks of Torres del Paine in Patagonia, with wind-driven clouds streaking across the summits and low cloud at their base

“Wind & Stone,” Torres del Paine, Patagonia, Chile© Michelle Valberg | Scapes, Best in Show | NANPA Showcase 2026

Chart of proposed U.S. Copyright Office fee increases. Group Registration of Photographs would rise from $55 to $85, up 55 percent. The Standard Application would rise from $65 to $85, up 31 percent. The Single Application would rise from $45 to $55, up 22 percent. Source: the fee schedule the Copyright Office submitted to Congress on July 14, 2026.

Proposed fees submitted to Congress July 14, 2026; this chart does not establish an implementation date.

Send Your Letter

Click here to use the tool to help generate your letter to the Copyright Office. It takes a few minutes.

01

Open the Letter Tool

Use the tool to generate a letter to the Register of Copyrights. Fill in your name, city, state, and creator type.
02

Add Your Own Experience

Edit the letter to say how you use registration and what higher fees would change for you. How many images do you register in a year? How many would you stop registering? The form also asks whether your name can be added to a possible future petition.
03

Generate the Letter and Email It Yourself

Select Generate Letter, then copy and paste the result into an email from your own account and send it to [email protected]. The letter only reaches the Copyright Office when you send it.

NANPA and ASMP oppose these increases. Use the current letter tool to share your experience, and pass this post to another nature photographer.

Editorial update · October 11, 2026: clarified proposal status and the meaning of the review-period clock. Follow the fee issue at ASMP or return to NANPA Advocacy.

Filed UnderAdvocacyCopyright

Proposed registration fees are higher. Tell the Copyright Office what that costs you.

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Tell the Copyright Office: Don’t Raise Registration Fees

ASMP National

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