Question: Once I register my copyright with the Copyright Office, how long does it take for my certificate to be issued?
Answer: This varies quite a bit. There are three different scenarios under which your claim could be considered and each has a different average wait time between application and approval or denial. Electronic only applications are the fastest while mail-in are the slowest. Applications that are simple, straight-forward and properly prepared are processed faster than those that require correspondence.
Electronic Only
This group submits both their application and their deposit online. The deposit is the copyrighted work itself - you have to give the Copyright Office a copy of the work so it can be examined. If your work can be digitally uploaded, this is a great option as the average claim time is 2.2 months for applications that do not require correspondence and 4.4 months for applications with correspondence.
Mixed Electronic and Mail Applications
Applications that are submitted online but require a mail-in physical deposit take about 3.4 months for claims without correspondence and 7 months for claims with correspondence.
Mail-In Applications
Applications that are done entirely by mail take the longest to process. The average time for applications without correspondence is 8.3 months. Claims with correspondence take about 7.7 months to process.
Check out the current (ish) processing times published by the Copyright Office.
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