Guides

Music publishing, country by country

Copyright may be automatic under Berne, but collecting is not: every territory has its own answer to who claims which rights, whether a registry matters, and what a publisher must set up before " royalties flow. Three patterns repeat worldwide:

• Open direct membership — the US PROs, PRS, GEMA, SACEM, SAMRO and most of Europe admit foreign publishers for modest fees;
• Local presence required — Japan's JASRAC expects a Japanese entity, bank account and language capability; APRA wants a bona fide Australasian business; Brazil's associations expect Brazilian administration;
• No direct path at all — KOMCA, MCSC and others take foreign repertoire only via reciprocal agreements or a local sub-publisher.

Each country page covers the rights map, the national registration system, and the realistic setup routes.

North America

• United States
• Canada

Latin America

• Mexico
• Brazil
• Argentina

Europe

• United Kingdom
• Ireland
• France
• Germany
• Austria
• Switzerland
• Netherlands
• Belgium
• Spain
• Italy
• Sweden
• Denmark
• Norway
• Finland

Africa & Middle East

• Israel
• South Africa

Asia

• Japan
• South Korea
• China
• Hong Kong
• India

Oceania

• Australia and New Zealand

Rules, fees, and society requirements change, and none of this is legal advice — confirm current requirements with the society or local counsel before committing. See also which societies accept CWR.

Check a CWR file free — errors and warnings tied to the exact line, nothing stored: cwrcheck.com.