Commons:Copyright rules by territory/Philippines

	Copyright rules: the Philippines Shortcut: COM:Philippines
Durations
Standard	Life + 50 years
Photograph	Create/publish + 50 years
Anonymous	Create/publish + 50 years
Audiovisual	Create/publish + 50 years
Posthumous	Life + 50 years
Government	Free
Applied art	Create + 25 years
Other
Freedom of panorama	No
Terms run to year end	Yes
Common licence tags	{{PD-Philippines}}; {{PD-PhilippinesGov}}
ISO 3166-1 alpha-3	PHL
Treaties
Berne convention	1 August 1951
Univ. Copyright Convention	19 November 1955
WTO member	1 January 1995
URAA restoration date‌*	1 January 1996
WIPO treaty	4 October 2002
	*‌A work is usually protected in the US if it is a type of work copyrightable in the US, published after 31 December 1928 and protected in the country of origin on the URAA date.
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This page provides an overview of copyright rules of the Philippines relevant to uploading works into Wikimedia Commons. Note that any work originating in the Philippines must be in the public domain, or available under a free license, in both the Philippines and the United States before it can be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. If there is any doubt about the copyright status of a work from the Philippines, refer to the relevant laws for clarification.

Background

The Philippines archipelago was colonized by Spain from the 16th century. The country declared independence after the Spanish American War of 1898. Spain had ceded the Philippines to the United States, which recolonized the country in 1899–1902. The Philippines regained independence on 4 July 1946.

The Philippines has been a member of the Berne Convention since 1 August 1951, the Universal Copyright Convention since 19 November 1955, the World Trade Organization since 1 January 1995 and the WIPO Copyright Treaty since 4 October 2002.^[1]

Governing laws

As of 2018 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the United Nations, listed the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines (Republic Act No. 8293) (2015 Edition) as the main IP law enacted by the legislature of the Philippines.^[1] WIPO holds the text of this law in their WIPO Lex database.^[2]

The IP Code of the Philippines, which took effect on January 1, 1998, repeals the Presidential Decree No. 49 (Decree on the Protection of Intellectual Property)^[3] that took effect on November 14, 1972^[4] and repealed Act No. 3134 (Copyright Law of the Philippine Islands) of 1924.^[5] The repealing clauses are found at Section 240 for the present law and Section 64 for the 1972 law, therefore both laws can be considered as non-retroactive and works that fell into public domain before the date of effectivity of the laws remained in public domain. However, works with subsisting copyright protection continue to enjoy copyright protection, under the provisions of the newer law.^{[49/1972 Section 63]}^{[8293/2015 Section 240.3.]}

Applicability

Under Republic Act No. 8293, the following literary and artistic works are given copyright protection from the moment of creation.^{[8293/2015 Chapter II Section 172.1]}

Books, pamphlets, articles and other writings.
Periodicals and newspapers.
Lectures, sermons, addresses, dissertations prepared for oral delivery, whether or not reduced in writing or other material form.
Letters.
Dramatic or dramatico-musical compositions; choreographic works or entertainment in dumb shows.
Musical compositions, with or without words.
Works of drawing, painting, architecture, sculpture, engraving, lithography or other works of art; models or designs for works of art.
Original ornamental designs or models for articles of manufacture, whether or not registrable as an industrial design, and other works of applied art.
Illustrations, maps, plans, sketches, charts and three-dimensional works relative to geography, topography, architecture or science.
Drawings or plastic works of a scientific or technical character.
Photographic works including works produced by a process analogous to photography; lantern slides.
Audiovisual works and cinematographic works and works produced by a process analogous to cinematography or any process for making audio-visual recordings.
Pictorial illustrations and advertisements.
Computer programs.
Other literary, scholarly, scientific and artistic works.

These are protected by copyright "by the sole fact of their creation, irrespective of their mode or form of expression, as well as of their content, quality and purpose."^{[8293/2015 Chapter II Section 172.2]}

General rules

According to the IP Code of the Philippines (Act No. 8293) (2015 Edition),

Literary and artistic works works are protected during the life of the author and for 50 years after his death. This rule also applies to posthumous works.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.1]}
Works of joint authorship are protected during the life of the last surviving author and for 50 years after his death.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.2]}
Anonymous or pseudonymous works where the author's identity is not revealed are protected for 50 years from the date on which the work was first lawfully published, or if the work is not published for 50 years from the making of the work.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.3]}
Works of applied art are protected for 25 years from the date of making.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.4]}
Photographic works are protected for 50 years from publication of the work and, if unpublished, for 50 years from the making.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.5]}
Audio-visual works including those produced by process analogous to photography or any process for making audio-visual recordings, the term is 50 years from date of publication and, if unpublished, from the date of making.^{[8293/2015 Section 213.6]}
The terms of protection provided in section 213 are always be deemed to begin on the first day of January of the year following the event which gave rise to them.^{[8293/2015 Section 214]}
Sound or Image and Sound recordings are protected for 50 years from the end of the year in which the recording took place.^{[8293/2015 Section 215.1]}
Broadcasts are protected for 20 years from the date the broadcast took place.^{[8293/2015 Section 215.2]}

For works created before 1998

Presidential Decree No. 49 (1972) provided the same terms of protection in most cases (50 years).^{[49/1972 Sections 21–25]}
Act No. 3134 (1924) did not grant automatic copyright protection from the moment of creation; instead copyright began to exist when a work was registered.^{[3134/1924 Section 11]} Copyright duration was 30 years from registration, and a renewal was needed to further protect the work, for another 30 years.^{[3134/1924 Section 18]}

According to Section 3.1 of the Memorandum Circular No. 021-2023, released by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines in 2023 and governing the rules about public domain works in the Philippines, works meeting the following criteria are automatically in public domain:^[4]

"Works created prior to 14 November 1972 that were not registered or the registrations of which were not renewed prior to such date, whether the author is alive or deceased." (Section 3.1(a))
"Works created prior to 14 November 1972 that were registered or the registrations of which were renewed: Provided, that the author has died and more than 50 years has elapsed from said death." (Section 3.1(b))
"Irrespective of Sections 3.1a. and 3.1b. above, any work belonging to the category of work below which has been created or published for more than 30 years as of 1 January 1998: (i) Periodicals and newspapers; (ii) Works of applied art, and (iii) Cinematographic or photographic works as well as those produced by any process analogous to cinematography or any process for making audio-visual recordings."

Works that may be "copyrighted" using the current 50 years p.m.a. may actually be public domain due to non-retroactivity of the newer law. Example: Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan, authored by Guillermo Tolentino (died 1976) but unveiled in 1933, during the regime of Act No. 3134.

Nevertheless, as Wikimedia Commons licensing policy requires hosted files to be free both in the source country and in the United States, several public domain works in the Philippines cannot be hosted on the media repository site due to still-existing U.S. copyrights brought by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (see Commons:URAA-restored copyrights). Any work from the Philippines that were still under Philippine copyright as of 1 January 1996 (the URAA date of effectivity for works from the Philippines) should not be uploaded on Wikimedia Commons, even if those are now in public domain in the Philippines, until after the expiration of U.S. copyrights.

Commissioned works

Shortcut

COM:COMM Philippines

Not protected

Shortcut

COM:NOP Philippines

Government works

Shortcut

COM:GVT Philippines

Copyright tags

Shortcut

COM:TAG Philippines

Currency

Shortcut

COM:CUR Philippines

Freedom of panorama

Shortcut

COM:FOP Philippines

Public domain exceptions for FoP-reliant works

OK: Buildings completed prior to November 14, 1972: {{PD-Philippines-FoP work}}. The previous copyright laws, the Spanish Law on Intellectual Property (1879)^[8] and Act No. 3134 (1924, which followed the U.S. copyright law),^[5] did not protect buildings. On November 14, 1972, Presidential Decree No. 49 took effect which formally protected works of architecture and made works copyright-protected upon creation, removing copyright registration formalities.^[3] See also the following discussions: Commons:Village pump/Copyright/Archive/2020/08#Philippine buildings before 1972 and Commons:Village pump/Copyright/Archive/2021/06#Philippine buildings from 1951–1972 - anew.

OK: Artistic works (e.g. sculptures) made before 1972 that were not registered, and artistic works made before 1942 that were once registered but not renewed: {{PD-Philippines-FoP work}}. Act No. 3134, the then-prevailing copyright law,^[5] required registration and a notice for a work to be copyright-protected. Such requirements were removed by Presidential Decree No. 49 s. 1972. Works were considered not protected by copyright unless these were registered, and the term of copyright was 30 years from the date of registration. See also Commons:Deletion requests/Files in Category:Bonifacio National Monument (Caloocan City)#Files in Category:Bonifacio National Monument (Caloocan City) 2.

OK: literary texts on commemorative markers from the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) and its predecessors: {{WorkDepicted-PD-PhilippinesGov}}. See also this deletion request.

General copyright term for all architectural and artistic works: Copyright protection expires 50 years after the death of the original or last-surviving author (whether the architect, sculptor, painter, or other artist). On January 1st of the following year (ie. January 1 of the 51st Year), freely licensed images of the author's 3D works such as sculptures, buildings, bridges or monuments are now free and can be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. The lack of Philippine freedom of panorama is no longer relevant here since the author's works are now copyright free.

See also: Category:Philippine FOP cases.

Stamps

See also: Commons:Stamps use {{PD-PhilippineGov}}

Works by the government of the Philippines are not protected by copyright. A prior approval of the government is necessary for exploitation of such works for profit. However, the clause for prior approval is determined to be a non-copyright restriction and can be safely ignored for the purposes of Wikimedia Commons by policy. (See discussion).

Warning while Philippine stamps are public domain as works of the Philippine government, one must also take into account the underlying derivative works that may appear in the stamps, such as photographs from non-free sources and copyrighted artworks. Section 176.3 of the copyright law provides that the copyright in a work is not invalidated by its "publication or republication by the government in a public document." See also this April 2020 deletion request and this May 2021 deletion request.

Threshold of originality

Shortcut

COM:TOO Philippines

The concept of threshold of originality probably does not exist in the Philippines. It is possible that the sweat of the brow concept applies. In this concept, "a work can be eligible for copyright protection if there is a substantial amount of labor, effort, or investment involved, even if it lacks a significant level of creativity. This standard places emphasis on the effort put into creating the work rather than the level of originality or creativity." (Reference: Commons:Village pump/Copyright/Archive/2023/07#Probable low Philippines TOO)

For this reason, some logos that may be simple for the American jurisprudence may be eligible for copyright in the Philippines. Two examples are logos of Photo Sikwate (2022-00957-G) and of Geomax Solutions and Innovations (2022-01698-G), both of which were afforded copyright registration as proven by the copyright registry of Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines.

However, in the midst of controversy surrounding the most popular noontime variety show of the Philippines in mid-2023 (refer to w:en:Eat Bulaga!#Copyright infringement case for the background information), Atty. Maggie Garduque who represents the show's producer (TAPE, Inc.) claims the design of the logo of the show "is a trademark and not subject of copyright."^[9]

Citations

↑ ^a ^b Philippines Copyright and Related Rights (Neighboring Rights). WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization (2018). Retrieved on 2018-11-08.
↑ Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines (Republic Act No. 8293) (2015 Edition). the Philippines (2015). Retrieved on 2018-11-08.
↑ ^a ^b Presidential Decree No. 49, s. 1972. Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.
↑ ^a ^b IPOPHL MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 021 Series of 2023. Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2021-11-25.
↑ ^a ^b ^c Act No. 3134, (1924-03-06). Lawyerly.ph. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.
↑ Rules and Regulations on the Reproduction and/or Use of Legal Tender (excerpts from Circular No. 61 1995). Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Retrieved on 2019-01-28.
↑ Young Filipinos Remember Kobe Thru Street Art. Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2020-12-04.
↑ Ley de 10 de enero de 1879 de propiedad intelectual. BOE.es. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.
↑ Blancaflor, MJ (2023-07-13). TAPE Inc: 'Eat Bulaga' name, logo not subject to copyright. Metro News Central. Retrieved on 2023-07-21.

External links

Website of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines.

Caution: The above description may be inaccurate, incomplete and/or out of date, so must be treated with caution. Before you upload a file to Wikimedia Commons you should ensure it may be used freely. See also: Commons:General disclaimer

[Philippines-WIPO-1] Philippines Copyright and Related Rights (Neighboring Rights). WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization (2018). Retrieved on 2018-11-08.

[Law2015-2] Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines (Republic Act No. 8293) (2015 Edition). the Philippines (2015). Retrieved on 2018-11-08.

[PD49-3] Presidential Decree No. 49, s. 1972. Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.

[ipophil021-2023-4] IPOPHL MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 021 Series of 2023. Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2021-11-25.

[Act3134-5] Act No. 3134, (1924-03-06). Lawyerly.ph. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.

[BSnP61-6] Rules and Regulations on the Reproduction and/or Use of Legal Tender (excerpts from Circular No. 61 1995). Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Retrieved on 2019-01-28.

[ipophilstreetart-7] Young Filipinos Remember Kobe Thru Street Art. Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2020-12-04.

[SpanishLaw1879-8] Ley de 10 de enero de 1879 de propiedad intelectual. BOE.es. Retrieved on 2021-01-28.

[9] Blancaflor, MJ (2023-07-13). TAPE Inc: 'Eat Bulaga' name, logo not subject to copyright. Metro News Central. Retrieved on 2023-07-21.

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v t e Copyright rules by territory
Africa	Algeria Ambazonia^† Angola Azawad^† Benin Bir Tawil* Botswana British Indian Ocean Territory* Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Canary Islands* Cape Verde Central African Republic Ceuta* Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Madeira* Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte* Melilla* Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Puntland^† Republic of the Congo Rwanda Réunion* Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic^† Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha* Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean* Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia Somaliland^† South Africa South Sudan Sudan São Tomé and Príncipe Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Western Sahara* Zambia Zimbabwe
Americas	Anguilla* Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Aruba* The Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda* Bolivia Brazil British Virgin Islands* Canada Cayman Islands* Chile Clipperton Island* Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Curaçao* Dominica Dominican Republic Dutch Caribbean* Ecuador El Salvador Falkland Islands* French Guiana* Greenland* Grenada Guadeloupe* Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Jamaica Martinique* Mexico Montserrat* Nicaragua Panama Paraguay Peru Puerto Rico* Saint Barthélemy* Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint-Martin* Saint Pierre and Miquelon* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Sint Maarten* South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands* Suriname Trinidad and Tobago Turks and Caicos Islands* United States of America United States Minor Outlying Islands* United States Virgin Islands* Uruguay Venezuela
Asia	Afghanistan Armenia Arunachal Pradesh^† Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan British Indian Ocean Territory* Brunei Cambodia China Cocos (Keeling) Islands* Cyprus East Timor Egypt Georgia Hong Kong* India Indonesia Iran Iraq Kurdistan Region* Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Macau* Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal North Korea Oman Pakistan State of Palestine^† Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Syria Taiwan^† Tajikistan Thailand Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen
Europe	Abkhazia^† Akrotiri and Dhekelia* Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Faroe Islands* Finland France Georgia Germany Gibraltar* Greece Guernsey* Hungary Iceland Ireland Isle of Man* Italy Jersey* Kazakhstan Kosovo^† Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Moldova Monaco Montenegro Netherlands North Macedonia Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia San Marino Serbia Slovakia Slovenia South Ossetia^† Spain Sweden Switzerland Transnistria^† Turkey Northern Cyprus^† Ukraine United Kingdom United Nations Buffer Zone in Cyprus* Vatican City
Oceania	American Samoa* Australia Cook Islands* Federated States of Micronesia Fiji French Polynesia* Guam* Hawaii* Kiribati Marshall Islands Nauru New Caledonia* New Zealand Niue* Norfolk Island* Northern Mariana Islands* Palau Papua New Guinea Pitcairn Islands* Samoa Solomon Islands Tokelau* Tonga Tuvalu United States Minor Outlying Islands* Vanuatu Wallis and Futuna*
Others	Andean Community* Antarctica* Republic of Artsakh* British overseas territories* Czechoslovakia* European Union* French Southern and Antarctic Lands* Free City of Danzig* Manchukuo* Ottoman Empire* Overseas France* Soviet Union* United Nations* Wang Jingwei regime* Yugoslavia*
*‌Other region, e.g. dependency, union, former country^†‌Limited international recognition

Durations
Copyright rules: the Philippines Shortcut: COM:Philippines


Standard	Life + 50 years
Photograph	Create/publish + 50 years
Anonymous	Create/publish + 50 years
Audiovisual	Create/publish + 50 years
Posthumous	Life + 50 years
Government	Free
Applied art	Create + 25 years
Other
Freedom of panorama	No
Terms run to year end	Yes
Common licence tags	{{PD-Philippines}} {{PD-PhilippinesGov}}
ISO 3166-1 alpha-3	PHL
Treaties
Berne convention	1 August 1951
Univ. Copyright Convention	19 November 1955
WTO member	1 January 1995
URAA restoration date‌*	1 January 1996
WIPO treaty	4 October 2002
*‌A work is usually protected in the US if it is a type of work copyrightable in the US, published after 31 December 1928 and protected in the country of origin on the URAA date.
v t e