Guidance
Orphan works overview for applicants
Process for anyone applying for a licence to use an orphan work.
Documents
Details
Orphan works are copyright works where one or more right holder is unknown or cannot be located. If you want to use an orphan work you can apply to the Intellectual Property Office for a licence. This guidance provides detailed information which will help you fill in the on-line application for a licence.
Updates to this page
Published 29 October 2014
Last updated 4 January 2021
show all updates
-
Orphan works guidance updated to reflect Brexit transition. Portable document format (PDF) replaced with html page to improve accessibility.
-
First published.