US Copyright Office Proposes 55% Fee Hike for Photo Registration

Registration is already the step most photographers skip. A 55% fee increase from the US Copyright Office won't help. Here's what the proposal misses entirely: registration before infringement is what gives you access to statutory damages and attorney's fees in court. Without it, you're chasing actual damages only, which is a much weaker position. The Office calls the cost negligible. Working photographers dealing with licensing disputes, client non-payment, and tighter margins would disagree. If you shoot commercially and haven't set up a registration workflow, this is the moment to start. The proposed increase hasn't passed yet, which means right now is cheap by comparison.