Works & repertoire

Submit a notification for your works

• By when do I have to submit a work notification?

  Please submit a work notification in good time so that we can include you in the pay-out. Deadlines differ depending on the category. We created an overview with the key deadlines for you:
  
  Key deadlines
  
  Important: If you notify us of the works after the deadlines have expired and they are not included in the distribution, you have no right to submit a complaint/claim (§ 36 GEMA distribution plan).

  Simply register your works via the work declaration in our Online Portal.

• A co-author is member of another collective management organisation. Do I have to notify them of joint works or is a work declaration to GEMA enough?

  It is sufficient if you notify us of your works and indicate all other involved co-authors in the course of the work declaration. Based on the representation agreements which we concluded with foreign collective management organisations your co-author will be considered for the distribution of royalties and also carries out the work declarations at his end.

• I am a member of several collective management organisations. Where do I have to send my work declarations?

  If you have several collective management organisations manage individual rights or territories separately, you must also declare your works with all the collective management organisations separately so that all territories, rights and, where applicable, co-authors can be taken into account when usages occur.

• My works are also used in other countries. Do I have to register them with GEMA only or also with the collective management organisation of the corresponding country?

  You do not need to register your works with another collective management organisation because we have entered into representation agreements with many foreign collective copyright management organisations. It is therefore enough if you declare all of your existing and future works to us.

  Exceptions:

  • You are also a member of one (or more) other collective copyright management organisation(s). Then you must also register your works there.

  • Your works are used in countries with which GEMA does not have a representation agreement.

• My works are used in countries where GEMA does not have a representationagreement with another collective management organisation. What do I need to do?

  In that case, you, the author, must manage the licensing of your works directly. Please get in touch with the collective management organisation in the respective country.

• Do I need to register all authors or only GEMA members?

  It is important that you really register all authors of a work. Irrespective whether these authors are GEMA members or not.

• When I declare my work, why do you ask me whether the work is in the public domain (free of copyright)?

  If you notify us of your own works which you created alone, please always answer this question with ‘no’.
  
  To be in the public domain means that the author(s) of the original work which is now declared as an arrangement or as a musical setting (e.g. a poem by Goethe) are no longer subject to the term of protection.
  
  Please follow these steps whenever you want to declare an arrangement of a public domain work where the name of the composer and/or lyricist is unknown:

  1. Enter “39657154” in the field IP name number.

  2. Select DP and click on Apply.

  3. When you enter the roles e.g. composer, please tick the box Public domain and click on Apply.  

  
  About the term of protection:
  In Germany, the term of protection usually ends 70 years after the death of the longest surviving author.
  Example: An instrumental piece has two joint composers A and B. A died in 1948 and B in 1925. The work is in the public domain from 2019.
  
  If A and B have created a vocal piece together with lyricist C and C died in 1956, then the term of protection for this vocal piece relates to music and lyrics. This means: this vocal piece is not free of copyright or in the public domain until 2027. If you want to create a new arrangement of the music, you require a permission to arrange the work.

• What is an ISWC? Why does my work not have an ISWC?

  The ISWC is an internationally recognised work number and unique identifiers for a work version (analogous to the ISBN). The ISWC makes the documentation and distribution exchange between collective management organisations more efficient. The ISWC has been developed by the Confédération Internationale des Sociétés d’Auteurs et Compositeurs (CISAC). CISAC also manages and develops the ISWC. The first ISWC was issued to the song Dancing Queen of ABBA (T-000000001-0) in 1995.
  
  ISWCs are only issued if all the contributors to a work have been identified in the IPI database, that is the international database of creators and publishers. If one of the contributors is not a member of a collective management organisation, the work will not be issued with an ISWC initially.
  
  You can view the ISWC of your work on the work confirmation, in our Online Portal or in the repertoire search.

• What are TIS Codes? Where can I find information on the territory standard TIS?

  What are TIS Codes? Where can I find information on the territory standard TIS?

  The Territory Information System, TIS, is the multi-lingual territory standard of CISAC, the international umbrella organisation of the collective management organisations and contains all relevant information on territories. The standard is managed by GEMA and supervised by the TIS Management Committee.
  
  The codes and names of the countries have been adapted from ISO standard 3166.

  • Description of the territory standard TIS
  • Analysis: Territory list
  • Analysis: Hierarchies among territorier (bottom-up/top-down)
  • Description of the changes in the TIS data from the first to the current edition
  • TIS data base: complete data

  
  The document “Description of the territory standard TIS” contains a complete explanation of the standard as well as a conceptional data model with all relevant information objects and data elements.
  
  The document “TIS database: complete data” is a compressed access file which contains the complete TIS data. The territory list in Excel file format can be accessed under “Analysis: Territory list”. Hierarchical analyses of the territories can be accessed under “Analysis: Hierarchies among territories (bottom-up/top-down).
  
  Please note that the file “TIS database: complete data” contains the binding TIS data pursuant to the data model and the definition of the territory standard. The document “Description of the changes in the TIS data from the first to the current edition” contains amendments which have been made in the TIS data from the first to the current edition.

• There are works that I am involved in that have been registered at GEMA before I joined up. What can I do that I am taken into account as a member for the royalty payout in future?

  In this case, please send an email to werke@gema.de and ask that the works in question are allocated to your membership number. The best way to go about this is that you create a list with all titles and the respective work numbers.

• How can I register my works with GEMA?

  If you are a creator and already a GEMA member, you can register your works with us. We also recommend this to you because you only get paid royalties for works that you registered with us. Registering your repertoire at GEMA is really easy, just use our Online Portal.

  1. Go to the menu on the left side and select Services, then open Work declaration
  2. To register a GEMA original work, click on original work.
  3. Use the first tab, declarant, to select the contract account that you want to use for registering the work (in case you manage several contract accounts activated for you).
  4. Use the second tab, contributors, to add involved creators and original publishers.

  Don’t forget:
  Entering AR (performing rights) and VR (mechanical rights) shares is only mandatory for the publisher section. These fields are optional for the creator section. If you leave these fields empty, they are automatically split up evenly between the respective roles.

  If you have entered shares, the AR and VR shares must add up to 100% per role. For example: There is one composer and one lyricist; you must enter 100% for the composer and 100% for the lyricist in AR and VR.

  The same applies to publishers. If there is only one publisher involved in the work, 100% of the available publisher shares are entered for them in AR and VR. (In relation to the whole work, the publisher share is, however, only 33% for AR and 40% for VR).

  5. Use the third tab, Works, to add data on the work. In this area, you can also save details on mix, content, production title and other titles.
  6. Use the last tab, overview, to get a recap of the entered information and can submit the work registration

  Once you have finished, you can access your provisional confirmation of your work registration in the section My communication.

  Additional information and how to register your works, especially for publishers, can be retrieved from our page Your GEMA repertoire of our website.

• How can I ensure my works are protected?

  You do not need to do anything. Your works are automatically protected by German copyright. This applies to music, score materialand song lyrics, from the very moment they are created.

• How do I register works whose creators are from various countries (adhere to different collective management organisations)?

  If you want to register a work where you and additional creators are involved who are members of other collective management organisations, you can do this via our Online Portal, too.

  Each creator who is a member of a collective management organisation, receives an IP name number from them. Please ask your co-creators to give you this number and enter it when registering the work.

  If you have not obtained the IP name numbers from your co-creators, you can get it by searching for it in the search creators’ section. If there are identical names, and you are unsure who the correct creator is, please enter the creator manually.

  But: Each creator is obliged to register their works with their own collective management organisation (CMO). This means that creators of a sister organisation must register the work directly with their own CMO. A creator who is a member of SACEM, for example, must register the work with SACEM.

    Don’t forget: If your work was elevated to registration status 1 right after notification, we provide you with the GEMA work number and an ISWC (International Standard Work Code). This is an indicator that should only be issued once per work. Please pass it on to you co-creators.

  Only works with registration status 1 receive an ISWC. Works/work versions with registration status 2 only receive an ISWC once they are elevated to registration status 1.

• How are AR and VR shares registered for authors and publishers? Why am I receiving an error message?

  The shares for the Performance Right (AR) and the Mechanical Right (VR) are obligatory for publishers. For authors, these fields are optional. If left blank, the shares will be automatically distributed equally within the respective role. 

  However, if shares are entered, the AR and VR shares per role must total 100%. For example, if there is one composer and one lyricist, 100% must be allocated to the composer and 100% to the lyricist in both AR and VR.

  The same applies to publishers. If only one publisher is involved in the work, they are allocated 100% of the available publishing shares in AR and VR. In relation to the entire work, the publisher's share amounts to 33% in AR and 40% in VR according to the GEMA distribution plan.