Education

Statutory Education Licence

A licence taken from the Copyright Act 1968 for educational institutions to copy and share text, images, and print music for educational purposes. Copyright Agency is appointed by the Australian Government to administer this licence scheme.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

With the Statutory Education Licence, you can:

  • Copy and share text excerpts and images from books, journals, newspapers and websites
  • Upload content to learning management systems (e.g. Moodle, Canvas, Google Classroom)
  • Email or digitally distribute materials to students and staff
  • Use content in presentations, course packs and online learning
  • Photocopy and scan excerpts from works
  • Adapt and combine content from any source in the world

WHO IT’S FOR

The licence is available for all organisations that fall within the definition of ‘educational institution’ under the Copyright Act 1968. This can include:

    • Schools (primary and secondary)
    • Universities and higher education providers
    • TAFEs and registered training organisations (RTOs)
    • ELICOS providers
    • Industry and professional associations
    • Medical & specialist colleges
    • Tutoring businesses
    • Early Childhood Education
    • Other organisations delivering education or training

why it matters

Teaching depends on access to quality resources- but using it without permission can create legal and administrative challenges.

The Statutory Education Licence:

  • Removes the need to seek permission for each use
  • Reduces administrative burden for educators and staff
  • Supports flexible and enriched education delivery, including both face to face and blended/remote learning
  • Provides a simple way to manage copyright compliance
  • Licence fees are distributed by Copyright Agency to rights holder and creators, ensuring a strong creative economy

OUR (DEPARTMENT) LICENCES & WHAT THEY COVER

For Schools and TAFEs

How it works:
  • Copyright Agency has agreements in place with the Department of Education and TAFE institutes nationally.
  • These agreements provide all TAFEs and over 99% of Australian schools with access to the licence scheme.
  • A small number of schools are covered under direct Private Education Provider agreements.

For Universities

How it works:
  • Copyright Agency has an agreement in place with Universities Australia (‘UA’).
  • This agreement covers all 38 UA represented universities and provides them with access to the licence scheme.
  • All other non-UA represented universities are covered under direct Private Education Provider agreements.

Private Education Providers

How it works:
  • Private Education Providers include all educational institutions that fall outside of sector wide schools, TAFE and university agreements mentioned above.
  • Copyright Agency has over 1,000 direct Private Education Provider agreements in place.
  • Once an agreement is in place, these providers can immediately access the licence scheme in a compliant way.
  • Fees for Private Education Providers are paid annually and are determined using the Rate Card.

Early Childhood Education Providers

How it works:
  • Early Childhood Education providers are usually eligible for the Statutory Education Licence in the same way as other educational institutions. Alternatively, these providers can apply for a OneMusic & Copyright Agency joint licence to cover their use of music, text and images.
  • The joint licence is offered by APRA AMCOS, ARIA, PPCA and Copyright Agency.
  • There is more information on the OneMusic website here.

If an agreement is in place for your educational institution, your staff can copy and share content for educational purposes in compliance with the Statutory Education Licence.

Fees are centrally negotiated and paid annually to Copyright Agency

what’s included

Under the Licence educational institutions can copy and share text and images from any source in the world for educational purposes. This includes materials taken from both physical and digital sources, including but not limited to:

  • Books and academic publications
  • Newspapers, journals and magazines
  • Online articles and website content
  • Images and illustrations
  • Graphs and diagrams
  • Print Music

The amount of a work that is copied or communicated under the Licence must not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the owner of the copyright.

not sure if you’re covered?

If you work at an Australian school, TAFE or university, your institution is most likely already covered under an existing Statutory Education Licence remuneration agreement.

If you work at another type of educational institution, you can check whether you have a current agreement in place here.

other types of works

Copyright Agency works in the field of text and images. For enquiries into the use of TV and Radio Broadcast, contact Screenrights. For enquiries into the use of sound recordings and music, contact APRA AMCOS and PPCA.

TESTIMONIALS

Kerrie Stevens – Director of Library Services
Kerrie Stevens – Director of Library Services

“As an education provider, the Statutory Education Licence is essential to allow us to legally communicate and distribute materials to our staff and students, whilst also fairly compensating the producers of that material.”

Dr Michelle Cavaleri – Dean (Academic)
Dr Michelle Cavaleri – Dean (Academic)

“The Statutory Education Licence is the most simple, straightforward and cost-efficient way to ensure we are compliant with Australian Copyright Law. It also assures us that fair compensation is made to the creators of content used in learning and teaching.”

Ross Bruzzese – Librarian
Ross Bruzzese – Librarian

"Thanks to the flexibility and protection of the Statutory Education Licence we can confidently maintain our compliance with licensing laws"

Still need help? contact us

"*" indicates required fields

Not the Licence you’re looking for?