Commons:Copyright rules by territory/Nepal

This page provides an overview of copyright rules of Nepal relevant to uploading works into Wikimedia Commons. Note that any work originating in Nepal must be in the public domain, or available under a free license, in both Nepal 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 Nepal, refer to the relevant laws for clarification.

Background

Nepal was never colonised but during the 19th century and first half of the 20th century served as a buffer state between Imperial China and British India.

Nepal has been a member of the World Trade Organization since 23 April 2004 and the Berne Convention since 11 January 2006.[1]

As of 2018 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the United Nations, listed the Copyright Act 8 of 2002 as the main copyright law enacted by the legislature of Nepal.[1] WIPO holds the text of this law in their WIPO Lex database.[2]

General rules

Under the the Copyright Act 8 of 2002,

  • The economic and moral rights available to the author under this Act shall be protected throughout the life of the author and in the case of his/her death until 50 years computed from the year of his death.[8/2002 Section 14.1]
  • The economic and moral rights over the work prepared jointly shall be protected for 50 years computed from the year of death of the last surviving author.[8/2002 Section 14.2]
  • The economic and moral right of a collective work or work for hire shall be protected until 50 years from the date of first publication of such work or the date on which the work is made public, whichever is earlier.[8/2002 Section 14.3]
  • The economic and moral right of the work published anonymously or with pseudonym name shall be protected until 50 years from the date of first publication of such work or the date on which the work is made public, whichever is earlier.[8/2002 Section 14.4]
  • The economic and moral right of a work relating to applied art and photographic work shall be protected until 25 years from the year of preparation of such work.[8/2002 Section 14.5]

Not protected

Shortcut

See also: Commons:Unprotected works

Copyright protection under this Act shall not be extended to any thought, religion, news, method of operation, concept, principle, court judgment, administrative decision, folksong, folktale, proverb and general data despite the fact that such matters are expressed or explained or interpreted or included in any work.[8/2002 Section 4]

See also: Commons:Copyright tags

a) anonymous work or pseudonymous work – after 50 years from the date of its publication;
b) work created on payment of remuneration at the initiation or direction of any person or organization – 50 years from the date of its publication;
c) photographic work or work of applied art – 25 years from the year of its creation;
d) other work – 50 years from the year of death of the author (or last-surviving author)

As per the Nepal Copyright Act, 2002, any thought, religion, process, concept, principle, court judgement, administrative decision, methods of operation, folk song, folk tale, proverb and general data is not protected.[8/2002 Section 4]

Currency

See also: Commons:Currency

  Not OK: Banknote and coin designs are copyrighted. According to the Copyright Act, 2059 (2002), "Government of Nepal shall have the copyright over the work prepared by Government of Nepal."[8/2002 Section 40]

Freedom of panorama

See also: Commons:Freedom of panorama

  Not OK. There is no freedom of panorama in Nepal.[8/2002 Section 20]

Citations

  1. a b Nepal Copyright and Related Rights (Neighboring Rights). WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization (2018). Retrieved on 2018-11-03.
  2. Copyright Act, 2059 (2002). Nepal (2018). Retrieved on 2018-11-03.
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