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Education Licences

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The Copyright Act sets out two licences that govern the copying and communication of copyright works by schools and TAFE.  In addition, educational institutions can enter into voluntary licences with the various collecting societies, who collect royalties on behalf of their copyright owner members.

Text and Artistic Works Licence

The Text and Artistic Works Licence (also known as Part VB of the Copyright Act) allows photocopying and electronic copying and communication of text and artistic works by schools and TAFE for educational use including:

  • Photocopying text or images
  • Scanning hardcopy text or images into a digital format
  • Emailing a digital version of text or images to students
  • Putting a digital version of text or images on to a school or TAFE intranet
  • Digitally photographing hardcopy text or images.

In general, a school or TAFE can copy or communicate:

  • Up to 10% of a work
  • One article from a journal (or more when on related topics)
  • The whole of a work that has not been separately published or is not
  • commercially available within a reasonable time at an ordinary commercial price.

The Text and Artistic Works Licence is administered by the Copyright Agency Limited (CAL).

Each year a sample of schools and TAFE institutes are surveyed to estimate how much is being copied and what is being copied.  This information is used by CAL to assist with CAL’s distribution of royalties to copyright owners and as a basis for determining licence fees payable to CAL.  In 2007 schools and TAFE nationally paid over $50 million in licence fees to CAL.

For more information on the Text and Artistic Works Licence, see Education Licence B: Statutory Text and Artistic Licence.

Broadcast Licence

The Broadcast Licence (also known as Part VA of the Copyright Act) allows the electronic copying and communication of off-air radio and television broadcasts for educational purposes, including:

  • Putting a digital copy of a program on to a network (for example, a school or TAFE intranet)
  • Emailing a digital copy to students
  • Copying and communicating a free-to-air broadcast made available by the broadcaster over the Internet (for example, a webcast or podcast)

There are no copying limits under the Broadcast Licence.The licence is administered by Screenrights.

Each year a sample of schools and TAFE institutes are surveyed to estimate how much is being copied and what is being copied. This information is used by Screenrights to assist with its distribution of royalties to copyright owners.  In 2007 schools and TAFE nationally paid over $16 million in licence fees to Screenrights.

For more information on the Broadcast Licence, see Education Licence A: Statutory Broadcast Licence.

Music Licences

Schools have also entered into sector-wide licences with the music collecting societies, Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and the Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA). These licences permit schools to use music at school for a range of activities.

For more information on the music licences, see:

There is no national agreement with the music collecting societies for TAFE.  TAFE institutes wanting to use music in a way not currently permitted under the Copyright Act will need to enter into music licences directly with the music collecting societies or with the copyright owners of the music.

For further advice, contact your local copyright manager. 

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