Commons:Copyright tags ContentsGeneral public domainCountry-specific tagsGNU LicensesFree Creative Commons licensesVarious free licensesNot free or uncertainDescriptive tagsSee alsoReferencesNavigation menu+/−e
General disclaimerProject scopeAllowable file typesEvidenceNeutral point of viewPrecautionary principlePages, galleries and categoriesUse of gender neutral languageLicensing policyDe minimisFair useWhen to use the PD-Art tagDeletion policyCriteria for speedy deletionRevision deletionLanguage policyCategory policyBlocking policyPage protectionDe-adminshipPaid contribution disclosureTranslation administratorsSignaturesUsername policyWhat Commons is notNon-copyright restrictionsFan artNudityPhotographs of identifiable peopleDerivative worksWhen to use the PD-scan tagGalleriesUsing ImageAnnotatorFile renamingOverwriting existing filesGrandfathered old filesAssume good faithOwnership of pages and filesTalk page guidelinesUser-specific galleries, templates and categoriesAdministratorsVandalismRollbackPatrolCopyright rulesCopyright rules by subject matterCopyright rules by territoryCopyright tagsPD filesThreshold of originalityDerivative works2D copyingScreenshotsFreedom of panoramaReusing content outside WikimediaCredit lineReuse of PD-Art photographsLicense launderingProblematic sourcesFlickrPicasa WebBad sourcesLicense review
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AlemannischasturianucatalàčeštinaDeutschEnglishespañolفارسیfrançaisgalegoitalianomagyarмакедонски日本語молдовеняскэnorsk bokmålNederlandsoccitanpolskiportuguêsromânăрусскийslovenčinaslovenščinasvenskasuomiукраїнська中文（简体）中文（繁體）Upload Wizardcommonly used licenseslicense selectorCommons:LicensingCommons:Project scopeCategory:PD license tagsCommons:Copyright rules by territoryGNU Free Documentation LicenseGNU General Public LicenseCommons:Creative Commons copyright tags
Commons:Copyright tags
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- Copyright tags
- Commonly used licenses
- General public domain
- Country-specific tags
- GNU licenses
- Free Creative Commons licenses
- Various free licenses
- Not free or uncertain
- Descriptive tags
- Index by source
Copyright rules- Copyright rules by subject matter
- Copyright rules by territory
- Copyright tags
- Currency
- De minimis
- Derivative works
- Freedom of panorama
- Stamps/Public domain
- Threshold of originality
When you upload a file to Wikimedia Commons you must state its license status, which must allow it to be used by anyone, anywhere, for any purpose.
The Upload Wizard is the easiest way to upload files to Wikimedia.
It guides you through the steps to provide the information needed to upload a file, and suggests commonly used licenses.
You may also use the license selector.
See Commons:Licensing for a quick tutorial about licenses.
Depending on what license you choose, a "copyright tag" is inserted into the file's description page, such as cc-by-4.0. This will display license information on the description page, and categorize the file accordingly.
For more information see Commons:Project scope.
Search by name for copyright tag documentation:
Contents
1 General public domain
2 Country-specific tags
3 GNU Licenses
4 Free Creative Commons licenses
5 Various free licenses
6 Not free or uncertain
7 Descriptive tags
8 See also
9 References
General public domain
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/General public domain.
General public domain tags may be used to describe why a file is in the public domain based on broad criteria such as a copyright release by the author, or the date when the author died.
If the file's source country is not the United States it must also have a tag that shows why it is in the public domain in the United States.
See also Category:PD license tags for a full list.
Country-specific tags
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/Country-specific tags.
Copyright rules vary from one country to another (see Commons:Copyright rules by territory). A file may be in the public domain in its country of origin based on the date of death of the author, date of publication, type of work, who commissioned the work and so on. Country-specific license tags show the reason why a file uploaded to Wikimedia Commons is in the public domain in its country of origin.
For a file originating outside the United States, another tag should show why it is in the public domain in the United States.
GNU Licenses
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/GNU licenses.
The GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) and GNU General Public License (GPL) are widely-used free documentation and software copyleft licenses.
Works licensed under the GNU family of licenses may be uploaded to Wikimedia.
Free Creative Commons licenses
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/Free Creative Commons licenses.
Files with Creative Commons Attribution and Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike licenses may be uploaded, but only when they do not include NonCommercial or NoDerivs restrictions. CC0 and CC-PD licenses are also accepted. See Commons:Creative Commons copyright tags for a full table of allowed Creative Commons licenses, including country specific licenses that are based on the copyright laws of the country of origin.
Various free licenses
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/Various free licenses.
A variety of license tags other than the GNU licenses or Creative Commons licenses indicate why a file may be freely used.
Not free or uncertain
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/Not free or uncertain.
A file may be tagged to show reasons why it may have an unfree or uncertain copyright status.
Such a file will often be quickly reviewed and deleted.
Descriptive tags
- Main page: Commons:Copyright tags/Descriptive tags.
Descriptive tags give useful information about a file, such as restrictions on the use of the file in some jurisdictions.
They must be supplemented by tags that describe why the file is free or in the public domain in the country of origin and the United States.
See also
- Commons:Credit line
- Commons:Image copyright tags visual
- Commons:Signatures
- Commons:Watermarks
References
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