Copyright protection in Europe for foreign companies is automatic: under the Berne Convention, a work created in Mexico, Colombia or Argentina is protected in Spain and the rest of the EU without registration. What is not automatic is being able to prove you own it, license it and enforce it. This checklist is for Latin American software houses, publishers, studios, agencies and consumer brands bringing their content into the EU, with Spain as the usual entry point.
Key takeaways
- Berne gives your works national treatment in every EU Member State, with no formalities, so protection exists from creation.
- The weak point is usually chain of title: written assignments from employees, freelancers and agencies that cover the EU and the uses you plan.
- Under Spanish law, an assignment that does not state its duration is limited to five years, and one that does not state its territory is limited to the country where it was signed.
- Registration in Spain is optional but creates a presumption that the registered rights exist and belong to the holder.
- Plan in advance how you will license in the EU, including collective management for music and audiovisual content, and how you will remove infringing copies.
Is your Latin American copyright protected in Europe?
Yes, in most cases. The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, administered by WIPO (the World Intellectual Property Organization), rests on three principles:
- National treatment: works originating in one contracting state receive in every other state the same protection that state grants to its own nationals.
- Automatic protection: protection cannot be conditional on any formality.
- Independence of protection: protection does not depend on whether the work is protected in its country of origin.
Spanish law reflects this. Copyright belongs to the author by the mere fact of creation (Article 1 of the Spanish Intellectual Property Law, TRLPI), and nationals of non-EU countries are protected under the international treaties to which Spain is party (Article 199.3). Moral rights are recognised whatever the author’s nationality (Article 199.5).
One nuance matters for catalogues: for works whose country of origin under Berne is outside the EU and whose author is not an EU national, Spain grants the term of protection of the country of origin, capped at the Spanish term of life plus 70 years (Articles 26 and 199.4). If your home country protects for a shorter period, that shorter period applies in Spain.
The EU copyright checklist for Latin American companies
| Check | Why it matters in Spain and the EU | What to have ready |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Authorship and ownership | The person named on the work is presumed to be its author (Art. 6 TRLPI); a company must show how it acquired the rights | List of works, authors and creation dates |
| 2. Employee works | Without a written agreement, rights pass to the employer only to the extent needed for its usual business at delivery (Art. 51); for software, the employer owns the economic rights unless agreed otherwise (Art. 97.4) | Employment contracts with IP clauses |
| 3. Freelancers and agencies | Assignments must be in writing (Art. 45) and are limited to the rights, uses, time and territory stated (Art. 43) | Signed assignments covering the EU and all planned uses |
| 4. Moral rights | Attribution and integrity cannot be waived or transferred (Art. 14) | Author consents for adaptations and credit policy |
| 5. Evidence of creation | Registration creates a rebuttable presumption that the rights exist and belong to the holder (Art. 145) | Registration of key works, or dated deposits and source files |
| 6. Licensing model | Some uses of music and audiovisual content are collected through collective management organisations | Decision on CMO mandates and direct licences |
| 7. Enforcement plan | Infringers can be ordered to stop and pay damages (Art. 138); platforms must act on notices | Monitoring and notice templates per platform |
Why chain of title is where most problems start
A European distributor, investor or platform will ask one question before signing: can you prove you own what you are licensing? The Spanish rules on assignment are strict and, where Spanish law governs the contract, they apply literally:
- An assignment that does not state its duration is limited to five years, and one that does not state its territory is limited to the country where it was made (Article 43.2).
- If the forms of exploitation are not specified, the assignment covers only what is indispensable for the purpose of the contract (Article 43.2).
- An assignment of all the works an author may create in the future is void (Article 43.3).
- Assignments must be in writing (Article 45).
In practice, the most frequent gap is an agency or freelance contract signed in Latin America for a local campaign, with no reference to Europe, to digital uses or to duration. Which law governs that contract is a separate question, but a European counterparty will usually want the gap closed with a confirmatory assignment before it pays. Our recommendation is to audit the contracts behind your ten most valuable works before the first EU negotiation.
Should you register your works in Spain?
Registration is not required for protection, but the Spanish General Intellectual Property Registry offers a useful presumption: registered rights are presumed, unless proven otherwise, to exist and to belong to the holder in the form recorded (Article 145.3). The Registry is a single national registry run regionally by the autonomous communities, with a central registry under the Ministry of Culture (Article 144), and the registrar reviews the legality of the acts and contracts submitted (Article 145.2).
For a foreign company, registration makes sense for flagship works likely to be copied, for software and content licensed to European partners, and for works whose ownership passed through several assignments. Registering the assignment itself also helps show the chain of title. Where registration is not worth the effort, keep dated evidence: source files, version histories and notarised or time-stamped deposits.
Licensing and collective management in the EU
If your content includes music or audiovisual works, part of the EU revenue will flow through collective management organisations (CMOs). Under Directive 2014/26/EU, rightholders can authorise a CMO of their choice for the rights, works and territories of their choice, regardless of nationality or residence (Article 5). In Spain, certain remuneration rights, such as those owed by businesses that play commercial recordings in public, can only be collected through CMOs.
The decision is strategic: a direct mandate to a European CMO, collection through your home CMO’s representation agreements, or direct licences with distributors and platforms. Each option changes reporting, timing and control. Our copyright and software protection team for Europe and Latin America can model the options against your catalogue.
What this means for your business
- Inventory the works you will exploit in the EU: software, texts, images, video, music, designs and databases.
- Audit chain of title for each one and sign confirmatory assignments where territory, uses or duration are missing.
- Register the works and assignments that carry most commercial value.
- Choose your licensing model, including CMO mandates where relevant.
- Set up monitoring and a takedown procedure for the main platforms and marketplaces in Spain and the EU.
Where Latin American companies get EU copyright wrong
- Assuming a local contract covers Europe. Without stated territory and uses, a European partner may treat the rights as unproven.
- Ignoring moral rights. Adapting or re-editing content for European audiences without the author’s consent can breach the right to integrity, which cannot be waived in Spain.
- Relying on registration at home only. A home registration helps as evidence, but a Spanish registration gives the statutory presumption in Spain.
- Letting the distributor control enforcement. If notices and claims are filed in the distributor’s name, the evidence and the relationship with platforms stay with them.
- Splitting advisers by country. Different counsel in each market produce inconsistent assignments and licences that are expensive to reconcile later.
If a dispute arises, our IP litigation and licensing team can act on infringement or contract claims in coordination with your local counsel.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to register my copyright in Spain to be protected?
No. Under the Berne Convention and Article 1 of the Spanish law, protection arises from creation without formalities. Registration in the Spanish General Intellectual Property Registry is optional, but it creates a rebuttable presumption that the registered rights exist and belong to the holder, which helps in licensing and litigation.
Is a copyright assignment signed in Latin America valid in Spain?
It can be, but its scope matters. If Spanish law applies, an assignment without a stated duration is limited to five years and one without a stated territory to the country where it was signed. Which law governs the contract must be checked case by case; a confirmatory assignment covering the EU is often the simplest fix.
How long is a Latin American work protected in Spain?
Spain protects authors’ economic rights for life plus 70 years. For works whose country of origin is outside the EU and whose author is not an EU national, Spain applies the term of the country of origin, never exceeding life plus 70. A longer home term is therefore capped, and a shorter one applies as it is.
Can IP Global Guard prepare our copyright strategy for entering the EU?
Yes. We audit chain of title, draft confirmatory assignments and licences, handle registrations in Spain and design the licensing and takedown plan for the EU. On the Latin American side, we coordinate qualified local correspondents so contracts on both sides of the Atlantic stay consistent, all from a single point of contact.
How IP Global Guard can help you enter the EU
Entering Europe with content is a documentation exercise before it is a legal one: who created each work, what was assigned and on what terms. IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, works the Latin America to Europe corridor every day, with one strategy and one billing relationship across more than 25 jurisdictions in Europe, Latin America and Africa.
Send us the list of works you plan to exploit in the EU and the contracts behind them. We will flag the gaps, propose the fixes and coordinate registrations and licences from one point of contact. Start your EU copyright review with our team.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and does not replace an assessment of your specific situation.
Sources
- WIPO, Summary of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1886, as amended in 1979)
- BOE, Royal Legislative Decree 1/1996, Revised Text of the Intellectual Property Law (consolidated text, Articles 1, 6, 14, 26, 43, 45, 51, 97, 138, 144, 145 and 199)
- EUR-Lex, Directive 2014/26/EU on collective management of copyright (26 February 2014)
