Copyright Assignment and Transfer of Economic Rights

Copyright assignment is a legal arrangement under which economic copyright in a work is transferred from one right holder to another. It is relevant when a business commissions design or software, purchases content, acquires the rights to a book, photographs, music, video or another original work.

The author is always the individual who created the work. Economic rights may, however, belong to an employer, customer, heir or other right holder. A person or company can assign only the economic rights it lawfully owns and only within the scope of those rights.

VINCO’S Legal Company drafts copyright assignment agreements, verifies the chain of title, supports negotiations, structures the delivery of creative work and assists with state registration of agreements before the Ukrainian IP Office.

Under an assignment, the current right holder transfers the economic rights specified in the agreement to the acquirer. The transaction may cover all economic rights or a defined part of them, such as particular uses or territories. The scope and effective time of the transfer should be clearly agreed.

• reproduction and creation of copies of the work;
• distribution and digital exploitation;
• translation, adaptation, modification and preparation of derivative works to the extent permitted by the transferred rights;
• making the work available to the public and other agreed forms of communication;
• authorising third parties or making a subsequent assignment within the scope of the acquired rights.

Delivery of a physical item, design file, PDF, photograph or source-code repository does not by itself constitute an assignment of economic copyright.

An assignment changes the owner of the defined economic rights. A licence grants permission to use the work under agreed conditions without, by itself, transferring ownership of those rights.

For example, a company commissioning an exclusive logo for long-term brand use may need an assignment of the relevant economic rights. A one-off advertising use of an illustration may be more appropriately covered by a licence.

The appropriate structure depends on the commercial objective, the right holder’s title, the desired scope of rights and future plans for the work.

No. Under Ukrainian law, the author’s personal non-economic (moral) rights, including authorship, are not assignable. The original creator remains the author even after assigning all economic rights.

The agreement may address practical matters such as attribution, use of a pseudonym, permitted alterations and cooperation with the author, subject to applicable law.

• computer programs, mobile apps, software modules and source code;
• designs, logos, illustrations, graphics and presentations;
• books, articles, written content, scripts, teaching materials and online courses;
• photographs, video content and other audiovisual works;
• musical works and lyrics, taking account of separate performers’ and sound-recording rights;
• original website elements, including texts, artwork and software code;
• other protected works where the assignor has transferable economic rights.

Where a product contains multiple works or was created by several contributors, the agreement and its schedules should identify the works and the rights covered.

• when commissioning software, web development, graphic design, video or marketing materials;
• when purchasing existing software, photographs, creative assets or written content;
• when transferring IP assets within a corporate group;
• in investment rounds, M&A transactions, business sales and IP due diligence;
• when working with freelancers, agencies and outsourced production teams;
• before further licensing, scaling or selling a product;
• to address gaps in ownership documents for existing creative assets.

A properly drafted agreement should identify the work and the actual scope of the transaction instead of relying on a vague statement that “all rights are transferred”.

• the parties and evidence of the assignor’s ownership;
• a clear description of the work, version and relevant schedules;
• the economic rights and methods of exploitation covered by the assignment;
• the agreed territory and scope;
• the effective date or event triggering the transfer, including any agreed link to acceptance or payment;
• remuneration, how it is calculated, or an express agreement that the transfer is gratuitous;
• delivery of original files, source materials, access credentials and documentation;
• warranties concerning authorship, third-party material and existing licences;
• liability, confidentiality and dispute-resolution provisions.

The agreement must comply with the applicable written-form requirements, including legally valid electronic form where used. Its terms should reflect Article 48 of the Ukrainian Law on Copyright and Related Rights and the circumstances of the transaction.

Not necessarily. An acceptance certificate may evidence delivery of the work, and a payment record may evidence payment. Neither automatically substitutes for a valid legal basis for the transfer of economic copyright.

For commissioned or employee-created works, the special statutory rules and the relevant contractual arrangements must also be reviewed.

The first step is to establish who created each work, the legal basis of its creation and who owns its economic rights. Employment agreements, job duties and the circumstances of creation matter for employee-created works. Commissioned-work agreements and acceptance documentation are relevant to contractors.

Where an agency is the supplier, the customer should verify that the agency has lawfully acquired the necessary rights from the actual designers, developers, photographers, writers and other contributors.

VINCO’S reviews the chain of title and assists in correcting ownership gaps before executing or registering an assignment.

No. State registration of a copyright-related agreement is not generally a condition of its validity or of the transfer of economic rights in Ukraine. The binding agreement, the assignor’s authority and the applicable statutory and contractual terms are what determine the legal effect.

Nevertheless, voluntary registration can help document the transaction, place relevant details on the public register and support investor due diligence or evidence gathering. Registration does not cure an invalid agreement or defects in the prior chain of title.

Registration is handled by the Ukrainian IP Office (UANIPIO) under the procedure approved by Ministry of Economy Order No. 11319 of 16 August 2023, as amended. An eligible party to the agreement may submit the application.

• the prescribed application form completed in Ukrainian;
• a duly certified copy of the signed agreement and its effective schedules;
• a copy of the work in the format applicable to its category;
• evidence of the fact and date of publication, if available;
• chain-of-title documents where the applicant is not the original author;
• proof of payment of the applicable official filing fee;
• evidence of the representative’s authority where a representative files the application.

After a positive review, the agreement is entered in the relevant state register and a certificate of registration of the agreement is issued.

Since 3 November 2025, the statutory review period for a properly prepared application to register a copyright-related agreement is 30 calendar days. Requests to correct deficiencies or provide additional documents may extend the overall process.

1. Initial consultation to determine whether the client needs an assignment, a licence or registration of an existing agreement.
2. Identification of the work, the author, current right holder and scope of economic rights.
3. Review of contracts with contributors, employees, contractors and previous right holders.
4. Assessment of co-authorship, third-party content, existing licences and other risks.
5. Drafting or legal review of the assignment and its schedules.
6. Negotiating the terms and documenting the delivery of the work and source materials.
7. Preparing the application for state registration, where requested.
8. Filing with the Ukrainian IP Office and responding to formal requests.
9. Obtaining the agreement registration certificate and delivering the completed documentation.

• draft and negotiate a copyright assignment agreement;
• review an agreement proposed by an author, customer or investor;
• verify title to software, designs, content, photographs, music and video;
• structure assignments from freelancers, employees, agencies or other companies;
• prepare schedules, acceptance certificates and related documentation;
• draft a licence agreement where assignment is not the appropriate model;
• register the agreement with the Ukrainian IP Office;
• support disputes involving ownership, scope or infringement of copyright.

Whether you are acquiring creative assets, assigning rights in your own work or structuring your company’s IP portfolio, VINCO’S can help document ownership, manage contractual risks and establish a clear basis for future exploitation.