Publication:
Latvijas Vēstnesis
, 148/150,
27.04.2000.; Latvijas Republikas
Saeimas un Ministru Kabineta
Ziņotājs, 11, 01.06.2000.
Issuer: 
Saeima
Type: 
law
Adoption: 
06.04.2000.
Entry into force: 
11.05.2000.
Text consolidated by Valsts valodas centrs (State 
Language Centre) with amending laws of:
6 March 2003 [shall come 
into force on 4 April 2003];
22 April 2004 [shall come into force on 1 May 
2004];
8 February 2007 [shall come into force on 1 March 
2007];
6 December 2007 [shall come into force on 5 January 
2008];
16 December 2010 [shall come into force on 1 January 
2011];
31 March 2011 [shall come into force on 27 April 
2011];
18 April 2013 [shall come into force on 22 May 
2013];
12 September 2013 [shall come into force on 1 January 
2014];
28 November 2013 [shall come into force on 1 January 
2014];
18 December 2014 [shall come into force on 31 December 
2014];
18 May 2017 [shall come into force on 14 June 
2017];
6 December 2018 [shall come into force on 13 December 
2018];
29 October 2020 [shall come into force on 11 November 
2020].
If a whole or part of a section has been amended, the 
date of the amending law appears in square brackets at 
the end
of the section. If a whole section, paragraph or 
clause has been deleted, the date of the deletion appears 
in square
brackets beside the deleted section, paragraph 
or clause.
The 
Saeima
1
 has adopted and
the President has proclaimed the following Law:
Copyright 
Law
Chapter I
General Provisions
Section 1. Terms Used in this 
Law
The following terms are used in this Law:
1) 
author
 - a natural person, as a result of whose 
creative activities a concrete work has been created;
2) 
work
 - the results of an author's creative 
activities in the literary, scientific or artistic domain, 
irrespective of the
mode or form of its expression and its 
value;
3) 
database
 - a collection of independent works, data 
or other materials, which are arranged in a systematic or
methodical way and are individually accessible by electronic or 
other means;
4) 
fixation
 - the embodiment of sound or image into 
material form, which provides a possibility to communicate it
to 
the public, perceive or reproduce it by means of a relevant 
device;
5) 
film
 - an audio-visual or cinematographic work or 
moving images, whether or not accompanied by sound;
6) 
film producer
 - a natural or legal person who 
finances and organises the creation of a film and is responsible
for its completion;
7) 
phonogram
 - fixation of the sounds of a performance, 
other sounds or representation of sounds;
8) 
phonogram producer
 - a natural or legal person who 
or which takes the initiative and has the responsibility for
the 
first fixation of the sounds of a performance or other sounds, or 
the representations of sounds;
9) 
rights management information
 - information provided 
by a holder of copyright or related rights, as well as a
maker of 
a database, which identifies the holder of copyright or related 
rights, as well as the maker of a database and
the object, and 
information regarding the terms and conditions of use of the 
object of copyright or related rights, as 
1
/
33the object, and 
information regarding the terms and conditions of use of the 
object of copyright or related rights, as
well as databases, as 
well as any numbers or codes that represent such information;
10) 
performer
 - an actor, singer, musician, dancer, or 
other persons who act, read, sing, play, or otherwise
perform 
literary or artistic works or expressions of folklore, provide 
stage, circus or puppet performances;
11) 
distribution
 - an activity by which the original or 
copy of the object of copyright or related rights is sold or
otherwise alienated;
12) 
disclosure
 - an action by means of which a work is 
made available to the public for the first time, irrespective
of 
its form;
1
1
) 
accessible format copy
 - a copy of a 
work or related rights object in an alternative format which 
gives a
person with functional limitations access to the work or 
the related rights object, similarly as to a person without such
limitations;
13) 
publication
 - any action, by means of which copies 
of an object of copyright or related rights are made
available to 
the public with the consent of the holders of copyright or 
related rights, conforming to the condition that
the number of 
copies shall satisfy a reasonable public demand in conformity 
with the nature of object of copyright or
related rights; 
performances of dramatic, dramatic-musical or musical works, 
demonstrations of audio-visual works,
public readings of literary 
works, the broadcasting of literary or artistic works, 
demonstrations of visual works or
erected architectural works 
shall not be deemed to be publication of an object of 
copyright;
14) 
communication to the public
 - any action by means 
of which, either directly or through a relevant technical
device, 
a work, performance, phonogram or broadcast is made available to 
the public;
15) 
public performance
 - the performance, playing or 
any other use of any work or other object protected by this
Law, 
which is intended for several members of the public not 
personally related to the user or not personally
interrelated, 
either directly or by means of any technical equipment or 
process;
16) 
public lending
 - an action by the user of the 
original or a copy of the work of an author, the fixation of a
performance, a phonogram or a film, by means of which the object 
of copyright or related rights is made available
through the 
intermediation of a publicly accessible institution to an 
unlimited number of people for a limited period of
time, not for 
the purpose of gaining direct or indirect economic or commercial 
benefit;
17) 
reproduction
 - the making of one or more copies, by 
any means and in any form and scale, fully or partially,
of an 
object of copyright or related rights, also short-term or 
long-term storage in electronic form of an object of
copyright or 
related rights or a part thereof, as well as the making of 
three-dimensional copies of a two-dimensional
object or 
two-dimensional copies of a three-dimensional object;
18) 
reprographic reproduction
 - the making of facsimile 
copies of a work, by any means of photocopying, except
printing. 
Reprographic reproduction shall also be deemed the scanning or 
the making of facsimile copies by means of
photocopying in an 
enlarged or reduced scale;
19) 
technological measures
 - technological protection 
measures (technologies, devices or the components
thereof) used 
by a holder of copyright or related rights, as well as a maker of 
a database, which are normally used in
order to restrict or 
prevent such activities with an object of copyright or related 
rights, as well as a database, which are
not authorised by the 
holder of copyright or related rights, as well as the maker of 
the database. Technological
measures shall be deemed effective 
where the holder of copyright or related rights, as well as the 
maker of a
database control the use of an object of copyright or 
related rights, as well as a database through the application of 
an
access control or a protection process (with encryption, 
scrambling or other transformation of the object of copyright
or 
related rights or database work or a copy control mechanism which 
achieves the protection objective);
20) 
original work of visual art
 - a work of graphic or 
plastic art (paintings, collages, drawings, engravings,
lithographs, sculptures, tapestries, ceramics or glassware, 
photographs and similar) if they are made by the author
himself 
or herself, or also copies of the work, which are considered to 
be original works of visual art. Copies of the
work which have 
been made in limited numbers by the author himself or herself or 
have been made with his or her
permission shall be considered to 
be original works of visual art. Such copies shall normally have 
been numbered,
signed, or otherwise appropriately designated by 
the author;
21) 
seller of an original work of visual art
 - a 
merchant (also a commission agent) who performs an auction or
whose undertaking is an art gallery, an art salon, a store, an 
internet store, an auction house or the like, in which an
original work of visual art is offered for purchase to a 
customer.
[
22 April 2004; 8 February 2007; 18 April 2013; 6 December 
2018
]
Section 2. Principles of 
Copyright
(1) Copyright shall belong to the author as soon as a work is 
created, regardless of whether it has been completed.
(2) Copyright shall apply to works of literature, science, 
art, and other works referred to in Section 4 of this Law,
2
/
33also 
unfinished works, regardless of the purpose of the work and the 
value, form or type of expression.
(3) Proof of copyright ownership shall not require 
registration, special documentation for the work or conformity 
with
any other formalities.
(4) Authors or their successors in title may indicate their 
rights to a work by means of a copyright protection
symbol which 
shall be affixed in such a manner and in such a place so that it 
is clearly visible. Such a sign shall
include three elements:
1) the letter "C" within a circle;
2) the name (designation) of the copyright holder;
3) the year of first publication of the work.
(5) Copyright has the nature of moral and economic rights.
(6) Copyright shall be governed by the same legal rights as 
personal property rights within the meaning of the Civil
Law, but 
it may not be an object of property claims.
Section 3. Scope of Copyright
(1) Copyright to works that have or have not been disclosed in 
Latvia, but which exist in Latvia in any material
form, shall 
belong to the authors or their heirs, as well as to other 
successors in title.
(2) Copyright to works that are simultaneously published in a 
foreign state and in Latvia shall belong to the authors
and their 
heirs, as well as to other successors in title.
(3) In accordance with Paragraph two of this Section, a work 
shall be deemed published simultaneously in a
foreign state and 
in Latvia if it has been published in Latvia within 30 days after 
its first publication in a foreign state.
(4) Copyright to works that have been disclosed in a foreign 
state in any material form shall be recognised as to
citizens of 
Latvia and as to persons who are entitled to a non-citizen 
passport, or as to persons whose permanent
residence (domicile) 
is in Latvia, as well as to the successors in title to such 
persons. Copyright to works that have
been disclosed or otherwise 
made known in a foreign country in any material form shall be 
recognised as to other
persons, in accordance with the 
international agreements binding on Latvia.
Chapter 
II
Protected and Non-protected Works
Section 4. Protected Works
The objects of copyright, regardless of the manner or form of 
expression, shall comprise the following works of
authors:
1) literary works (books, brochures, speeches, computer 
programs, lectures, addresses, reports, sermons and
other works 
of a similar nature);
2) dramatic and dramatico-musical works, scripts and 
treatments of audio-visual works;
3) choreographic works and pantomimes;
4) musical works with or without lyrics;
5) audio-visual works;
6) drawings, paintings, sculptures and graphic art and other 
works of art;
7) works of applied art, decorative and scenographic 
works;
8) design works;
9) photographic works and works which are expressed by a 
process analogous to photography;
10) sketches, drafts and plans for buildings, structures and 
architectural works, models of buildings and structures,
other 
architectural designs, city construction works and garden and 
park plans and models, as well as fully or partly
constructed 
buildings and implemented city construction or landscape 
objects;
11) geographical maps, plans, sketches, and moulded works 
which relate to geography, topography and other
sciences;
3
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3312) other works of authors.
Section 5. Protected Derivative 
Works
(1) Without prejudice to the rights of authors as to the 
original work, the following derivative works shall also be
protected:
1) translations and adaptations, revised works, annotations, 
theses, summaries, reviews, musical arrangements,
screen and 
stage adaptations and similar works;
2) collections of works (encyclopaedias, anthologies, atlases, 
and similar collections of works), as well as
databases and other 
compiled works which, in terms of selection of materials or 
arrangement, are the result of
creative activity.
(2) Derived works shall be protected irrespective of whether 
the works from which they are derived or which are
included 
within them can have copyright protection applied to them.
(3) Databases, the creation, obtaining, verification or 
presentation of which has required a substantial qualitative or
quantitative investment (financial resources or consumption of 
time and energy), whether or not they are the objects of
copyright, shall be protected in accordance with Chapter IX of 
this Law.
[
22 April 2004; 18 May 2017
]
Section 6. Non-Protected Works
The following shall not be protected by copyright:
1) laws and regulations and administrative acts, other 
documents issued by State and local government
institutions and 
court rulings (laws, court judgements, decisions, and other 
official documents), as well as official
translations of such 
texts and official consolidated versions;
2) State approved, as well as internationally recognised 
official symbols and signs (flags, coats of arms, anthems,
and 
awards) the use of which is subject to specific laws and 
regulations;
3) maps the preparation and use of which are determined by 
laws and regulations;
4) information provided in the press, radio or television 
broadcasts or other information media concerning news of
the day 
and various facts and events;
5) ideas, methods, processes, and mathematical concepts.
[
22 April 2004
]
Chapter 
III
Authors and their Successors in title
Section 7. Copyright holders
(1) The author of a work, co-authors, including authors of 
audio-visual works, authors of derivative works, their
heirs and 
other successors in title may be copyright holders.
(2) Copyright holders may exercise the copyright to a work 
themselves or through their representatives (also
through 
collective management organisations).
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 8. Presumption of 
Authorship
(1) The person whose name or generally recognised pseudonym 
appears on a work communicated to the public or
a published or a 
reproduced work shall be considered to be the author of the work, 
if it is not proven otherwise.
(2) If a work is communicated to the public or published 
without reference to the author, the editor shall act in the
name 
and interests of the author, but if the editor is also not 
identified, then the publisher or the authorised
representative 
of the author. This condition shall be in effect until the author 
of a work reveals his or her identity and
claims authorship.
Section 9. Co-authors
(1) If a work has two or more authors and the individual 
contribution of each author to the creation of the work
4
/
33cannot be 
segregated as a separate work, copyright to the work shall belong 
to all the co-authors jointly.
(2) If the individual contribution of each author is a 
separate work, each author shall have copyright to his or her
individual contribution as a separate work.
(3) Protection against copyright infringement may be realised 
by any of the co-authors, independently from the
other 
co-authors.
(4) If one of the authors refuses to finish or, for reasons 
independent of the author, cannot finish his or her part in
the 
creation of the work, he or she may not prevent the use of his or 
her part of the work in the completion of the work.
Such author 
shall have copyright to his or her part of the work, as well as 
remuneration for it, unless specified
otherwise by contract.
Section 10. Compiler of a Composite 
Work
(1) A compiler the result of whose creative activity is the 
selection or arrangement of materials, holds the copyright
to the 
compilation of the composite work.
(2) Authors of works included in collections or other 
composite works shall each retain copyright to their respective
work and may independently use it also separate from the 
collection or composite work.
(3) The copyright of a compiler shall not impose restrictions 
on other persons to independently make the selection
and 
arrangement of the same works and material.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 11. Authors of Audio-visual 
Works
(1) The authors of an audio-visual work shall be the director, 
the author of the script, the author of the dialogue, the
author 
of a musical work (with or without lyrics) created for the 
audio-visual work, as well as other persons who, as a
result of 
their creative activity, have contributed to the making of the 
work.
(2) The producer of a work may not be recognised as an author 
of an audio-visual work.
(3) The authors of an audio-visual work, except for the author 
of a musical work created for the audio-visual work,
shall each 
retain moral rights to their work, but may not use it 
independently of the whole of the audio-visual work, if it
is not 
specified otherwise by contract with the producer. The author of 
a musical work shall retain both the moral rights
of an author 
and the economic rights of an author. The author of a script may 
use his or her work in a different type of
work, unless specified 
otherwise by contract.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 12. Author of a Work Created 
in the Course of Employment
(1) If an author has created a work performing his or her 
duties in an employment relationship, the moral and
economic 
rights to the work shall belong to the author, except for the 
case specified in Paragraph two of this Section.
The economic 
rights of the author may be transferred, in accordance with a 
contract, to the employer.
(2) If a computer program has been created by an employee 
while performing a work assignment, all economic
rights to the 
computer program so created shall belong to the employer, unless 
specified otherwise by contract.
Section 13. Author's Contract for a 
Commissioned Work
(1) If an author's contract has been entered into for a 
commissioned work, the author must perform the
commissioned work 
in accordance with the provisions of the contract and must 
provide the work for use by the
commissioning party, within the 
term specified and according to the procedures indicated in the 
contract.
(2) It is the obligation of an author to personally perform 
the work commissioned from them.
(3) Co-authors may be invited and the composition of 
co-authors changed only with the written consent of the
commissioning party if it is necessary for the performance of the 
work and is not provided for otherwise in the
contract. If an 
author does not comply with the obligation to perform the work 
personally, the commissioning party
may terminate the 
contract.
Chapter 
IV
Rights of an Author
Section 14. Moral Rights of an 
Author
5
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33(1) The author of a work has the inalienable moral rights of 
an author to the following:
1) authorship - the right to be recognised as the author;
2) a decision whether and when the work will be disclosed;
3) the revocation of a work - the right to request that the 
use of a work be discontinued, with the provision that the
author 
compensate the losses which have been incurred by the user due to 
the discontinuation;
4) name - the right to require his or her name to be 
appropriately indicated on all copies and at any public event
associated with his or her work, or to require the use of a 
pseudonym or anonymity;
5) inviolability of a work - the right to permit or prohibit 
the making of any transformations, changes or additions
either to 
the work itself or to its title;
6) legal action (also unilateral repudiation of a contract 
without compensation for losses) against any distortion,
modification, or other transformation of his or her work, as well 
as against such an infringement of an author's rights
as may 
damage the honour or reputation of the author.
(2) None of the rights mentioned in Paragraph one of this 
Section may be transferred to another person during the
lifetime 
of the author.
Section 15. Economic Rights of an 
Author
(1) With respect to the use of his or her own work, an author, 
except for the author of a computer program or a
database, has 
following exclusive rights:
1) to communicate the work to the public;
2) to publish the work;
3) to publicly perform the work;
4) to distribute the work;
5) to broadcast the work;
6) to retransmit the work;
7) to make the work available to the public by wire or by 
other means, so that it is accessible in an individually
selected 
location and at an individually selected time;
8) to lease, rent or to publicly lend originals or copies of a 
work, except for three-dimensional architectural works
and works 
of applied art;
9) directly or indirectly, temporarily or permanently 
reproduce the work;
10) to translate a work;
11) to arrange, to adapt for stage or screen, or to otherwise 
transform a work.
(2) With respect to the use of a computer program, the author 
of a computer program has the following exclusive
rights:
1) to distribute the computer program;
2) to make the computer program available to the public by 
wire or by other means, so that it is accessible in an
individually selected location and at an individually selected 
time;
3) to lease, rent or to publicly lend the computer 
program;
4) to temporarily or permanently reproduce the computer 
program (insofar as the loading, demonstration, use,
transmission 
or storage of the computer program requires its reproduction, if 
permission for such action has been
granted in writing by the 
rightholder);
5) to translate, adapt and in any other way transform the 
computer program and reproduce the results obtained
thereby 
(insofar as it is not contrary to the rights of the person who 
transforms the computer program).
(3) With respect to the use of a database, the author of a 
database has the following exclusive rights to permit or
prohibit:
1) the communication to the public or demonstration of the 
database;
6
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332) the distribution of the database;
3) to make the database available to the public by wire or by 
other means, so that it is accessible in an individually
selected 
location and at an individually selected time;
4) the temporary or permanent reproduction of the 
database;
5) the translation, adaptation or transformation in any other 
way of the database, as well as the reproduction,
distribution, 
communication to the public, demonstration or display of the 
results of such activities.
(4) The author has the right to use his or her work in any 
manner, to permit or prohibit its use, receive remuneration
for 
permission to use his or her work and for the use of the work 
except for the cases provided for in law.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 16. Transfer of the Rights 
of an Author
(1) The right to disclose and to use a work and to receive 
remuneration for the permission to use a work, and for
the use of 
the work shall pass to the heirs of the author. The heirs of an 
author have the right to protect the moral
rights of the 
author.
(2) Only the rights specified in Section 15, Paragraphs one, 
two, and three of this Law may be transferred to other
successors 
in title (including legal persons).
(3) Copyright is not linked with property rights to the 
material object in which the work is expressed. Copyright to a
work expressed in a material object shall be dissociated from 
possession of such work. Transfer of possession of a
material 
object (also a copy of the first fixation of the work) shall not 
of itself result in the transfer of copyright to the
work.
Section 17. Inalienable Right of 
Authors to Receive Remuneration in the Case of the Public Resale 
of
Original Works of Visual Art 
(Droit de Suite)
(1) Authors shall retain inalienable rights to receive 
remuneration for alienated original works of visual art which
have been transferred to the ownership of another person. An 
agreement in respect of which the author waives the
right to 
remuneration in the future shall not be in effect. The transfer 
of ownership of the original work of visual art from
the author 
to another person, with or without remuneration, shall be 
considered the first alienation of such a work.
(2) After the first alienation of the original work of art, 
the further public resale (by auction, or through the mediation
of an art gallery, an art salon, a store, an Internet store, an 
auction house or similar enterprise) of the original work of
visual art, the author has the right to receive a remuneration 
of:
1) 5% for the portion of the resale price up to 50 000 
euros;
2) 3% for the portion of the resale price from 50 000.01 euros 
to 200 000 euros;
3) 1% for the portion of the resale price from 200 000.01 
euros to 350 000 euros;
4) 0.5% for the portion of the resale price from 350 000.01 
euros to 500 000 euros;
5) 0.25% for the portion of the resale price exceeding 500 000 
euros.
(3) The amount of remuneration each time for one original work 
of visual art may not exceed 12 500.00 euros.
(4) The monetary amount (without tax) received by the seller 
of an original work of visual art shall be considered
the sale 
price.
(5) The seller of an original work of visual art has a duty to 
pay remuneration to a collective management
organisation which 
manages these rights, within 10 days after selling of the work, 
unless the agreement with the
collective management organisation 
provides for another time limit for the payment.
(6) On the basis of a request from a collective management 
organisation managing these rights, the seller (also
store, 
gallery, salon, etc.) has a duty to provide the information which 
is necessary in order to ensure management of
the remuneration. 
Such a request may be made within three years after the sale of 
the original work of visual art.
(7) The owner of the original work of visual art has a duty to 
give the author of the alienated work a possibility to
realise 
the right to reproduce the work, as well as to exhibit the work 
in a personal exhibition. The author has a duty
himself or 
herself to ensure the preservation of the work in delivering it 
to and from the place of reproduction or
exhibition, unless 
specified otherwise by contract.
(8) The rights referred to in this Section shall be applied to 
foreign authors and their heirs only in such case if the
specific 
country protects the public resale rights of original works of 
visual art of Latvian authors and their heirs.
7
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33(9) After the death of the author, the rights referred to in 
this Section shall be devolved to the heirs of the author.
[
22 April 2004; 8 February 2007; 6 December 2007; 12 
September 2013; 28 November 2013; 18 May 2017
]
Section 17.
1
 
Banknotes
(1) The Bank of Latvia holds the copyright of lat banknotes. 
The Bank of Latvia copyright does not affect the right
of the 
author of the images used on the banknotes to be recognised as 
the author thereof.
(2) It is prohibited to reproduce banknotes in any way, except 
for the case where the Bank of Latvia, the European
Central Bank, 
the central bank or country which has emitted such banknotes has 
provided written permission or the
requirements of the Bank of 
Latvia, the European Central Bank or the relevant country for the 
reproduction of
banknotes. Restrictions on the economic rights of 
authors shall not apply to banknotes.
[
22 April 2004
]
Chapter V
Restrictions on the Economic Rights of an Author
Section 18. Principles of 
Restrictions on Economic Rights of an Author
(1) The right of an author to permit or prohibit the use of 
his or her work and receive remuneration for its use may
be 
restricted in cases specified by this Law.
(2) The restrictions on the economic rights of an author 
determined in this Law shall be applied in such a way that
they 
are not contrary to the provisions for normal use of the work of 
an author and may not unjustifiably limit the lawful
interests of 
the author.
(3) In case of doubt, it shall be considered that the right of 
an author to the use of the work or to the receipt of
remuneration is not restricted.
(4) If a user of the work has the right to use the work in the 
cases specified in Section 20, Paragraph one, Clause
1, Sections 
21-24 and 27 of this Law, but he or she cannot implement these 
rights due to the effective technological
measures used by the 
author, he or she has the right to request that the author gives 
access to such works taking
into account the restrictions of the 
rights of an author. The author may refuse to provide such a 
possibility if the use of
the work is contrary to the provisions 
of Paragraph two of this Section.
(5) If the user of the work and the author cannot reach an 
agreement in respect of the provisions of Paragraph four
of this 
Section, they may apply to a mediator.
[
22 April 2004; 18 December 2014
]
Section 19. Use of a Work of an 
Author without the Consent of the Author and without 
Compensation
(1) Copyright shall not be considered infringed if a work of 
an author is used without the consent of the author and
without 
compensation in accordance with the procedures laid down this 
Law:
1) a work is used for informational purposes;
2) a work is used for educational and research purposes;
3) a work is used for the benefit of a person with functional 
limitations;
3
1
) a certain work is used for the benefit of 
persons who are blind or with other reading difficulties;
4) a work is used for the benefit of libraries, archives, and 
museums;
5) a work is reproduced for the purposes of judicial 
proceedings;
6) a use is made of a work that is publicly accessible or on 
display;
7) a work is used in a public performance during official or 
religious ceremonies, as well as in teaching institutions
as part 
of a face-to-face teaching process;
8) a work is used ephemerally by broadcasting 
organisations;
9) a work is parodied or caricatured;
10) computer programs are used for reproduction, translation, 
and other transformation;
8
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3311) to ensure the interoperability of a computer program;
12) the alienation of a work to another person occurs 
repeatedly, except for as provided for in Section 17 of this
Law.
(2) [22 April 2004]
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007; 6 December 2018
]
Section 19.
1
 Public 
Lending of a Work
(1) Copyright shall not be deemed to be infringed if without 
the consent of the author, but with the payment of just
compensation to him or her, the published work is used for public 
lending.
(2) The procedures for calculating the amount of compensation 
referred to in Paragraph one of this Section in
relation to the 
libraries of the State, local governments or other derived public 
persons and in relation to private
libraries, as well as the 
procedures for disbursing the compensation and the proportional 
distribution among authors,
performers, phonograph producers and 
film producers shall be determined by the Cabinet.
(3) Compensation for the use of a published work for public 
lending in libraries of the State, local governments,
derived 
public persons and in private libraries shall be paid into the 
account in a credit institution indicated by the
collective 
management organisation.
[
22 April 2004; 8 February 2007; 18 May 2017
]
Section 20. Use of a Work for 
Informational Purposes
(1) It being mandatory that the title of the work and the name 
of the author to be used are indicated and that the
provisions of 
Sections 14 and 18 of this Law are observed, it is permitted:
1) to reproduce works communicated to the public and published 
in the form of quotations and fragments for
scientific, research, 
polemical, critical purposes, as well as use in news broadcasts 
and reports of current events to
the extent justified by the 
purpose;
2) to publish, to broadcast or otherwise make known publicly 
given political speeches, addresses, announcements
and other 
analogous works, to the extent justified by the informational 
purpose;
3) to fixate, communicate to the public and publish current 
events by photographic works; for a broadcasting
organisation - 
to broadcast works which have been seen or heard in the course of 
current events, to the extent
justified by the informational 
purpose.
(2) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to computer 
programs.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007
]
Section 21. Use of a Work for 
Educational and Research Purposes
(1) It being mandatory that the title and name of the author 
of the work are indicated and that the provisions of
Section 18 
of this Law are conformed to, it is permitted to use disclosed or 
published works or their fragments in
textbooks which are in 
conformity with educational standards, in radio and television 
broadcasts, in audio-visual
works, in visual aids and the like 
which are specially created and used in the face-to-face teaching 
and research
process in educational and research institutions for 
non-commercial purposes to the extent justified by the purpose of
their activity.
(2) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to computer 
programs.
Section 22. Use of a Work for the 
Benefit of a Person with Functional Limitations
Without the consent of the author and payment of the 
compensation, in accordance with the provisions of Section
18, 
Paragraph two of this Law, an accessible format copy of the 
notified work may, for non-commercial purposes, be
made and 
reproduced, distributed, and published for persons with 
functional limitations, insofar as it is necessary in
the case of 
the relevant limitation of such persons.
[
6 December 2018
]
Section 22.
1
 Use of 
Certain Works for the Benefit of Persons who are Blind or with 
Other Reading
Difficulties
(1) A person who is blind or with other reading difficulties, 
within the meaning of this Law, regardless of any other
functional limitations is a person who meets at least one of the 
following criteria:
9
/
331) is blind;
2) has a visual impairment which prevents the person from 
reading printed works to substantially the same degree
as a 
person without such an impairment and which cannot be improved so 
as to give the person visual function
substantially equivalent to 
that of a person who has no such impairment;
3) has a perceptual disability or other reading difficulty 
preventing the person from reading printed works to
substantially 
the same degree as persons without such disability;
4) due to a physical disability, is unable to hold or 
manipulate a book, focus or move their eyes to the extent that
would be normally acceptable for reading.
(2) The competent authority within the meaning of this Law is 
an authority which provides education or access to
information 
for persons who are blind or with other reading difficulties on a 
non-profit basis. Public authorities and non-
profit organisations 
which provide educational and information access services to 
persons who are blind or with other
reading difficulties, and 
such services are one of the main activities or obligations of 
the abovementioned authorities
or one of the tasks they perform 
in the public interest, are also recognised as competent 
authorities.
(3) A person who is blind or with other reading difficulties, 
or a person who acts in his or her interests, in
accordance with 
the provisions of Section 18, Paragraph two of this Law, may, 
without the consent of the author and
payment of compensation, 
make an accessible format copy of a disclosed printed work 
expressed in any format,
including in audio format, or a musical 
work noted as sheet music, and the illustrations included in such 
works for the
benefit of a person who is blind or with other 
reading difficulties.
(4) The competent authority may, without the consent of the 
author and payment of compensation, in accordance
with the 
provisions of Section 18, Paragraph two of this Law, for 
non-commercial purposes:
1) make accessible format copies of the works indicated in 
Paragraph three of this Section to be used for the
benefit of a 
person who is blind or with other reading difficulties;
2) communicate, make available, distribute, or lend an 
accessible format copy to a person residing in a European
Union 
Member State who is blind or with other reading difficulties or 
to the competent authority established in a
European Union Member 
State.
(5) Upon making an accessible format copy, its maker has an 
obligation to respect the integrity of the work, except
for where 
the transformation of the work is necessary to make it available 
to persons who are blind or with other
reading difficulties.
(6) A person who is blind or with other reading difficulties 
and the competent authority are entitled to obtain or
access an 
accessible format copy from any competent authority established 
in a European Union Member State.
(7) The competent authority established in Latvia which 
carries out the activities specified in Paragraph four or six
of 
this Section with accessible format copies in respect of persons 
residing in other European Union Member States
who are blind or 
with other reading difficulties or the competent authorities 
established in a European Union Member
State:
1) shall take the appropriate measures to discourage the 
unauthorised reproduction, distribution, communication to
the 
public or making available to the public of accessible format 
copies;
2) shall handle works and their accessible format copies with 
due diligence and maintain records of the activities
carried out 
therewith;
3) shall publish and update on its website or through other 
forms of public disclosure information on how it fulfils
the 
obligations laid down in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Paragraph;
4) upon request shall submit the following information to the 
persons who are blind or with other reading difficulties,
to 
other competent authorities, or to copyright holders:
a) the list of the works held thereby in accessible format 
copies and the available formats of these works,
b) the names and contact information of the competent 
authorities with which it exchanges accessible format
copies.
[
6 December 2018
]
Section 23. Use of Works for the 
Benefit of Libraries, Archives and Museums
(1) In accordance with the provisions of Section 18 of this 
Law, each library, archives or museum are entitled to
make one 
copy of a work existing in their permanent collection by means of 
reproduction, without a direct or indirect
commercial purpose, in 
order to preserve it or to replace a work from the permanent 
collection of the relevant or any
other library, archives or 
museum if such work has been damaged or has become unusable on 
the condition that it is
10
/
33not possible to obtain a copy in some 
other acceptable manner, and the reproduction is repeated in 
separate and
mutually unrelated cases. Only such works that have 
been published in Latvia and are not available commercially are
permitted to be reproduced in a digital format, unless an 
agreement with the author determines otherwise.
(2) Without the consent of the author, libraries, archives and 
museums of the State, local governments or of other
derived 
public persons are entitled, without a direct or indirect 
commercial purpose, to make available the works in
their 
permanent collection, as well as copies thereof made in 
accordance with Paragraph one of this Section, upon
request for 
the use for scientific research or for self-education purposes, 
to natural persons who have authorised
access to computers 
specifically set up in the premises of the relevant library, 
archives or museum. Such service
shall be ensured by the relevant 
library, archives or museum by using exclusively the intranet 
that has special
protection.
(3) The provision of Paragraph two of this Section shall also 
apply to the registered libraries of the State, local
governments 
and other derived public persons that have access in a closed 
network to the Latvian Digital Library and
are included in the 
joint State library information system.
(4) In order to ensure the fulfilment of the provision of 
Paragraph two of this Section and the payment of
compensation in 
accordance with Section 19.
1
 of this Law, State and 
local government libraries shall maintain records
of the units 
issued to the users of the libraries in accordance with the 
provisions of Section 15 of the Library Law.
(5) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to computer 
programs.
[
6 December 2007
]
Section 24. Reproduction of a Work 
for Purposes of Judicial Proceedings
(1) Reproduction of a work is permitted to the extent 
justified, for purposes of judicial proceedings, without the
permission of the author and without compensation to the 
author.
(2) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to computer 
programs.
Section 25. Use of a Work on Public 
Display
(1) It is permitted to use images of works of architecture, 
photography, visual arts, design, as well as of applied
arts, 
permanently displayed in public places, for personal use and as 
information in news broadcasts or reports of
current events, or 
include in works for non-commercial purposes.
(2) That which is referred to in this Section shall not apply 
to cases when the image of a work is an object for
further 
repetition of the work, for broadcast by broadcasting 
organisations or for the purpose of commercial use of the
image 
of a work.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007
]
Section 26. Free Use of a Work in a 
Public Performance
In conformity with the provisions of Section 18, Paragraph two 
of this Law, a work may be performed in public
without the 
consent of the author and without the payment of 
remuneration:
1) during official and religious ceremonies, to the extent 
justified by the nature of the ceremony;
2) within the framework of the implementation of an 
educational programme, to an extent that corresponds to the
teaching process and for non-commercial purposes, with a 
mandatory indication of the title and the name of the author
of 
the work being used, and provided that the work is performed in 
public to an audience consisting of only the
teachers, students 
or persons directly associated with the implementation of the 
relevant educational programme.
[
6 December 2007
]
Section 27. Free Recordings for 
Ephemeral Use by Broadcasting Organisations
(1) In conformity with the provisions of Section 18, Paragraph 
two of this Law, a broadcasting organisation may
make ephemeral 
recordings of works which the organisation has the right to use 
in broadcasting, if the broadcasting
organisation makes such 
recordings on its own account for its own use.
(2) The broadcasting organisation has the obligation to 
destroy such recordings within one month after their
preparation, 
if there has not been an agreement with the author regarding a 
longer storage time.
(3) Recordings of works that have a particular documentary or 
cultural and historical significance may be preserved
in official 
archives without an agreement with the author of the work, but 
the use of such a work requires the
permission of the author.
[
22 April 2004]
11
/
33Section 28. Reproduction of a Work 
for Technical Use in a Broadcasting Organisation
[22 April 2004]
Section 29. Restrictions Regarding 
the Rights of Reproduction, Translation, Adaptation and any other
Transformation of Computer Programs
(1) If not specified otherwise by contract, and the right to 
use a computer program has been lawfully obtained, its
reproduction, translation, adaptation or any other transformation 
and the reproduction of the results of such activities
shall not 
require any special permission from the copyright holder, as long 
as such activities (including correction of
errors) are necessary 
for the purpose of the intended use of the computer program.
(2) A contract entered into with a person who has lawfully 
acquired the right to use a computer program may not
prohibit the 
making of a back-up copy, if such copy is necessary for the use 
of the computer program.
(3) A person who has the right to use a computer program may, 
without the permission of the copyright holder,
observe, study or 
test the functioning of the program in order to discover the 
ideas and principles which underlie any
element of the computer 
program, if such person does so while demonstrating, using, 
broadcasting or storing.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 30. Ensuring the 
Interoperability of Computer Programs
(1) The permission of the copyright holder shall not be 
required, if, without reproducing the code of the computer
program or modifying its form, it is not possible to obtain the 
necessary information in order to achieve the
interoperability of 
an independently created computer program with other computer 
programs. Such use shall be
permitted, if the following 
provisions are observed in their entirety:
1) a person who has lawfully acquired the right to use a copy 
of the computer program performs the relevant
activities;
2) the information necessary to achieve interoperability has 
not been easily accessible beforehand;
3) only those parts of the computer program which are 
necessary to achieve interoperability, are subject to such
activities.
(2) In accordance with the provisions of Paragraph one of this 
Section, the information obtained may not be:
1) used for purposes other than to achieve interoperability 
with an independently created computer program;
2) disclosed to other persons, except for the cases when it is 
necessary to achieve interoperability with an
independently 
created computer program;
3) used with the intention of developing, producing or selling 
a substantially similar computer program, or for any
other 
activity whereby copyright is infringed.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 31. Restrictions with 
Respect to Databases
(1) A lawful user of a database or of a copy thereof may 
perform any action which is necessary in order to access
the 
contents of the databases and its use. If the lawful user is 
authorised to use only part of the database, the
abovementioned 
provision shall apply only to that part.
(2) Agreements which are contrary to the provisions of this 
Section shall not be in effect.
Section 32. Exhaustion of 
Distribution Rights
The right to distribute a work shall be exhausted from the 
moment when such work is sold or otherwise alienated in
the 
European Union for the first time if it has been done by the 
author himself or herself, or with his or her consent.
This 
condition applies only to works embodied in concrete material 
objects or the copies thereof and which are sold or
otherwise 
alienated.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 33. Temporary Reproduction 
of a Work
It is permitted to temporarily reproduce a work without the 
consent of the author and without compensation if the
reproduction of the work is an integral part and an essential 
component of a technological process and the purpose of
the 
reproduction is to permit the sending of the work performed by 
the intermediary to a data network between third
persons or the 
lawful use thereof, and if such reproduction has no independent 
economic significance.
12
/
33[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007
]
Section 34. Blank Tape Levy
(1) Without the permission of the author, a natural person 
shall be permitted to reproduce (including in a digital
format) 
in one copy works that have been included in lawfully acquired 
films or phonograms or in other form of
expression that is to be 
protected, as well as visual works for personal use without 
direct or indirect commercial
purpose. Third persons shall not be 
involved in the production of such copy. The author is entitled 
to receive a fair
compensation (blank tape levy) for the 
production of such copy.
(2) The blank tape levy for the reproduction for personal use 
shall be paid by the manufacturers of equipment and
blank 
recording media to be used for such reproduction and by persons 
who import them in Latvia.
(3) The blank tape levy shall not be paid if the equipment and 
blank recording media referred to in Paragraph two of
this 
Section is imported for professional use by broadcasting 
organisations or the equipment and blank recording
media are 
imported wholesale for reproduction of works for commercial 
purposes, as well as where natural persons
import such equipment 
and blank recording media for non-commercial purposes.
(4) If the equipment and blank recording media referred to in 
Paragraph two of this Section are exported unused
from Latvia, 
persons who have paid the blank tape levy have the right to 
receive it back.
(5) The seller of the equipment and blank recording media 
referred to in Paragraph two of this Section, on the basis
of a 
request from a collective management organisation, has a duty to 
prove that the blank tape levy for the
abovementioned equipment 
and blank recording media has been paid.
(6) If a seller cannot prove that the blank tape levy has been 
paid, the seller shall pay such levy. In such case, the
seller is 
entitled to bring a subrogation action against the manufacturer 
or the person who imported the referred to
equipment and blank 
recording media into Latvia.
(7) The amount of the blank tape levy, procedures for 
collection, repayment and payment of the levy, as well as
proportional distribution among authors, performers and phonogram 
and film producers shall be determined by the
Cabinet.
(8) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to computer 
programs and data bases.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007; 18 May 2017
]
Section 35. Compensation for 
Reprographic Reproduction of Works
(1) Natural persons shall be permitted to reprographically 
reproduce published works, except for sheet music, for
personal 
use without direct or indirect commercial purpose without the 
permission of the author. Persons who have in
their ownership or 
possession the equipment intended for reprographic reproduction 
and who ensure the availability of
such reproduction to natural 
persons for a fee or free of charge shall be allowed to 
reprographically reproduce works
for the benefit of and for the 
personal use of a natural person. Authors and publishers are 
entitled to receive a fair
compensation for reprographic 
reproduction.
(2) The compensation for reprographic reproduction shall be 
paid by persons in whose ownership or possession
there is the 
equipment intended for reprographic reproduction and who ensure 
the availability of such reproduction to
natural persons for a 
fee or free of charge.
(3) The amount of compensation to be paid for reprographic 
reproduction, and also the procedures for its collection,
repayment and disbursement shall be determined by the collective 
management organisation according to an
agreement with the 
persons, or an association thereof, referred to in Paragraph two 
of this Section.
(4) The Cabinet shall set up a commission representing the 
public administration and shall agree with the collective
management organisation on the criteria for determining the 
relevant compensation and its amount. The composition
of the 
commission shall include representatives of the Ministry of 
Culture, the Ministry of Education and Science, the
Ministry of 
Environmental Protection and Regional Development, the Ministry 
of Justice, and the Ministry of Finance.
The agreement reached by 
the Commission shall be approved by the Cabinet.
(5) Compensation shall be collected, distributed and paid to 
the authors and publishers by a single collective
management 
organisation that has obtained a permit from the Ministry of 
Culture in accordance with Law on Collective
Management of 
Copyright.
(6) The collected compensation shall be distributed among 
authors and publishers on the basis of the printed
publications 
included in the unified National Catalogue which have been 
delivered to the National Library of Latvia in
accordance with 
the Legal Deposit Law and in conformity with the following 
conditions:
1) in distributing the compensation, the number of works 
included in the National Catalogue and the information
compiled 
by the National Library of Latvia regarding the number of printed 
sheets shall be taken into consideration,
13
/
33whereas the content of 
the works shall not be taken into consideration;
2) authors and publishers shall agree on proportional 
distribution separately for periodical publications and 
non-
periodical publications, in conformity with the provisions of 
Paragraph one of this Section.
[
6 December 2007; 16 December 2010; 18 December 2014; 18 
May 2017
]
Chapter 
VI
Term of Copyright
Section 36. General Provisions 
Regarding the Term of Copyright
(1) Copyright shall be in effect for the entire lifetime of an 
author and for 70 years after the death of an author,
except for 
the cases specified in Section 37 of this Law.
(2) If the country in which the work has been created is not a 
Member State of the European Union according to
Article 5, 
Paragraph 4 of the Berne Convention for the Protection of 
Literary and Artistic Works and the author of the
work is not a 
citizen of the European Union, the term of protection of this 
work in the European Union shall expire on
the date of expiry of 
the protection granted by the country of origin, but it shall not 
exceed the term specified in
Paragraph one of this Section.
[
6 December 2007
]
Section 37. Term of Copyright for 
Particular Types of Works
(1) Copyright to audio-visual works shall be in effect for 70 
years after the death of the last of the following
persons:
1) the director;
2) the author of the script;
3) the author of the dialogue;
4) the author of a musical work created for an audio-visual 
work.
(2) Copyright to a work that has legally become available to 
the public anonymously or under a pseudonym shall
be in effect 
for 70 years from the time when it has legally become available 
to the public. If during the time referred to
the author of a 
work whose work has legally become available to the public 
anonymously or under a pseudonym
reveals his or her identity, or 
if there is no doubt about the identity, Section 36, Paragraph 
one of this Law shall apply.
(3) Copyright to a work created by co-authors shall be in 
effect for the duration of the lives of all the co-authors and
for 70 years after the death of the last surviving co-author.
(4) As to authors, whose works were prohibited in Latvia or 
the use of which was restricted from June 1940 to May
1990, the 
years of prohibition or restriction shall be excluded from the 
term of the copyright.
(5) Copyright to works, whose term of copyright begins at the 
moment of legal publication and which are published
in volumes, 
parts, instalments or sections, shall be in force separately for 
each volume, part, instalment or section.
(6) A work, the term of protection of which is not calculated 
from the moment of the death of the author or authors,
protection 
shall expire if within 70 years after the creation of such a work 
it has lawfully not become accessible to the
public.
(7) Any person, who after expiration of a copyright lawfully 
publishes or communicates to the public a previously
unpublished 
work, shall acquire rights which are equivalent to the economic 
rights of an author and shall be in effect
for 25 years from the 
first publication or the communicating to the public of the 
work.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 38. Calculation of the 
Duration of Copyright
The beginning of a copyright term provided for in this chapter 
shall begin on 1 January of the year following the
moment of the 
creation of rights (legal fact) and shall expire on 31 December 
of the year in which the terms referred to
in Sections 36 and 37 
of this Law expire.
Section 39. Works to which Copyright 
has Expired
(1) Works in respect of which copyright has expired may be 
freely used by any person, observing the right of the
author to a 
name and inviolability of the work in accordance with the 
provisions of Section 14 of this Law.
14
/
33(2) Remuneration shall not be paid to the author for the use 
of such works.
Chapter 
VII
Rights to the Use of Works
Section 40. Rights to the Use of 
Works
(1) To obtain the right to use a work, it is necessary for the 
user of the work, for each type of use and each time it
is to be 
used, to receive the permission of the copyright holder. It is 
prohibited to use works if permission of the
copyright holder has 
not been received, except for the cases specified in law.
(2) The permission of the copyright holder shall be issued 
both as a licensing agreement and as a licence.
(3) Before using a work, the user of the work must enter into 
a licensing agreement or obtain a licence for the use
of the 
work.
(4) The document which certifies the right to the use of a 
work shall be in possession of the organiser of a concert,
performance, attraction or event at least 10 days prior to the 
relevant event.
(5) Upon request from a copyright holder, users of works have 
a duty to provide information regarding the works
used in the 
amount requested by the copyright holder. The right of a 
collective management organisation to receive
information 
regarding the use of the works and the procedures for requesting 
it shall be determined in the Law on
Collective Management of 
Copyright.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007; 18 May 2017
]
Section 41. Licensing Agreements
(1) A licensing agreement is an agreement by means of which 
one party - the copyright holder - gives permission
to the other 
party - the user of the work - to use a work and specifies the 
type of use of the work, thereby agreeing on
the provisions for 
the use, the amount of remuneration, the procedures and the term 
for the payment of remuneration.
(2) In a licensing agreement, the grant of a licence for the 
use of a work in one or more specified ways may be
provided for, 
as well as the right to grant a licence to third parties 
(sub-licence). The particular rights may be
transferred 
completely or partially. If the agreement does not so specify, a 
licence shall be limited to such actions as
arise from the 
agreement and which are necessary for achieving the purpose of 
the agreement.
(3) If the amount of remuneration is not specified in the 
licence, in case of a dispute it shall be determined upon
discretion of the court.
Section 42. Types of Licences
(1) A licence constitutes permission to use the particular 
work in such a way and in accordance with such
provisions as are 
indicated in the licence. A licence may be non-exclusive, 
exclusive or compulsory.
(2) A non-exclusive licence gives the recipient of the licence 
the right to undertake activities indicated in the
licence 
concurrently with the author or other persons who have received 
or will receive a relevant licence.
(3) An exclusive licence gives the right to conduct the 
activities specified in the licence solely to the recipient of
the licence.
(4) A compulsory licence is issued by a collective management 
organisation, and such licence gives the right to
use the works 
of all the authors represented by such organisation.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 43. Form of Licences and 
Licensing Agreements
(1) All licences shall be issued in writing.
(2) A licensing agreement may be entered into either orally or 
in writing.
The following licensing agreements shall be entered into in 
writing:
1) a publishing contract;
2) a contract for the communicating to the public of a 
work;
3) a contract for creating an audio-visual work;
15
/
334) a contract specifying such rights as are included in a 
compulsory licence or an exclusive licence.
Section 44. Term of a Licensing 
Agreement or a Licence
(1) The term for which a licensing agreement is entered into 
or for which a licence is issued shall be determined by
agreement 
of the parties.
(2) If a licensing agreement which has been entered into or a 
licence which has been issued is not restricted as to
time, the 
author or other copyright holder may terminate the licensing 
agreement or revoke the licence, giving a notice
six months in 
advance.
(3) A provision in a licensing agreement or a licence 
according to which the author relinquishes the rights specified
in Paragraph two of this Section is void.
Section 45. Territory in which a 
Licensing Agreement or a Licence is in Effect
(1) A licensing agreement or a licence must indicate the 
territory in which it is in effect.
(2) If a licensing agreement or a licence does not indicate 
the territory in which it is in effect, it shall be in effect in
the country where the licensing agreement was concluded or the 
licence was issued.
Section 46. Rental of a Work
(1) An author shall retain the right to receive just 
remuneration for a rental even if he or she has transferred to a
producer the rental rights to a phonogram, the original of the 
audio-visual work or copies thereof.
(2) If an author has transferred to a producer the rental 
rights to a phonogram, the original of the audio-visual work
or 
copies thereof, the author shall retain the right to receive 
remuneration for their rental.
(3) An agreement according to which the author relinquishes 
the right to receive remuneration for a future period
shall not 
be in effect.
Chapter 
VIII
Related Rights
Section 47. Objects and Holders of 
Related Rights
(1) Related rights are the rights of performers, phonogram 
producers, film producers and of broadcasting
organisations.
(2) The related rights objects are performances, and their 
fixations, phonograms, films and broadcasts.
(3) The rightholders specified in this Section are performers, 
phonogram producers, film producers, and
broadcasting 
organisations or their successors in title and heirs.
(4) Cable operators who only retransmit the broadcasts of 
other broadcasting organisations are not holders of
related 
rights.
(5) Phonogram producers, film producers and broadcasting 
organisations shall exercise their rights within the
framework of 
those rights which, in contracts with authors and performers, 
have been granted for the objects of
copyright or related rights. 
Permission for the use of a related rights object, obtained from 
one holder of related rights,
shall not constitute a substitute 
for permission that must be obtained from another holder of 
related rights and from the
author of the work. The permission of 
an author and of a performer is not mutually interchangeable.
(6) Holders of related rights shall exercise the rights 
specified in this Section, conforming to the rights of authors of
the works.
(7) No formalities are necessary to affirm related rights. 
Performers, phonogram producers and film producers may
use, on 
copies of phonograms or their packaging, a sign consisting of two 
elements: the letter "P" within a circle and
the year of the 
first publication of a phonogram or of the year of the fixation 
of a film.
(8) Persons whose name, pseudonym or designation are indicated 
on a related rights object, attached thereto or
appear in 
association with the related rights object, shall be deemed to be 
holders of related rights if not proven
otherwise.
(9) The rights of holders of related rights shall not be 
associated with ownership rights to a material object in which
the related rights object are expressed or included. The rights 
of holders of related rights shall be separated from the
possession of the material object. The devolvement of the 
possession of the related rights object by itself shall not
create the devolvement of the rights of the holder of related 
rights.
16
/
33(10) In relation to the use of a related rights object, the 
provisions of Sections 40-45 of this Law shall be applied.
(11) Holders of related rights shall exercise their rights 
directly, through an authorised person, or through collective
management organisations.
[
22 April 2004; 18 May 2017
]
Section 48. Rights of Performers
(1) [22 April 2004]
(2) A performer, irrespective of his or her economic rights, 
as well as in the case where economic rights are
transferred, 
regarding his or her performance and the fixation thereof has the 
right:
1) to require that he or she be identified as a performer, 
except for the cases when such right is not possible due to
the 
type of use of the performance;
2) to object to any distortion, modification or other 
transformation of his or her performance which may harm the
reputation of the performer.
(3) With respect to their performance, performers shall have 
exclusive rights to:
1) broadcasting or communicating to the public the 
performance, except for the cases when the performance has
already been broadcast;
2) fixation of a performance that has not been previously 
fixed;
3) distribution of the fixation of a performance;
4) broadcasting or retransmission by cable of the fixation of 
a performance;
5) making available to the public of the fixation of a 
performance, by wire or otherwise, in an individually selected
location and at an individually selected time;
6) lease, rent, or public lending of the fixation of a 
performance;
7) directly or indirectly, temporarily or permanently 
reproduce the fixation of a performance;
(4) If performers individually or collectively enter into a 
contract with a film producer for the creation of an audio-
visual 
work, the performers may be considered to have transferred their 
rental rights to the producer, if the contract
does not specify 
otherwise.
(5) If a performer has transferred his or her rental rights, 
with respect to a phonogram or the original or copy of an
audio-visual work, or may be deemed in accordance with Paragraph 
four of this Section, to have transferred their
rental rights to 
the phonogram or film producer, the performer shall retain the 
right to receive just remuneration for
such rental. An agreement 
regarding a waiver of right to receive remuneration for a future 
period shall be void.
(6) The collection, apportionment and payment of the indicated 
remuneration shall be done in accordance with
Section 51, 
Paragraph three of this Law.
(7) For permission granted to use a performance, and for its 
use, a performer shall be paid just remuneration. The
remuneration shall be paid to the performer or to an authorised 
collective management organisation.
(8) [22 April 2004]
(9) If the phonogram producer does not offer copies of the 
phonogram for sale in sufficient quantity or does not
make it 
available to the public, by wire or wireless means, in such a way 
that it could be accessible from a place
individually chosen and 
at a time individually chosen, the performer has the right to 
terminate a contract by which he
or she has transferred to the 
phonogram producer the right to fixation of his or her 
performance, notifying thereof 12
months in advance, if all of 
the following conditions are met:
1) 50 years have passed since lawful publishing or lawful 
communication to the public of the phonogram, if the
phonogram 
has not been published;
2) within 12 months after the performer has notified the 
phonogram producer regarding his or her intention to
terminate 
the contract, the phonogram producer does not offer copies of the 
phonogram for sale in sufficient quantity
and does not make it 
available to the public, by wire or wireless means, in such a way 
that it could be accessible from
a place individually chosen and 
at a time individually chosen.
(10) If the performer terminates a contract in accordance with 
the procedures laid down in Paragraph nine of this
Section, by 
which he or she has transferred to the phonogram producer the 
right to fixation of his or her performance,
17
/
33the right of the 
phonogram producer to the phonogram shall expire. An agreement of 
the performer and the phonogram
producer regarding the performer 
refusing the right to terminate a contract, by which the 
performer has transferred to
the phonogram producer the right to 
fixation of his or her performance, shall be null and void.
(11) If performances of a plurality of performers are fixed in 
a phonogram, performers may exercise the right laid
down in 
Paragraph nine of this Section to terminate a contract with the 
phonogram producer jointly only, including with
the 
intermediation of a joint representative. None of performers may 
refuse, without sufficient justification, other
performers whose 
performances are fixed in the phonogram to exercise the right 
laid down in Paragraph nine of this
Section to terminate a 
contract
(12) If the performer has transferred to the phonogram 
producer the right to fixation of his or her performance for
non-recurring remuneration, the performer has the right to 
receive an annual supplementary remuneration from the
phonogram 
producer in the amount of 20 per cent from the revenue obtained 
by the phonogram producer in the year
prior to payment of the 
abovementioned supplementary remuneration by reproduction, 
distribution and making
available of the relevant phonogram, by 
wire or wireless means, in such a way that it could be accessible 
from a place
individually chosen and at a time individually 
chosen. If performances of a plurality of performers are fixed in 
a
phonogram, the total amount of the annual supplementary 
remuneration to be paid to performers shall conform to 20
per 
cent from the revenue of the phonogram producer referred to in 
this Paragraph. In calculating the amount of the
annual 
supplementary remuneration, the revenue of the phonogram producer 
prior to making of any deductions shall
be taken into 
account.
(13) A performer has the right to receive the annual 
supplementary remuneration indicated in Paragraph twelve of
this 
Section for each calendar year, starting from the following year 
after the fiftieth year when the phonogram has
been lawfully 
published or, if it has not been published, it has been lawfully 
communicated to public. An agreement by
which the performer 
refuses the right to receive the annual supplementary 
remuneration shall be null and void. The
right to receive the 
annual supplementary remuneration shall be managed by one 
collective management organisation.
(14) Upon request the phonogram producer has a duty to provide 
the performer or his or her authorised collective
management 
organisation with all the information which is necessary for 
ensuring payment of the annual
supplementary remuneration 
referred to in Paragraph twelve of this Section, including to 
provide information regarding
the revenue obtained by the 
phonogram producer from the use of the relevant phonogram.
(15) If the performer has transferred the right to fixation of 
his or her performance to the phonogram producer for
recurring 
remuneration, the phonogram producer may not deduct advance 
payments or any other deductions laid down
in the contract with 
the performer from payments intended for the performer after the 
end of the following time periods:
1) 50 years after such phonogram is published in which the 
performance of the performer is fixed;
2) 50 years after lawful communication to the public of the 
phonogram, if the phonogram has not been published.
[
22 April 2004; 28 November 2013; 18 May 2017
]
Section 49. Contract for Creation of 
an Audio-visual Work
(1) By a contract for the creation of an audio-visual work, 
the performer transfers to the film producer his or her
rights to 
the fixation, communication to the public and reproduction of his 
or her performance. The film producer shall
not have the right to 
use separately sounds or images fixed in the audio-visual work, 
if it is not specified otherwise in
the contract. The contract 
for the creation of an audio-visual work shall be entered into in 
writing.
(2) A contract for the creation of an audio-visual work shall 
provide for remuneration to the performer for each type
of use of 
the particular work.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 50. Rights of Film 
Producers
Film producers have exclusive rights in respect of the 
original of the film or copies thereof to:
1) distribute;
2) retransmit by cable;
3) make available to the public by wire or otherwise in an 
individually selected location and at an individually
selected 
time;
4) lease, rent, or publicly lend;
5) directly or indirectly, temporarily or permanently 
reproduce the original of the film or copies thereof.
[
22 April 2004
]
18
/
33Section 51. Rights of Phonogram 
Producers
Phonogram producers have exclusive rights in respect of the 
phonograms or copies thereof to
1) distribute;
2) make available to the public by wire or otherwise in an 
individually selected location and at an individually
selected 
time;
3) lease, rent or publicly lend, also in the cases where the 
distributor thereof is the phonogram producer himself or
herself 
or such has occurred with his or her consent;
4) directly or indirectly, temporarily or permanently 
reproduce the phonograms or copies thereof.
(2) [22 April 2004]
(3) The collection of remuneration for the lease, rental and 
public lending of phonograms, its apportionment and
payment shall 
be carried out by collective management organisations authorised 
by performers and phonogram
producers. The remuneration amounts 
paid by users in conformity with the provisions of this Section 
shall be divided
between the phonogram producer and the 
performers in equal parts, if it is not specified otherwise in 
the contract
between the collective management organisations.
[
22 April 2004; 18 May 2017
]
Section 52. Use of Phonograms 
Published for Commercial Purposes
(1) Performers and phonogram producers have the right to 
receive just compensation for the use of phonograms
published for 
commercial purposes. The use shall include broadcasting, 
publishing, public performance, publishing of
broadcasts 
consisting of phonograms published for commercial purposes, 
retransmission by cable and other ways of
publishing. As a 
phonogram published for commercial purposes shall be deemed also 
such phonograms that are made
legally accessible to the public by 
wire or otherwise so that they are available in an individually 
selected location and
at an individually selected time.
(2) A document that confirms the conformity with the rights 
provided for in Paragraph one of this Section shall be
with the 
user at the time when he or she uses phonograms published for 
commercial purposes.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007
]
Section 53. Rights of Broadcasting 
Organisations
(1) Broadcasting organisations, with respect to their 
broadcasts, shall have exclusive rights to:
1) make broadcasts for a charge or in locations which are 
accessible to the public for a charge, or in locations
where the 
owners or possessors use the broadcasts to attract customers;
2) the transmission of a signal carrying the programme with 
the assistance of any other broadcasting organisation,
cable 
operator, or some other distributor;
3) the acquisition of any photographic image of the screen 
from a broadcast (photograph of the screen) if it is not
done for 
personal use, and any duplication or distribution of such 
photographs
4) retransmission of broadcasts by cable;
5) making a broadcast or the fixation thereof available to the 
public by wire or otherwise so that they are available
in an 
individually selected location and at an individually selected 
time;
6) fixation of any broadcasts by means of sound or video 
recording equipment, direct or indirect, temporary or
permanent 
reproduction of a fixation of a broadcast and any distribution of 
such fixations.
(2) A broadcasting organisation shall receive remuneration for 
permission to use broadcasts and for their use in the
cases 
specified in Paragraph one of this Section.
(3) A broadcasting organisation has the right to broadcast and 
communicate to the public such audio-visual works
and phonograms 
which were lawfully included in its archives until the coming 
into force of the Law on Copyright and
Related Rights (15 May 
1993), paying the remuneration to the holders of copyright and 
related rights in conformity with
the amounts of remuneration 
specified by the collective management organisation.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007; 18 May 2017
]
Section 54. Restrictions on Rights 
of the Holders of Related Rights
(1) It is allowed to restrict the right of a holder of related 
rights to permit or to prohibit the use of a related rights
19
/
33object and to receive compensation for the use thereof in the 
cases specified in this Law.
(2) The restrictions provided for in this Law shall be applied 
in such a way that they are not in contradiction with the
provisions for normal use of a related rights object and do not 
unjustifiably restrict the lawful interests of the holders of
related rights.
(3) Related rights shall not be deemed infringed if, without 
permission of the holders of related rights and without
the 
payment of compensation, the related rights object is used and 
fixed:
1) in short segments that are included in news broadcasts and 
in reports of current events, in amounts appropriate
for 
informative purpose;
2) for other purposes specified in Sections 21, 22, 
22.
1
, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 33 of this Law in respect of 
the
restriction of the economic rights of authors;
3) in the cases specified in Section 23 of this Law, provided 
that it is only allowed to reproduce in a digital format
such 
films and phonograms that have been published in Latvia and are 
not available in circulation, unless specified
otherwise by the 
agreement with the holders of related rights.
(4) Related rights shall not be deemed infringed if, without 
the permission of the holder of related rights but with the
payment of fair compensation to him or her, films, phonograms, as 
well as related rights objects included in a film or a
phonogram 
are used for public lending. The procedures for paying the 
compensation shall be determined in Section
19.
1
, 
Paragraphs two and three of this Law.
(5) Without the consent of the holder of related rights a 
natural person shall be permitted to reproduce (including in
a 
digital format) in one copy lawfully acquired films or 
phonograms, as well as related rights objects included in a
lawfully acquired film or phonogram for personal use, without 
direct or indirect commercial purpose. Third persons
shall not be 
involved in the production of such copy. Holders of related 
rights are entitled to receive fair compensation
(blank tape 
levy) for the production of the copy referred to in Paragraph one 
of this Section. The procedures for paying
the blank type levy 
shall be determined in Section 34, Paragraphs two to seven of 
this Law.
(6) If the use of the related rights object in accordance with 
the provisions specified in Paragraph two of this
Section is not 
possible due to the effective technological means utilised by the 
holder of related rights, the provisions
of Section 18, 
Paragraphs four and five of this Law shall be applicable.
(7) The right of holders of related rights to control the 
distribution in the European Union of the fixation of his or her
performance, phonogram or film or the copies thereof shall expire 
on the date when they are sold or otherwise
alienated in the 
European Union for the first time, if done by the holder of 
related rights himself or herself or with his or
her consent. 
This condition shall apply only to those related rights objects 
included in concrete material media and the
copies thereof which 
have been sold or otherwise alienated.
[
6 December 2007; 6 December 2018
]
Section 55. Term of Related 
Rights
(1) The rights of performers shall be in effect for 50 years 
from the first performance. If during this time a fixation
of the 
performance in a phonogram is lawfully published or communicated 
to the public, the term of protection shall be
in effect 70 years 
from the day of such publication or communication to the public 
of the phonogram, depending on
which action was the first. If 
during this time the performance is not fixed in a phonogram, but 
is fixed in another way,
then the term of protection shall be in 
effect 50 years from the day of the relevant lawful publishing or 
communication
to the public, depending on which action was the 
first. The moral rights of performers shall be in effect as long 
as the
economic rights are in effect.
(2) The rights of a film producer shall be in effect for 50 
years from when the fixation was made. If during this time
a film 
has been lawfully published or communicated to the public, the 
term of protection shall be 50 years from the
day of such 
publishing or communication to the public, depending on which 
action was the first.
(2
1
) The rights of a phonogram producer shall be in 
effect for 50 years from when the fixation was made. If during
this time a phonogram has been lawfully published or, if it has 
not been published, communicated to the public, the
term of 
protection shall be 70 years from the day of such publishing or 
communication to the public.
(3) The rights of broadcasting organisations shall be in 
effect for 50 years from the first transmission of a
broadcast.
(3
1
) The term of protection laid down in Paragraphs 
one, two, 2.
1
 and three of this Section shall also be 
in effect if
the rightholder is not a citizen of the European 
Union but at least one Member State of the European Union ensures
protection to him or her. Such term of protection shall expire on 
the date when the protection granted by the state
whose citizen 
the rightholder is expires, but shall not be longer than the term 
specified in Paragraphs one, two, 2.
1
 and
three of 
this Section, unless otherwise provided by international 
agreements binding for Latvia.
20
/
33(4) The term for related rights provided for in this Section 
shall begin on 1 January of the year following the year in
which 
the rights were created (legal fact) and shall end on 31 December 
of the year in which the time referred to in this
Section 
ends.
[
22 April 2004; 6 December 2007; 28 November 2013 / See 
Paragraph 2 of Transitional Provisions
]
Section 56. Scope of Related 
Rights
(1) The rights of performers shall be recognised if one of the 
following conditions is met:
1) the performer is a citizen of Latvia, or a person entitled 
to a Latvian non-citizen passport, or a person whose
permanent 
residence (domicile) is in Latvia;
2) the performance occurred in Latvia;
3) the performance is fixed in a phonogram which is protected 
in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph two
of this 
Section;
4) a performance that is not fixed in a phonogram, has been 
included in a broadcast of a broadcasting organisation
which is 
protected in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph four of 
this Section.
(2) The rights of phonogram producers shall be recognised if 
one of the following conditions is met:
1) the producer of a phonogram is a citizen of Latvia, or a 
person entitled to a Latvian non-citizen passport, or a
person 
whose permanent residence (domicile) is in Latvia;
2) the first sound fixation was made in Latvia;
3) the publication or making available to the public of the 
phonogram has occurred in Latvia.
(3) The rights of film producers shall be recognised if one of 
the following conditions is met:
1) the film producer is a citizen of Latvia, or a person 
entitled to a Latvian non-citizen passport, or a person whose
permanent residence (domicile) is in Latvia;
2) the first fixation of the film was made in Latvia.
(4) The rights of broadcasting organisations shall be 
recognised in accordance with this Chapter if the official
location of the broadcasting organisation is Latvia.
(5) The rights provided for in this Chapter shall be 
recognised for foreign natural and legal persons in accordance
with international agreements binding on Latvia.
[
22 April 2004
]
Chapter 
IX
Special Aspects of Protection of Databases 
(sui 
generis)
Section 57. Rights of a Maker of a 
Database
(1) As the maker of such database, in the creation, 
verification, and formation of which there has been substantial
qualitative or quantitative investment (Section 5, Paragraph two) 
shall be recognised the natural or legal person which
has 
undertaken initiative and the investment risk regarding the 
making of a database.
(2) The maker of a database has the right to prevent the 
following regarding the entire contents of the database or
such 
parts of which may be qualitatively of quantitatively regarded as 
substantial:
1) extraction which means the permanent or short-term 
(temporary) transfer of all or a substantial part of the
contents 
of a database to another location by any means or in any 
form;
2) re-use which means any form of making available to the 
public all or a substantial part of the contents of a
database by 
the distribution of copies, by rental, by providing on-line or 
other forms of transmission.
(3) Public lending is not an act of extraction or re-use.
(4) The repeated and systematic extraction and re-use of 
non-essential parts of the contents of a database if such
is done 
by acts which conflict with a normal use of such database or 
which unreasonably prejudice the lawful interests
of the maker of 
the database are not permitted.
21
/
33Section 58. Rights and Obligations 
of Users of a Database
(1) A lawful user of a database which is available to the 
public has the right to extract or re-use, for any purposes,
parts of its content that may be regarded as qualitatively or 
quantitatively non-essential parts of its contents. This
condition shall apply only to such part of a database which a 
lawful user is permitted to extract or re-use.
(2) A lawful user of a database which is available to the 
public shall comply with the rights of the holders of
copyright 
or related rights related to the works or materials contained in 
the database.
(3) A lawful user of a database which is available to the 
public may not perform acts that conflict with the normal
exploitation of the database or unreasonably prejudice the lawful 
interests of the maker of the database.
Section 59. Restrictions to Rights 
of Protection of Databases
(1) Without the consent of the maker of a database which is 
available to the public the lawful users of a database
may:
1) extract the contents of a non-electronic database for 
personal use;
2) extract a substantial part of the contents of a database 
for the purposes of education or scientific research,
mandatorily 
indicating the source, moreover only to the extent necessary for 
the non-commercial purpose to be
achieved;
3) extract or re-use a substantial part of the contents of a 
database for the purposes of State security, as well as
for the 
purposes of administrative or judicial proceedings.
(2) The right of the maker of a database to control the resale 
of the database in the European Union shall be
exhausted at the 
moment when the database is sold or otherwise alienated in the 
European Union for the first time, if
it has been done by the 
maker of the database himself or herself, or if it has been done 
with his or her consent. This
condition shall apply only to those 
objects included in concrete material media or the copies thereof 
which are sold or
otherwise alienated.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 60. Term of Rights of 
Protection of Databases
(1) The rights specified in Section 57, Paragraph two of this 
Law shall be in effect for 15 years from the day when
the 
formation of a database was completed. The term shall begin on 1 
January of the year following the day of the
formation of the 
database.
(2) If a database has been made available to the public before 
the expiration of the term specified in Paragraph one
of this 
Section, the term of protection shall begin on 1 January of the 
year following the day when the database was
first made available 
to the public and shall be in effect for 15 years.
(3) If any changes that may be regarded as qualitatively or 
quantitatively substantial are made in the contents of
the 
database, as well changes in it resulting from the accumulation 
of successive additions, deletions or changes as a
result of 
which it may be considered that a new investment which may be 
regarded as qualitatively or quantitatively
substantial, has been 
made, such database has the right to its own term of protection, 
and the provisions of
Paragraphs one and two of this Section 
shall apply.
Section 61. Scope of Rights of 
Protection of Databases
(1) The rights of the maker of a database - a natural person - 
shall be recognised, if he or she is a Latvian citizen
or a 
person who is entitled to a Latvian non-citizen passport, a 
citizen of another Member State of the European Union
or if 
Latvia or another Member State of the European Union is their 
permanent place of residence (domicile) or if he or
she has a 
permanent residence permit.
(2) The rights of a maker of a database - a legal person - 
shall be recognised, if such legal person has been
established in 
accordance with the laws and regulations of Latvia or another 
Member State of the European Union,
and its legal address, 
administration or principal place of activities is in the 
European Union. If a legal person has only
its legal address in 
the territory of Latvia or another Member State of the European 
Union, the operations of such
person must be linked on an ongoing 
basis with the economy of Latvia or the relevant Member State of 
the European
Union.
(3) If a database is formed outside Latvia and the provisions 
of Paragraph one and two of this Section are not
applicable to 
it, such database shall be protected on the basis of 
international agreements binding on Latvia.
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 62. Protection of Rights of 
Makers of Databases
22
/
33The rights of makers of databases shall be protected in 
accordance with the provisions of Chapter XI of this Law.
[
22 April 2004
]
Chapter 
IX.
1
Use of Orphan Works
[
18 December 2014
]
Section 62.
1
 Orphan 
Works
(1) In conformity with that laid down in this Chapter 
libraries, educational institutions, and museums, as well as
archives, institutions, the functions of which include 
preservation of film or sound recordings, and public broadcasting
organisations shall be permitted the following in relation to 
orphan works included in their collections, without the
consent 
of the holders of copyright and related rights:
1) to reproduce in order to make their copies in digital 
format, to index, catalogue, preserve or restore, to make
legally 
accessible to the public by wire or otherwise so that they are 
available in an individually selected location and
at an 
individually selected time;
2) make available to the public by wire or otherwise so that 
they are available in an individually selected location
and at an 
individually selected time.
(2) Within the meaning of this Law orphan works are works 
included in the collections of libraries, educational
institutions, and museums, as well as archives and such 
institution, the functions of which include preservation of film
or sound recordings, and related rights objects which have been 
published or broadcasted for the first time in any
European Union 
Member State and the rightholders of which could not be 
identified or found after diligent search:
1) works published in the form of books, journals, magazines, 
newspapers or other writings;
2) audiovisual works, including cinematographic works, and 
their fixations;
3) phonograms;
4) works and related rights objects which are included in the 
works and related rights referred to in this Paragraph.
(3) Within the meaning of this Law orphan works are also works 
included in the archives of public broadcasting
organisations 
which have been created until 31 December 2002, including 
cinematographic works, their fixations and
phonograms, as well as 
works and related rights objects which have been included in the 
abovementioned works and
related rights objects if the respective 
works and related rights objects have been published or 
broadcasted for the
first time in any European Union Member State 
and the rightholders thereof could not be identified or found 
after
diligent search.
(4) Works and related rights objects which have not been 
published or broadcasted may be used in accordance
with the 
procedures laid down in this Section, if the authority referred 
to in Paragraph one of this Section which wishes
to use them, 
with a permission of the respective rightholder has made them 
accessible to the public otherwise and
there are grounds to 
assume that the rightholders would not have objected to the use 
indicated in Paragraph one of
this Section.
(5) Works and related rights objects which have several 
rightholders from which not all could be identified and
found 
after diligent search may be used as orphan works, if the 
rightholders identified and found have agreed to the
use 
indicated in Paragraph one of this Section.
(6) The authorities referred to in Paragraph one of this 
Section are entitled to use orphan works only in the amount
which 
is necessary to achieve the objectives related to the tasks of 
such authorities which are performed thereby in
public interests, 
particularly in order to preserve or restore the works and 
related rights objects included in their
collections, as well as 
to ensure access to their collections for the purpose of 
disseminating culture and promoting
learning, including in 
digital format. Using orphan works, the authorities referred to 
in Paragraph one of this Section
shall indicate the identified 
authors and other rightholders.
(7) The authorities referred to in Paragraph one of this 
Section are entitled to obtain revenue from the use of orphan
works only in such amount as would cover the costs which have 
arisen to such authorities in making copies of the
respective 
works or related rights objects in digital format and making them 
legally accessible to the public by wire or
otherwise so that 
they are available in an individually selected location and at an 
individually selected time.
[
18 December 2014
]
Section 62.
2
 Diligent 
Search for Rightholders and Documentation Thereof
23
/
33(1) The rightholders referred to in Section 62.
1
 of 
this Law of each work and related rights object shall be searched
with the utmost diligence in order to determine whether it is an 
orphan work. The rightholders shall be searched with
diligence 
before the use of the respective work or related rights object is 
commenced, and it shall be performed in
good faith, using the 
sources of information referred to in Paragraph eight of this 
Section, including in the European
Union Member State in which 
the respective work or related rights object was published or 
broadcasted for the first
time, except for the cases indicated in 
Paragraphs two and three of this Section. If there are grounds to 
assume that
information regarding rightholders is available in 
another country, also the sources of information available in 
this state
shall be used within the scope of diligent search for 
rightholders.
(2) If the location or permanent place of residence (domicile) 
of the producer of an audiovisual, including
cinematographic, 
work is in a European Union Member State, the rightholder of such 
work shall be searched with
diligence in the respective Member 
State.
(3) The rightholders of the works and related rights objects 
referred to in Section 62.
1
, Paragraph four of this 
Law
shall be searched with diligence in the European Union Member 
State, in which economic activity is performed by an
institution, 
which has made the respective work or related rights object 
available to the public with a permission of the
rightholder.
(4) Diligent search for rightholders shall be performed by the 
institution referred to in Section 62.
1
, Paragraph one
of this Law or its authorised third party.
(5) The authority which performs diligent search for 
rightholders or has authorised a third party for this purpose
shall document the course and results of the search in order to 
justify that the rightholder has been searched for
diligently. 
After diligent search the respective authority shall send to the 
Latvian National Library:
1) the diligent search results of a rightholder which justify 
the recognition of the work or related rights object as an
orphan 
work;
2) information regarding the types, in which the authority is 
using the orphan work;
3) information regarding termination of the status of an 
orphan work or any changes in the status in relation to a
work or 
related rights object used by the authority;
4) the contact information of the authority, including its 
name, address, electronic mail address, and telephone
number.
(6) The Latvian National Library after receipt of the 
information referred to in Paragraph five of this Section shall
forward it, without delay, to the European Union agency "European 
Union Intellectual Property Office".
(7) Rightholders of such works and related rights objects need 
not be searched for which are indicated as orphan
works in the 
database of the European Union agency "European Union 
Intellectual Property Office".
(8) The sources of information to be used within the scope of 
diligent search for rightholders, upon consulting with
the 
collective management organisations, other organisations of 
holders of copyright and related rights, and the
authority 
referred to in Section 62.
1
, Paragraph one of this 
Law, shall be determined and updated by the Ministry of
Culture. 
The Ministry of Culture shall publish the list of sources of 
information and amendments thereto in the official
gazette 
Latvijas Vēstnesis
 and make it public on its website.
[
18 December 2014; 18 May 2017
]
Section 62.
3
 Termination 
of the Status of an Orphan Work
(1) The rightholders, which could not be identified or found 
after diligent search and whose works or related rights
objects 
have been recognised as orphan works or made equivalent thereto 
in accordance with Section 62.
1
, Paragraph
five of 
this Law, have the right to request that the institution, which 
performed the search for rightholders, terminates
the status of 
an orphan work in relation to the particular work or related 
rights object. Such request must be justified.
(2) After receipt of the request referred to in Paragraph one 
of this Section the authority which performed diligent
search for 
rightholders in relation to the respective work or related rights 
object shall examine, without delay, such
request and terminate 
the status of an orphan work, discontinuing the use of the 
respective work or related rights
object and informing the 
Latvian National Library regarding termination of the status.
(3) If the institution, which performed diligent search for 
rightholders, does not exist anymore, the rightholders,
which 
could not be identified or found after diligent search and whose 
works or related rights objects have been
recognised as orphan 
works or made equivalent thereto in accordance with Section 
62.
1
, Paragraph five of this Law,
have the right to 
request that the Latvian National Library terminates the status 
of an orphan work in relation to the
particular work or related 
rights object.
24
/
33(4) The rightholders referred to in Paragraph one of this 
Section are entitled to receive a fair compensation for the
use 
of the work or related rights object from the authority which 
used the respective work or related rights object.
(5) Upon determining the amount of the compensation referred 
to in Paragraph four of this Section, the following
shall be 
taken into account:
1) the amount and purpose of the use of the work or related 
rights object;
2) the tasks performed in public interests and significance of 
the use in the performance of such tasks;
3) the non-commercial nature of the use;
4) the potential harm which has been caused by the use of the 
work or related rights object to the rightholder.
(6) The authority which has an obligation to disburse the 
compensation referred to in Paragraph four of this Section
to the 
rightholder shall agree with the rightholder on the amount of the 
compensation and disburse it in a reasonable
period of time, but 
not later than within a year after receipt of the request of the 
rightholder, transferring it to the
settlement account indicated 
by the rightholder.
[
18 December 2014
]
Chapter X
Collective Management
[18 May 2017]
Section 63. General Provisions for 
Collective Management
[18 May 2017]
Section 64. Scope of Rights of a 
Collective Management Organisation of Economic Rights
[18 May 2017]
Section 65. Functions of Collective 
Management Organisations of Economic Rights
[18 May 2017]
Section 66. Duties of Collective 
Management Organisations of Economic Rights
[18 May 2017]
Section 66.
1
 Duty of 
Collective Management Organisations of Economic Rights to Conform 
to Specific
Criteria in Determining the Remuneration
[18 May 2017]
Section 67. Supervision of the 
Activities of Collective Management Organisations of Economic 
Rights
[18 May 2017]
Chapter 
X.
1
Mediators
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
1
 Disputes 
Subject to a Mediator
An interested party is entitled to turn to a mediator if:
1) the user and the collective management organisation have a 
dispute regarding the use of works or related rights
objects, 
including regarding entering into a licensing agreement or 
provision of information regarding the use;
2) the association of users and the collective management 
organisation have a dispute regarding entering into an
agreement 
in respect of the use of the works or related rights objects of 
represented rightholders;
3) a cable operator and a broadcasting organisation cannot 
agree on retransmission by cables;
25
/
334) there is a dispute regarding multi-territorial licensing of 
rights in musical works for online use in the case
indicated in 
the Law on Collective Management of Copyright;
5) the user and the holder of copyright or related rights 
cannot agree on access to works or related right objects in
any 
of the cases referred to in Section 18, Paragraph four of this 
Law.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
2
 Selection of 
a Mediator and Agreement with a Mediator
(1) The process of the mediator shall be managed by one or 
several mediators. The parties may agree on the
candidatures of 
mediators or regarding the procedures by which mediators are 
invited or appointed. If the parties
cannot agree on the 
candidatures of mediators or on the procedures by which they are 
invited or appointed, one or
several mediators from the list of 
professional mediators may be recommended by the Minister for 
Culture on the
basis of a written request from the parties. The 
Minister for Culture shall select a mediator or mediators from 
the list of
professional mediators and inform the parties thereon 
within 10 days after the day of receipt of the request from the
parties.
(2) A mediator shall be selected so as no doubts regarding his 
or her independence and objectivity could arise.
(3) A written agreement shall be entered into with the 
selected mediator. The following shall be indicated in the
agreement with the mediator:
1) the consent of the parties and the mediator for the use of 
the mediator procedure;
2) the essence of the dispute;
3) the rights and obligations of the parties and the 
mediator;
4) the provisions for payment of the mediator service and 
expenses for the mediator procedure;
5) other information that the parties and the mediator deem to 
be necessary.
(4) During the mediator procedure the agreement with the 
mediator may be amended provided that the parties and
the 
mediator agree to it.
(5) Unless it is otherwise provided for in the agreement with 
the mediator, the parties shall cover expenses for the
mediator 
procedure in equal amount.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
3
 Requirements 
to be Brought Forward for a Professional Mediator
(1) The following natural person may be a professional 
mediator:
1) who is a citizen of Latvia or another European Union Member 
State, or a citizen of the European Economic Area
State or the 
Swiss Confederation, or a non-citizen of Latvia;
2) who is a proficient user of the official language at the 
highest level;
3) who has an impeccable reputation;
4) who has acquired at least academic master's degree or 
professional master's degree and appropriate
professional 
qualification or other qualification conforming to level 7 of the 
European Qualification Framework laid
down in the education 
classification of Latvia;
5) who has experience of at least three years in the field of 
copyright.
(2) A person may not be a professional mediator if she or 
he:
1) has provided false information in order to be included in 
the list of professional mediators;
2) fails to comply with the requirements laid down in 
Paragraph one of this Section;
3) has been convicted for committing an intentional criminal 
offence or against whom criminal proceedings for
committing an 
intentional criminal offence on the basis other than exoneration 
have been terminated;
4) is a suspect or accused in a criminal matter;
5) according to the court judgment may not provide mediation 
services or services of a professional mediator.
[
18 May 2017
]
26
/
33Section 67.
4
 Submission 
Regarding Inclusion in the List of Professional Mediators
(1) A person who wishes to be included in the list of 
professional mediators, shall provide the following in the
application to the Ministry of Culture:
1) the given name and surname;
2) the field of activity (no more than 500 characters) in 
which he or she is competent to provide mediator services;
3) the working languages;
4) the work experience in the field of copyright;
5) the contact information, including electronic mail address 
and telephone number;
6) whether she or he agrees to publication of a photography if 
any is appended to the submission, in the case
indicated in 
Section 67.
5
, Paragraph six of this Law;
7) confirmation that the person conforms to the requirements 
indicated in Section 67.
3
, Paragraph one of this 
Law;
8) the request to include his or her data in the list of 
professional mediators.
(2) The documents confirming the conformity of the person with 
the requirements indicated in Section 67.
3
,
Paragraph 
one of this Law shall be appended to the submission regarding 
inclusion in the list of professional
mediators. The photography 
of the relevant person may be appended to the submission in 
electronic form.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
5
 List of 
Professional Mediators
(1) The Ministry of Culture shall maintain the list of 
professional mediators.
(2) The data shall be included in the list of professional 
mediators on the basis of the data indicated in the written
submission of the relevant person.
(3) A person shall be included in the list of professional 
mediators for four years. Not later than three months
before the 
end of the time period the person may ask to renew his or her 
status of professional mediator for the next
four year.
(4) The following data regarding the mediator shall be 
included in the list of professional mediators:
1) the given name and surname;
2) the field of activity;
3) the working languages;
4) the contact information, including electronic mail address 
and telephone number;
5) upon consent of the mediator - his or her photography.
(5) A professional mediator shall immediately notify the 
Ministry of Culture in writing regarding the detected
mistakes 
and any amendments to the data which were included regarding him 
or her in the list of professional
mediators.
(6) The list of professional mediators shall be available to 
any interested person. The Ministry of Culture shall
publish the 
list of professional mediators, and also any amendments thereof 
on its website.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
6
 Exclusion of 
the Mediator from the List of Professional Mediators
A mediator shall be excluded from the list of professional 
mediators if he or she:
1) has provided false data in order to be included in the list 
of professional mediators;
2) has been recognised as guilty of committing an intentional 
criminal offence or criminal proceedings have been
terminated 
against him or her regarding committing an intentional criminal 
offence on the basis other than exoneration;
3) according to the court judgment he or she may not provide 
mediation or mediator services;
27
/
334) no longer complies with the requirements laid down in 
Section 67.
3
, Paragraph one of this Law;
5) has submitted a request to exclude him or her from the list 
of professional mediators;
6) is a suspect or accused in a criminal matter;
7) is dead.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
7
 General 
Principles of Mediator Procedure
(1) The parties have equal rights in the mediator procedure. 
The parties shall take decisions by co-operating.
(2) A mediator shall try to facilitate an agreement between 
the parties, including by providing his or her proposals
for fair 
settlement of a dispute.
(3) The attitude of the mediator shall be neutral against the 
parties. The mediator shall not be personally interested
in the 
result of the mediator procedure. The mediator has a duty to 
notify the parties regarding all circumstances which
may affect 
his or her independence or objectivity.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
8
 Course of 
the Mediator Procedure
(1) If any of the parties has expressed a proposal to resolve 
the dispute, the mediator procedure shall take place
on the basis 
of such proposal.
(2) If neither of the parties has expressed a certain proposal 
for the settlement of the dispute or such has been
expressed by 
both parties, the mediator may express his or her proposal for 
the settlement of the dispute to the
parties in writing and 
determine the time period within which the parties shall confirm 
or refuse his or her proposal in
writing. If neither of the 
parties expresses objections against the proposal of the mediator 
within the time period
specified by the mediator which is not 
less than one month after the day of sending the proposal, it is 
considered that
they accept such proposal and that laid down 
therein is binding to the parties. The mediator shall expressly 
indicate in
his or her proposal the legal effects that will set 
in if the parties do not object against the proposal within the 
time
period indicated by the mediator.
(3) The mediator procedure shall be terminated upon a written 
agreement by the parties, except for the cases
referred to in 
Paragraph four of this Section. The proposal of the mediator 
indicated in Paragraph two of this Section
against which neither 
of the parties has objected within the time period specified by 
the mediator, shall be recognised
as agreement of the 
parties.
(4) The mediator procedure shall be terminated without 
agreement in the following cases:
1) at least one party notifies the mediator in writing that he 
or she objects against continuation of the mediator
procedure;
2) the mediator notifies the parties in writing regarding 
termination of the mediator procedure.
(5) Involvement of the mediator shall not affect the rights of 
the parties to turn to the court.
(6) The duration of the time period for bringing an action 
laid down in the laws and regulations shall be suspended
on the 
day when a proposal to settle a dispute within the framework of 
the mediator procedure is expressed. The
duration of the time 
period for bringing an action shall resume on the day when the 
mediator procedure is terminated.
[
18 May 2017
]
Section 67.
9
 
Confidentiality of the Mediator Procedure
(1) Information which is acquired in the mediator procedure or 
is related thereto, shall be confidential unless it is
otherwise 
agreed by the parties.
(2) The mediator shall not disclose to one party the 
information provided by the other party, unless the other party
has agreed to it.
(3) It is prohibited to interrogate the mediator and 
participants of the mediator procedure as witnesses regarding the
facts which have become known to them during the mediator 
procedure.
(4) This Section shall not apply to the cases when the content 
of the agreement reached during the mediator
process is necessary 
in order to implement the particular agreement.
28
/
33[
18 May 2017
]
Chapter 
XI
Protection of Copyright and Related Rights
[
22 April 2004
]
Section 68. Infringement of 
Copyright and Related Rights
(1) Violations of copyright and related rights shall be deemed 
to be activities by which the personal or economic
rights of the 
holders of copyright and related rights are infringed, 
including:
1) fixation of copyright and related rights objects, their 
publication, communicating them to the public, their
reproduction 
or distribution in any form without the consent from the holder 
of copyright and related rights;
2) activities, by which, without the permission of the holders 
of copyright and related rights, electronic information
regarding 
the management of rights attached by holders of copyright and 
related rights has been extinguished,
amended or transformed;
3) activities, by which an object of rights for which the 
electronic information regarding the management of rights
has 
been extinguished, amended or transformed without permission is 
distributed, broadcast, communicated to the
public or 
published;
4) the destruction or circumvention of such effective 
technological measures used by the holders of copyright and
related rights which were intended in order to restrict or not 
allow any activity with the copyright and related right
object, 
or other activities with technological measures if such have 
occurred without the permission of the holders of
copyright and 
related rights;
5) the manufacture, importation, distribution, sale, lease, 
advertisement or use for other commercial purposes of
such 
devices or the components thereof, as well as the provision of 
such services which are directed towards the
circumvention of 
effective technological measures or the destruction thereof;
6) the non-payment of the compensation provided for in 
Sections 34, 35, 52 and 62.
3
 of this Law;
7) non-provision of the information provided for in Section 
40, Paragraph five of this Law or provision of such
information 
to an inadequate extent;
8) not sending of the information provided for in Section 
62.
2
, Paragraph five, Clause 1 of this Law before
commencing the use of the respective work or related rights 
object or not sending of the information provided for in
Section 
62.
2
, Paragraph five, Clause 3 of this Law immediately 
after it has become known to the institution, which
performed 
diligent search for rightholders or which has authorised a third 
party for this purpose.
(2) In determining whether an action qualifies as an 
infringement of copyright or related rights, the restrictions of
copyright or related rights specified in this Law shall be taken 
into account.
(3) Copyright and related rights objects or the copies thereof 
produced as a result of illegal actions are infringing
copies.
(4) Copyright and related rights objects protected in Latvia 
which have been imported from countries where such
works are not 
protected by copyright or where the term of protection has 
expired shall also be deemed to be infringing
copies.
[
6 December 2007; 18 December 2014
]
Section 69. General Principles for 
the Protection of Rights of the Holders of Copyright and Related 
Rights
(1) Holders of copyright and related rights, collective 
management organisations, and other representatives of
holders of 
copyright and related rights have the right:
1) to require of the person who has illegally used the object 
of copyright or related rights to recognise the rights of
the 
holders of copyright and related rights;
2) to prohibit the use of their works;
3) to require that the person who has illegally used the 
object of copyright or related rights renew the status
existing 
prior to the infringement of these rights, and that the illegal 
activity be stopped or that creative work not be
threatened;
29
/
334) to require that the person stop the activities that are 
considered to be preparation for illegal use of the objects of
copyright or related rights;
5) to require that the person who has illegally used the 
object of copyright or related rights compensate the losses
and 
moral damage incurred by the holders of copyright and related 
rights;
6) to require that the infringing copies be destroyed;
7) to require that intermediaries the services provided by 
whom are used in order to infringe the rights of the
holders of 
copyright and related rights, or who make such infringement 
possible, shall perform relevant measures for
the purpose of 
preventing the users from being able to perform such 
infringements. If the intermediary does not
perform relevant 
measures, the holders of copyright and related rights or their 
representative has the right to bring an
action against the 
intermediary.
(2) To protect their rights, the holders of copyright and 
related rights or their representatives may initiate
proceedings. 
If the rights that are to be protected in accordance with the 
procedures laid down in the Law on Collective
Management of 
Copyright have been infringed, an action for protection of the 
infringed rights shall be brought by the
holder of copyright and 
related rights himself or herself or, on behalf of the holders of 
copyright and related rights - by
the collective management 
organisation.
(3) When bringing an action concerning infringement of rights 
to a court, the holders of copyright and related rights
shall be 
exempt from the State fee. Collective management organisations, 
when bringing an action to court concerning
infringement of 
rights that arise from the cases referred to in Section 3, 
Paragraph two of the Law on Collective
Management of Copyright, 
shall be exempt from the State fee.
[
8 February 2007; 18 May 2017
]
Section 69.
1
 Procedures 
for Determining the Amount of Compensation for Losses and Moral 
Damage
(1) If objects of copyright or related rights have been 
illegally used due to the fault of a person, the holders of
copyright and related rights are entitled to require a 
compensation for the incurred losses and moral damage.
(2) The amount of compensation for losses and moral injury 
shall be determined in accordance with the Civil Law.
When 
determining the amount of compensation for losses, the unfair 
earnings gained by the person who has illegally
used the object 
of copyright or related rights may be taken into 
consideration.
(3) If the amount of actual losses cannot be determined in 
accordance with Paragraph two of this section, the
amount of 
compensation for losses shall be determined according to the 
amount which could be received by the
holders of copyright and 
related rights for the issue of a permit to use the object of 
copyright or related rights.
[
8 February 2007
]
Section 70. Attachment and 
Destruction of Infringing Copies
(1) Upon identifying infringing copies, the police or another 
competent State institution shall seize them.
(2) In deciding the liability of the offender, a decision 
shall be taken on destruction of the infringing copies. If the
offender is not identified, a decision on destruction of the 
infringing copies shall be taken by the institution which has
seized them.
Section 71. Liability for 
Infringement of Copyright and Related Rights and the Rights of 
the Makers of
Databases
Depending on the nature of the infringement of copyright or of 
related rights and the consequences thereof, the
person who has 
illegally used the object of copyright or related rights shall be 
held liable in accordance with the law.
[
8 February 2007
]
Chapter 
XII
Administrative Offences in the Field of Copyright and Related 
Rights and
Competence in Administrative Offence Proceedings
[
29 October 2020
]
Section 72. Administrative Offences 
in the Field of Copyright and Related Rights
(1) For using an object of copyright or related rights in a 
public performance without the consent of the holder of
copyright 
and related rights or without paying remuneration, a warning or a 
fine of up to one hundred and forty units of
fine shall be 
imposed on a natural person, but a fine of up to one thousand 
four hundred and twenty units of fine - on a 
30
/
33fine shall be 
imposed on a natural person, but a fine of up to one thousand 
four hundred and twenty units of fine - on a
legal person.
(2) For reproduction of an object of copyright or related 
rights without the consent of the holder of copyright and
related 
rights, except to make it available to the public by wire or by 
other means so that it is accessible in an
individually selected 
location and at an individually selected time, a warning or a 
fine of up to one hundred and forty
units of fine shall be 
imposed on a natural person, but a fine of up to one thousand 
four hundred and twenty units of
fine - on a legal person.
(3) For failure to pay a blank tape levy or compensation for 
reprographic reproduction of works, a warning or a fine
of up to 
one hundred and forty units of fine shall be imposed on a natural 
person, but a fine of up to one thousand four
hundred and twenty 
units of fine - on a legal person.
(4) For making an object of copyright or related rights 
available to the public by wire or by other means so that it is
accessible in an individually selected location and at an 
individually selected time and for the reproduction thereof to
perform such activity without the consent of the holder of 
copyright and related rights or without paying remuneration,
a 
warning or a fine of up to one hundred and forty units of fine 
shall be imposed on a natural person, but a fine of up to
one 
thousand four hundred and twenty units of fine - on a legal 
person.
(5) For retransmitting an object of copyright or related 
rights without the consent of the holder of copyright and
related 
rights or without paying remuneration, a warning or a fine of up 
to one hundred and forty units of fine shall be
imposed on a 
natural person, but a fine of up to one thousand four hundred and 
twenty units of fine - on a legal
person.
[
29 October 2020
]
Section 73. Competence in the 
Administrative Offence Proceedings
Administrative offence proceedings for the offences referred 
to in Section 72 of this Law shall be conducted by the
State 
Police.
[
29 October 2020
]
Transitional 
Provisions
1. The following are repealed:
1) the law On Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (
Latvijas 
Republikas Augstākās Padomes un Valdības Ziņotājs
,
No. 22/23, 
1993);
2) the 11 May 1993 decision of the Supreme Council On the 
Coming into Effect of the Republic of Latvia Law On
Copyright and 
Neighbouring Rights (
Latvijas Republikas Augstākās Padomes un 
Valdības Ziņotājs
, No. 22/23, 1993).
2. The terms of protection of copyright and related rights 
provided for in this Law shall apply to all the works and
objects 
of rights which were subject to protection on 1 July 1995 at 
least in one Member State of the European Union
in accordance 
with the relevant national provisions regarding copyright and 
related rights.
[
8 February 2007
]
3. The provision of Section 35 of this Law regarding 
compensation to authors for reprographic reproduction shall
come 
into force on 1 January 2001.
4. The provision of Section 19, Paragraph two of this Law 
regarding the payment of compensation to authors in
respect of 
libraries which are financed from the State budget, or from the 
budgets of local governments, shall come
into force from 1 
January 2003.
5. The rights of protection of a database provided for in 
Section 57 of this Law shall apply also to such databases
the 
creation of which was completed not earlier than 15 years before 
the coming into force of this Law and which are,
on the day of 
the coming into force of the Law, in conformity with the 
provisions of Section 5, Paragraph two of this
Law. Protection of 
a database shall not restrict previously acquired rights and 
shall not affect contracts which have
been entered into before 
the coming into force of this Law.
6. The rights of performers specified in Section 48, Paragraph 
three, Clauses 3 and 7 of this Law shall be managed
only 
collectively in relation to the performances fixed in phonograms 
which are fixed or published in Latvia up to 15
May 1993.
[
22 April 2004; 18 May 2017
]
7. Collective management organisations that have been 
established until 1 May 2004 shall, not later than by 1
September 
2004, obtain a permit to perform the administration of economic 
rights on a collective basis.
31
/
33[
22 April 2004; 18 May 2017
]
8. Until the date of entry into force of new Cabinet 
regulations, but not later than until 1 September 2007, Cabinet
Regulation No. 444 of 27 April 2004, Regulations Regarding Public 
Lending, shall be applicable insofar as they are not
in 
contradiction to this Law.
[
8 February 2007
]
9. The provisions of Sections 32, 36, 54, 55, 59, and 61 of 
this Law shall also be applicable with regard to the
following 
states of the European Economic Area: the Republic of Island, the 
Principality of Liechtenstein and the
Kingdom of Norway.
[
6 December 2017
]
10. A collective management organisation shall ensure that not 
later than until 1 June 2013 the information
provided for in 
Section 66, Paragraph six of this Law is posted on its 
website.
[
18 April 2013; 18 May 2017
]
11. Section 66.
1
 of this Law shall come into force 
from 1 January 2014.
[
18 April 2013
]
12. Amendments to Section 48 of this Law regarding 
supplementation thereof with Paragraphs nine, ten, eleven,
twelve, thirteen, fourteen and fifteen, amendments to Section 55, 
Paragraph one regarding extending the term of
protection of the 
rights of performers from 50 to 70 years, if the performance is 
fixed in a phonogram, and regarding
supplementation of Section 55 
with Paragraph 2.
1
 regarding the term of protection of 
the rights of phonogram
producers, shall be applicable to 
fixations of performances and phonograms, the term of protection 
of the protection of
the rights of performers and phonogram 
producers of which has not expired on 1 November 2013, as well as 
to
fixations of performances and phonograms created after 1 
November 2013.
[
28 November 2013
]
13. A contract between a performer and a phonogram producer, 
by which the performer has transferred to the
phonogram producer 
the right to fixation of his or her performance and which has 
been concluded prior to 1 January
2014, shall be in effect also 
during the period, by which the term of protection of the rights 
of performers and
phonogram producers has been extended in 
accordance with Paragraph 12 of these Transitional Provisions, 
insofar as
the opposite has not been laid down in the contract 
between the performer and the phonogram producer.
[
28 November 2013
]
14. The Ministry of Culture, shall until 1 February 2015, in 
accordance with Section 62.
2
, Paragraph eight of this
Law, determine the sources of information to be used within the 
scope of diligent search for rightholders, publish their
list in 
the official gazette 
Latvijas Vēstnesis
, and post them on 
its website.
[
18 December 2014
]
15. The compensation amounts not requested and verified which 
are reserved in the accounts of collective
management 
organisations collected from the users of the works and related 
rights objects until the day of deleting
Chapter X of this Law, 
shall be recognised as non-disbursable revenue from the right 
management within the meaning
of Section 23 of the Law on 
Collective Management of Copyright if, within three years from 
the day when such amount
has been paid into the account of the 
organisation, the holder of copyright and related rights to whom 
such
compensation is due has not been verified or found. The 
collective management organisations have no obligations to
apply 
Section 22 of the Law on Collective Management of Copyright in 
respect of the abovementioned compensation
amounts.
[
18 May 2017
]
16. The permits which have been issued to collective 
management organisations in accordance with Section 67,
Paragraph 
one of the Law on Collective Management of Copyright shall be in 
force and are equalled to the permits
issued in conformity with 
the Law on Collective Management of Copyright.
[
18 May 2017
]
Informative 
Reference to European Union Directives
[
8 February 2007; 28 November 
2013; 18 December 2014; 18 May 2017; 6 December 2018
]
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33© Oficiālais izdevējs "Latvijas Vēstnesis"
This Law contains legal provisions arising from:
1) Council Directive 91/250/EEC of 14 May 1991 on the legal 
protection of computer programs;
2) Council Directive 92/100/EEC of 19 November 1992 on rental 
right and lending right and on certain rights related
to 
copyright in the field of intellectual property;
3) Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the 
coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and
rights 
related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and 
cable retransmission;
4) Council Directive 93/98/EEC of 29 October 1993 harmonizing 
the term of protection of copyright and certain
related 
rights;
5) Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 11 March 1996 on the legal protection of
databases;
6) Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of
certain aspects of 
copyright and related rights in the information society;
7) Directive 2001/84/EC of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 27 September 2001 on the resale right
for the benefit 
of the author of an original work of art;
8) Directive 2004/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 29 April 2004 on the enforcement of
intellectual 
property rights;
9) Directive 2011/77/EU of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 27 September 2011 amending Directive
2006/116/EC on 
the term of protection of copyright and certain related 
rights;
10) Directive 2012/28/EU of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 25 October 2012 on certain permitted
uses of orphan 
works;
11) Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the 
Council of 26 February 2014 on collective
management of copyright 
and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in 
musical works for online use in
the internal market;
12) Directive (EU) 2017/1564 of the European Parliament and of 
the Council of 13 September 2017 on certain
permitted uses of 
certain works and other subject matter protected by copyright and 
related rights for the benefit of
persons who are blind, visually 
impaired or otherwise print-disabled and amending Directive 
2001/29/EC on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright 
and related rights in the information society.
This Law has been adopted by the 
Saeima
 on 6 April 
2000.
President V. Vīķe-Freiberga
Rīga, 27 April 2000
1
 The Parliament of the Republic of 
Latvia
Translation © 2021 Valsts valodas centrs (State 
Language Centre)
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