On July 1, 2012, the Copyright Office discontinued use of the Form CO copyright registration application. Previously, an applicant completed Form CO on a computer, but submitted Form CO in printed form, where the Copyright Office used barcodes to capture the applicant’s information. Form CO applications contained a large amount of errors from improperly functioning barcodes and applicants’ manually correcting applications, rather than redoing the computerized form. The Copyright Office found that Form CO errors consumed an excessive amount of Copyright Office time, effort, and resources, which was disproportionate to the small percentage of submitted Form CO applications. Copyright applicants may now apply for registration by filing electronically at the Copyright Office’s website or, depending on the application’s subject matter, by specific paper forms (Forms PA, VA, TX, SE, and SR or the Short Forms PA, VA, TX, and SE). If an applicant now submits a Form CO, the Copyright Office will notify the applicant that its application is incomplete and suggest alternative methods of application. The applicant will need to submit a revised application, fee, and deposit within 30 days or the Copyright Office will close the claim and retain the initial fee. The effective date of the submission will be the date the Copyright Office receives a completed application.

For more information, see:
Discontinuance of Form CO in Registration Practices