On 2 November 2026 Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs published a draft Cabinet Order partially amending the Copyright Act Enforcement Order and a draft Ministerial Order partially amending the Copyright Act Enforcement Regulation, and opened public comment. Comments close on 1 December 2026.
According to the published material, the drafts accompany the entry into force of the 2026 amendment to the Copyright Act (Act No. 48 of 2026). They set out, among other things, the matters needed for the designated collecting bodies and the fee schedules relating to the right of performers and record producers to receive a secondary use fee when commercial recordings are played or communicated in public.
This page sets out what the Agency published, together with the statutory wording.
Overview of the consultation
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Case number | 185001515 |
| Title | Draft Cabinet Order partially amending the Copyright Act Enforcement Order / Draft Ministerial Order partially amending the Copyright Act Enforcement Regulation |
| Legal basis (as stated on the case page) | Supplementary Provisions, Art. 5 of Act No. 48 of 2026; Art. 95(9) of the amended Copyright Act as applied by Arts. 95-2(4), 95-3(4), 97-2(4) and 97-3(4); and Arts. 95-2(5), 95-3(5), 97-2(5), 97-3(5) and 103-8 |
| Date published | 2 November 2026 |
| Comment deadline | 1 December 2026 (must arrive by this date) |
| Responsible office | Copyright Division, Agency for Cultural Affairs |
| Planned entry into force | The date the amending Act takes effect |
The new secondary use fee (statutory wording)
Article 95-2(1) of the Copyright Act, as amended by Act No. 48 of 2026, provides that a person who publicly plays a performance using a commercial recording on which the performance is recorded must pay a secondary use fee to the performer.
Amended Article 97-2(1) provides that a person who publicly plays the sounds of a record using a commercial recording must pay a secondary use fee to the producer of that record.
Amended Articles 95-3(1) and 97-3(1) impose the same obligation, in favour of performers and record producers respectively, on a person who publicly communicates, by means of a receiving device, performances or record sounds on commercial recordings that are being transmitted to the public.
Articles 95-2 and 97-2 (playing) exclude, among other cases, playing in public for non-profit purposes without charging the audience (paragraph (2) of each article). Articles 95-3 and 97-3 (communicating) exclude, among other cases, communicating broadcasts, cable broadcasts, specified-input automatic public transmissions or simultaneous online distribution of broadcasts in public for non-profit purposes without charging the audience, and communicating them in public using an ordinary household receiver (paragraph (2) of each article).
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Try for free →When the amending Act takes effect
Article 1 of the Supplementary Provisions of the amending Act provides that the Act takes effect on a date set by Cabinet Order within three years of promulgation, except that Articles 4 and 5 of the Supplementary Provisions take effect on promulgation.
Article 4 of the Supplementary Provisions allows the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs to designate the bodies that will exercise the right to the secondary use fee before the Act takes effect, and allows designated bodies to draw up fee schedules in advance. The amending Act was promulgated on 24 June 2026.
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Main points of the drafts
The summary lists the following main points.
Designated collecting bodies
- The provisions of Chapter 9, Section 1 of the Enforcement Order (public notice of designation, business rules, accounts, submission of business plans, reporting, suspension or discontinuance of business, revocation of designation) are applied to bodies designated for the secondary use fee
- The business rules must cover the acceptance of authority to exercise the right to the fee, the handling charges for that business, and the method of distributing the fees
Fee schedules
- Draft fee schedules are to be published online or by other appropriate means
- A designated body that publishes a draft must notify the Commissioner without delay, with a notice stating the date and method of publication and attaching the draft
- The particulars of an application by a user representative for an order to start or resume consultations (name, the designated body concerned, the matters to be consulted on, and how the application came about) are set out
- Criteria are set for the Commissioner to recognise a "user representative" for a given category of use (for example, where both its share of users and its share of fees paid exceed 50%; where one share exceeds 50% and no one else has more than 50% of the other; or where both exceed 20%, no one else exceeds either share, and no such person is expected to appear)
- The particulars and supporting documents of an application for a ruling (the history of consultations, prima facie evidence of being a user representative, the basis for calculating the amount, etc.) are set out, together with written notice of the reasons for a ruling
- Fee schedules are to be published online or by other appropriate means, and a filing must attach a document describing how opinions were heard and how consultations went
Other
- Filings of fee schedules, business rules and related documents may be made on disc or similar media
- Transitional measures are provided, such as allowing designated bodies to draw up business rules before the drafts take effect
The fee schedule procedure (statutory wording)
Under amended Article 103-2(1), a designated body must establish a fee schedule stating, among other things, the amount of the secondary use fee for each category of use determined under criteria set by the Commissioner, and the date it takes effect. When establishing or changing a schedule, the body must endeavour to hear the views of users and user organisations (Art. 103-2(2)) and must publish the draft (Art. 103-2(3)).
Under Article 103-3(1), once a draft is published, a user representative may, within one month of publication, ask the designated body to consult on changing the draft. Article 103-5(3) provides that a designated body must not claim a secondary use fee exceeding the amount in the fee schedule it has filed.
Sources
- e-Gov Public Comment, draft Copyright Act Enforcement Order and Enforcement Regulation amendments (case no. 185001515; consultation guidelines and summary PDFs): https://public-comment.e-gov.go.jp/servlet/Public?CLASSNAME=PCMMSTDETAIL&id=185001515&Mode=0
- Copyright Act (Act No. 48 of 1970), e-Gov: https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/345AC0000000048
This page is compiled from material published by government agencies and from statutory text. Please consult a lawyer where a decision is needed on a specific matter.
