Licensing Basics

What Does "Compulsory" Mean in a Compulsory Mechanical License? The 2026 Cost and Steps

By the Starchild Music team · November 11, 2026 · 6 min read

A bright desk with a small stack of vinyl records in plain paper sleeves, a sealed envelope with a red wax seal, a pencil and a mug of tea, soft daylight

The short answer

"Compulsory" means the owner of a song cannot refuse a cover: once the song has been released in the U.S. with the owner's permission, anyone who follows the rules and pays the set rate can make an audio version. You are never required to use it, and it does not cover video or the original recording. In 2026 the rate for CDs, vinyl and downloads is 13.1 cents per copy for a song of five minutes or less, and streaming and download services handle their side through The MLC.

The word "compulsory" trips people up. It describes what the song's owner must do, not what you must do. If a song has already been released in the U.S. with the owner's permission, the owner cannot say no to a cover that follows the rules and pays the rate. You are free to ask for a direct license instead.

This guide explains what the license allows, what it costs in 2026 and how to get it. It describes U.S. law. The Copyright Office's circular on this license was last revised in 2018, before the digital changes took effect, so we also use the Office's Music Modernization FAQ.

What "compulsory" means

The Copyright Office's circular asks the question outright: must I use a compulsory license? Its answer is no. You can negotiate directly with the copyright owner or the owner's agent. The compulsory license is for when the owner is unwilling to negotiate or cannot be contacted.

It becomes available as soon as phonorecords of the song have been distributed to the public in the United States under the owner's authority, and the main purpose has to be distributing copies to the public for private use. Before that first release, nobody can cover a song without the writer's permission. Our guide on exclusive licenses and covers shows why songwriters care.

What it lets you do, and what it doesn't

It lets you make and distribute audio copies of the song for people to listen to privately, including digital deliveries, and to arrange the song to fit your style. It has limits.

It does not cover the original recording or anyone else's. Section 115 covers the song, not sound recordings.
It does not cover video. A phonorecord does not include sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work. See cover song sync licenses.
It does not cover background music systems, jukeboxes, broadcasting or other public uses.
It does not let you change the song's basic melody or fundamental character, or claim copyright in your arrangement as a derivative work. Your copyright claim is your recording.

What it costs in 2026

The Copyright Royalty Board sets the rate and adjusts it each year for inflation. In a notice published December 1, 2025, it set the 2026 rate for physical copies and permanent downloads at 13.1 cents, or 2.52 cents per minute of playing time or fraction of a minute, whichever is larger.

In plain terms, a song of five minutes or less owes 13.1 cents per copy. A longer song owes 2.52 cents for every minute or part of a minute of its length.

Say you press 500 vinyl copies of a 3:30 cover. You owe 500 × 13.1 cents, which is $65.50. If the cover runs 6:20, it counts as seven minutes, so each copy owes 17.64 cents and 500 copies owe $88.20. That money goes to the song's owner. A licensing service may add its own fee.

The 2026 rate applies from January 1 through December 31, so check the new figure if your pressing happens after New Year's.

How you get it for streams and downloads

Since 2021, digital services have taken a blanket license for the songs, administered by The MLC. The Copyright Office's FAQ says it no longer accepts notices of intention for digital phonorecord deliveries, which it describes as permanent downloads, limited downloads and interactive streams. The MLC says it administers blanket mechanical licenses for eligible streaming and download services in the United States.

So when you put a cover on those services, you do not file a notice. The royalties go to the song's writers. The MLC says that if you did not write or compose the work, you will not be able to collect digital audio mechanical royalties from the cover. Your distributor may still have its own cover-song steps, so read them before you upload. If you sell downloads straight from your own site, the picture is less clear, because the Office no longer takes notices for digital deliveries. Ask the owner, a licensing service or a music attorney. The MLC also says it cannot give legal advice on cover songs.

How you get it for CDs and vinyl

For physical copies, the notice process stays in place. Here are the steps, in order.

Check that the song has already been released in the U.S. with the owner's permission.
Find the owner. Our guide to finding out who owns a song shows where to look.
Serve a notice of intention before you make the copies, or within 30 calendar days after making them and before you distribute any. Send it to the owner at the address in the Copyright Office's records. If the records name no owner or no address, file the notice with the Office instead. Its notice page lists a $75 filing fee per notice, so check the page for the current fee.
Put the required details in the notice. The regulation asks for your name and address, and for each song its title, authors and owner if known, the types of copies you will make, your expected first distribution date, the principal recording artist, and the catalog number and label.
Keep proof of delivery. The regulation accepts a certified or registered mail receipt.
Pay on schedule. The circular says to send royalties with a monthly statement of account to the owner on or before the 20th of each month, plus an annual statement.

That is a lot of paperwork for a small run. Licensing services can take it on. The Harry Fox Agency says its Songfile service helps license cover songs for physical and digital formats, such as CDs and downloads.

The mistake that costs the most: the 30-day window

Section 115 says that if you do not serve the notice in time, you lose the compulsory license. Without another license from the owner, making and distributing the copies counts as infringement. Paying later does not bring the compulsory license back, because the statute says the failure forecloses it. If you have already pressed copies without a notice, talk to the owner or a music attorney before you sell them.

Other mistakes to avoid

Treating it as a video license. It is not one.
Using a karaoke or backing track made by someone else. That is another person's recording, and the license does not cover it.
Changing the lyrics or reshaping the melody without asking.
Expecting The MLC to pay you for the cover. It pays the song's writers.
Assuming it works worldwide. This is a U.S. license, and the Copyright Alliance notes that The MLC operates only in the United States. Check the rules of any other country where you release.

When you would rather skip all of this

Covering a released song means notices, rates and statements. Licensing an original from its writer is one agreement. On Starchild, a license covers recording and releasing your version, performing it live and using your recording in your own music video and lyric video, and every license comes with a certificate naming the writers. See songs for artists to record, or why an original can beat a cover.

This is general information, not legal advice. For a pressing run or any deal you are unsure about, ask a music attorney.

Sources

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Every song on Starchild can be heard in different styles and in your key before you license it.

Songs to license Songs for artists to record Royalty-free songs Music licensing, explained

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Mechanical licenses, explained Can another artist cover your exclusive song?How to find out who owns a song Record a song that isn't taken