For Authors
Sanasto manages collected levies for the use of literary works and distributes them to copyright holders. Sanasto provides authors and translators information and legal counselling on copyright issues.
Manage your client relationship conveniently in OmaSanasto
Easily update your information in OmaSanasto.
Are you an author?
Become Sanasto’s client
Sanasto represents authors and translators. Becoming Sanasto’s client is free of charge.
As our client you will automatically be paid the remunerations you are entitled to. Sanasto manages for example the remunerations paid for Finnish public library lending and for the use of literary works on Finnish radio and television.
Remember to add your list of works to OmaSanasto. Remuneration for lending is only paid for works that have been added to the list of works. Sanasto does not automatically receive information on new works, so you must keep your list of works up to date yourself.
If you do not have Finnish bank identifiers please contact us and we will send you Sanasto’s client contract directly.
Copyright remuneration
As an extended collective licensing organisation approved by the Ministry of Education and Culture and through client contracts, Sanasto administers copyright remunerations in the following areas:
- Lending of works from public or university libraries.
- Use of literature on radio and television programmes and in archives.
- Accessibility Library Celia’s audiobooks.
- Public performance of literature and use in publications and exhibitions.
- Use of literature in libraries, archives and museums.
Sanasto distributes remunerations four times a year, and the types of remuneration paid in each distribution varies.
Public Lending Right
PLR (Public Lending Right) in Finland is administered by three collecting societies: Sanasto (written works – authors, translators), Kopiosto (visual works – illustrators, photographers) and Teosto (musical works, sheet music included – composers).
The legislative base of the Finnish PLR system is section 19 of the Finnish Copyright Act, revised in 2016. The approval to administer PLR is granted to the organisations by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture which also supervises PLR payments. The three organisations work in close co-operation in order to assure that the various groups of right holders are equally treated. Organisations also are responsible to mutually agree upon the redistribution of the government granted funds.
PLR funding is provided by the Finnish government and payments are made to right holders by reference to the number of occasions on which their works are lent out. Sanasto receives statistics regarding the loans from both public libraries as well as educational and research libraries. Remuneration may be claimed only for lending that has occurred within the last three years.
Remuneration is also paid for the lending of e-books and e-audiobooks. This remuneration is paid for the library use of e-books and e-audiobooks.
Taxation
Royalty payments are taxable income and are taxed in the same way as earned income. Each year, we receive the tax percentages of clients who are Finnish tax residents directly from the Tax Administration. You can check the tax percentage submitted to Sanasto in OmaSanasto. If you are permanently resident abroad, please submit your annual tax-at-source card to Sanasto. You can submit your tax card via OmaSanasto. You can also send it by email or by post.