Software copyright in Uzbekistan

Software rights arise on creation (art. 4, Software Law). Employers generally hold economic rights in service software; customers need contractual grounds. The Civil Code, Copyright Law and Software Law distinguish authorship, transfer and registration. For employers and customers, these determine who may modify, sell and license software.

In brief:

• software registration is voluntary and does not replace evidence of ownership;
• economic rights in a service program belong to the employer (art. 8, Software Law), unless its agreement with the author provides otherwise;
• checking an application takes ten days, excluding any suspension for corrections;
• paying for development and receiving files do not themselves transfer copyright (art. 38, Copyright Law).

Updated: 16 September 2026

What software copyright protects

Protection covers the creative expression of a program: its source text and object code (art. 3, Software Law), regardless of programming language, purpose or publication. For a database, protection covers the creative selection and organisation of its contents. Ideas, interface principles, algorithms and programming languages as such fall outside this protection.

The author remains the individual whose creative work produced the result. A company can acquire economic rights, but authorship cannot be assigned (art. 1033, Civil Code). The author's personal rights include recognition of authorship, attribution, disclosure with a right of withdrawal, and protection of reputation. They survive a transfer of rights (art. 18, Copyright Law); a waiver is void. The law makes an exception to withdrawal for service works unless the agreement provides otherwise.

Rights in a database do not extinguish rights in its contents (art. 4, Software Law). If the database contains other people's protected works, their use must be lawful. Another developer may independently select and organise the same materials. Ownership of a server, disk or copy of a program likewise does not establish copyright ownership.

The general term is the author's life plus seventy years after death (art. 35, Copyright Law). For joint authors, the term runs after the death of the last surviving author; anonymous or pseudonymous works have a special term of fifty years after disclosure unless the author's identity is revealed. A work first published after the author's death is protected for seventy years after publication. Terms run from the first of January of the following year; authorship, attribution and reputation are protected indefinitely.

This article addresses rights in code and databases. The article on trademarks explains protection of a product's name and identifying sign. It is relevant when a company separately protects its software brand.

Who owns code created by an employee

Economic rights in software created in the performance of employment duties or an employer's assignment belong to the employer (art. 8, Software Law), unless its agreement with the author provides otherwise. The amount and payment arrangements for the author's remuneration are set by an agreement between employee and employer. Merely paying a salary does not replace stating those terms.

The employee's duties and assignment determine how the work is classified. The Supreme Court Plenum explains that a work created at work or using the employer's property, but outside employment duties and assignments, is not a service work. The employment agreement, description of duties, assignment, development history and delivery record therefore help connect a particular software version with the assigned work. This is a practical body of evidence, rather than a separate registration procedure.

An employer's rights in a service work remain subject to statutory limits. Ten years after disclosure (art. 34, Copyright Law), or earlier with the employer's agreement, the author acquires the full right to use the work and receive remuneration irrespective of the contract. The author's right to use it in a manner outside the purpose of the assignment is unrestricted. The employer may identify itself when using the work; this does not make it the author.

Who owns software developed by a contractor

Commissioning development must be distinguished from acquiring exclusive rights. Under a commissioned-work copyright agreement (art. 41, Copyright Law), the author undertakes to create and deliver the work. Transferring economic rights requires compliance with the rules governing copyright agreements, while personal rights remain with the author.

Where a development studio is involved, the practical question is which rights it acquired from its employees and other authors, and which it transfers to the customer. The transferred rights must be defined: unspecified rights are presumed retained (art. 1035, Civil Code). Repository access, payment of an invoice and an acceptance record help establish performance, but do not supply a missing rights clause.

A separate rule applies where the relationship concerns research, experimental design or technological work: unless the agreement provides otherwise, the customer may use the delivered results (art. 696, Civil Code), while the contractor may use the results for its own needs. This is not equivalent to the customer acquiring all exclusive rights.

What a rights assignment agreement should contain

The agreement must identify the particular object and the rights the customer acquires. Economic rights in software may be transferred wholly or partly through a written agreement (art. 7, Software Law). Mandatory terms cover the scope and methods of use, remuneration and payment arrangements, and the agreement's duration.

Calling a document an “assignment agreement” does not, by itself, determine the scope of the transfer. Rights under a copyright agreement are non-exclusive by default (art. 38, Copyright Law). If the customer acquires exclusive rights, this should be expressly stated and linked to the specified methods of use, such as reproduction, distribution, adaptation and making the work available. These are examples, rather than the complete list of economic rights.

Territory, duration and onward transfer have distinct legal consequences (art. 39, Copyright Law):

• without a territorial clause, the transferred right is limited to Uzbekistan;
• if the period of use is unspecified, the author may terminate after five years by giving the user six months' written notice;
• methods of use not expressly transferred remain with the right holder;
• onward transfer is permitted where the agreement expressly authorises it;
• remuneration or the method of calculating it, payment arrangements and payment dates must be established for each method of use;
• where fixed remuneration is agreed for publication or other performance of a work, the agreement must specify the maximum print run.

The special software statute requires the agreement to state its duration, so the termination rule does not replace that requirement. An author cannot be bound to transfer all future creative results (art. 1037, Civil Code) to a customer or prohibited from creating results in a particular field.

Personal rights must also be considered when transferring adaptation rights: changes to a work, its title and its attribution require the author's consent (art. 18, Copyright Law). This is a separate question from ownership of economic rights.

A licence permits use within defined limits. A simple, non-exclusive licence is presumed unless otherwise agreed; sublicensing must be authorised by the agreement (art. 1036, Civil Code). For mass-market sales of software copies, the written-form requirement may be satisfied by placing terms on the copy (art. 42, Copyright Law).

When software may be copied or modified

A lawful holder of a copy may take actions necessary to operate the program, including correcting obvious errors. Recording and storage are permitted for one computer or one network user unless the agreement provides otherwise. The law allows adaptation and an archival copy (art. 12, Software Law) without additional remuneration, unless otherwise agreed. The copy is for archiving or replacing a lost, destroyed or unusable original; it must be destroyed when lawful use ends.

Decompilation without written consent is permitted only when the conditions are met together (art. 12, Software Law): information needed for interoperability of an independently developed program is unavailable elsewhere; only the parts necessary for interoperability are examined; and the information is not used to develop software substantially similar in expression or to commit another infringement.

The general permission to make personal copies of works does not extend to software (art. 25, Copyright Law), except in cases provided by law, or to databases or substantial parts of them. A file being publicly accessible therefore does not establish permission to incorporate it into a commercial product.

How to register and deposit software

Applications are submitted to the Ministry of Justice (art. 9, Software Law), and documents are checked by the state institution “Intellectual Property Center” under the Ministry. The Intellectual Property Agency was merged into the Ministry of Justice, with its functions, tasks and powers transferred. The right holder applies directly or through a representative; each application concerns one program or one database.

Residents apply through a public services centre, the Ministry's special information system or the Unified Interactive Public Services Portal. Non-residents use the special system; filing by post is also provided for. Subsequent steps are carried out through the information system.

The application has three components: a request, materials identifying the program or database, and an abstract. A representative must additionally attach a written power of attorney.

For a program, the source text or extracts are submitted as a PDF up to 10 MB. Preparatory materials and visual or audiovisual files may be added as a ZIP up to 10 MB. For a database, a PDF showing the objective form of presentation, organisation and systematisation of the data is required, also up to 10 MB.

The materials include a title page naming the object, right holder and all authors. The abstract contains the following information: title; an annotation on purpose, application and functions of no more than seven hundred characters; computer type; programming language for a program; database management system type and version for a database; operating system type and version; and size in kilobytes.

The ordinary check takes ten days. If corrections are requested, the applicant must respond within three months; the check is suspended, and failure to provide a complete response results in the application being treated as withdrawn. An expedited check is possible within one day on request and under an agreement with the Center; that agreement's terms must be distinguished from state duty.

Once the prescribed duty is paid, the object is automatically entered in the register and an electronic certificate is sent. Register information is presumed accurate unless proved otherwise (art. 9, Software Law). A certificate does not eliminate a dispute over who created the code or acquired the rights.

Submitting identifying materials for registration is often described as depositing code. Separately, the law regulates deposit in a public repository (art. 22, Copyright Law): this constitutes use if any applicant can obtain a copy under an agreement with the repository. Its terms are set by the right holder's agreement with the repository. These procedures must be distinguished when choosing how to record a program.

Software and agreement registration fees

The applicant pays the duty; rates differ for individuals and legal entities. One BRV, the base calculation unit, is used to calculate the fees. All amounts below follow the software and database rates in paragraph 15 of the schedule to the State Duty Law; these are government charges, rather than development costs.

The registration scheme requires the applicant to pay the filing duty within three months, and the registration, publication and certificate duties within three months after the decision is sent. If payment is insufficient, the law allows time to pay the balance, after which registration does not proceed and the partial payment is not refunded (art. 23, State Duty Law).

For independent applications through the Unified Portal, ninety percent of the ordinary amount (art. 22-1, State Duty Law) is charged. Relief is available for certain social categories. In particular, a sole author with a group I disability seeking the document in their own name is exempt from the relevant duties (art. 15). The discount for people in the Unified Social Protection Register and people with group I or II disabilities excludes business applications and applications as a legal entity's representative; the discount is fifty percent (art. 22-2).

Example. A company registers one program without relief: 880.000 + 352.000 + 176.000 + 352.000 = 1.760.000 UZS. If all these payments qualify as an independent application through the Unified Portal, 1.760.000 × 90% = 1.584.000 UZS. A separate agreement for expedited checking is not included in this calculation.

Registration of a software rights transfer or licence is voluntary by agreement between the parties. Where one party applies, it attaches a notice of disposal of the right signed by the parties, or the agreement or an extract; succession and representation documents are added where necessary. These are the attachments for that form of application. Documents in another language require a translation into the state language.

An application to register an agreement is examined within fifteen days. Applicants have three months to correct deficiencies, with examination suspended during that period. The duty for this procedure is paid on filing, as prescribed by the agreement registration scheme.

What can be claimed from an infringer

Use without an agreement, use beyond the permitted methods, infringement of personal rights and failure to pay required remuneration are among the forms of infringement (art. 62, Copyright Law). For a customer, an example might be a contractor selling code whose exclusive rights have already been transferred to the customer, where that use was not retained by contract or law.

The right holder may seek protection of the infringed right (art. 65, Copyright Law) through:

• recognition of rights;
• restoration of the previous position and cessation of infringement or its threat;
• damages, including lost profits; if the infringer earned income, lost profits may be recovered in an amount no lower than that income;
• compensation of 8.800.000 to 440.000.000 UZS instead of damages, regardless of whether losses occurred, taking account of the infringement, fault and commercial practice;
• other measures provided by law.

The author may also claim compensation for moral harm; this provision sets no fixed rate. The special software statute describes compensation as a claim against an infringer who derives profit (art. 14, Software Law). A software claim therefore needs to address that wording alongside the general law. The court also decides confiscation and destruction of unlawful copies.

Example. A right holder seeks 17.600.000 UZS in compensation instead of damages. This is 2 × 8.800.000 = 17.600.000 UZS, an amount within the statutory range. The calculation explains the sum claimed but does not predetermine the judgment: rights, infringement and circumstances affecting compensation must still be established.

Liability for infringement

Administrative and criminal liability have their own elements and do not replace the right holder's civil remedies. Unlawful use, dealings in counterfeit copies and false information about a producer or right holder carry fines with confiscation (art. 177-1, Code of Administrative Liability).

Confiscation covers counterfeit copies, materials and equipment used for reproduction and distribution, and other instruments of the offence.

Falsely claiming authorship, coercion into joint authorship and disclosing information before official disclosure without the author's consent constitute a separate criminal offence (art. 149, Criminal Code). The basic alternative penalties are a fine of 22.000.000–33.000.000 UZS, deprivation of a specified right for up to five years, compulsory community service for up to three hundred and sixty hours, or restriction of liberty for up to two years.

Where there is repetition, prior group conspiracy, use of an official position or especially large-scale damage (art. 149, Criminal Code, official Uzbek text), the alternatives are deprivation of a specified right for one to three years with a fine of 33.000.000–44.000.000 UZS, community service for three hundred and sixty to four hundred and eighty hours, correctional labour for up to three years, or restriction of liberty for two to three years.

Unlawful use and the statutory acts involving counterfeit copies that cause large-scale damage incur criminal liability (art. 149-1, Criminal Code): a fine of 22.000.000–44.000.000 UZS, or correctional labour, restriction of liberty or imprisonment for up to two years. Aggravating features are repetition, prior group conspiracy, use of an official position, use of mass media, telecommunications networks or the Internet, or especially large-scale damage. The aggravated offence carries a fine of 44.000.000–66.000.000 UZS, or correctional labour, restriction of liberty or imprisonment for two to three years.

The Criminal Code defines large-scale damage as between 132.000.000 and 220.000.000 UZS, and especially large-scale damage as 220.000.000 UZS or more. These thresholds concern damage, rather than the fine or the civil compensation claimed.

Compensation for material damage under the latter offence excludes restriction of liberty and imprisonment. A first-time offender is exempt from liability (art. 149-1, Criminal Code) if they compensate the damage within thirty days after discovery of the crime. For infringement of the author's personal rights, they must also remedy the consequences (art. 149, Criminal Code) within the same period.

What changed in 2025–2026

• Law No. ZRU-1080 of 08.08.2025 changed criminal liability for infringement of authors’ rights. The revised provision and the separate offence of unlawful use have applied since 10 November 2025.

• Plenum Resolution No. 21 of 24.11.2025 clarified protection of authors' personal non-property rights independently of economic interests and the absence of a limitation period for claims protecting those rights.

• Plenum Resolution No. 19 of 03.07.2026 clarified interim relief: in civil and economic proceedings, its purpose is to prevent enforcement of the judgment becoming difficult or impossible.

• Order No. 22-mh of 26.06.2026 will introduce an electronic risk analysis system for intellectual property supervision. It takes effect on 30 September 2026; a risk identified by the system does not itself justify sanctions.

How to file a copyright claim

First identify the infringed right, its holder and the remedy sought. Disputes about service works fall within the civil courts; other copyright and contractual disputes are heard by civil or economic courts, depending on procedural jurisdiction. A pre-action demand is mandatory where the law or contract requires it; failure to send a non-mandatory demand is not grounds for refusing to accept a claim.

The general limitation period for economic claims is three years (art. 150, Civil Code). It normally runs from when the right holder knew or should have known (art. 154, Civil Code) of the infringement. Limitation is applied at a party's request (art. 153, Civil Code). It does not apply to protection of personal non-property rights, as separately explained by the Supreme Court Plenum.

The software-specific part of a claim will, in practice, need:

1. the program's name and version, and a description of the disputed fragments;
2. evidence of creation and transfer of rights: assignments, agreements, delivery records, repository information and any registration certificate;
3. an account of the defendant's actions and how they relate to the claimant's rights;
4. dated, sourced materials recording distribution or use;
5. a defined remedy: cessation of use, recognition of rights, damages or compensation;
6. calculation of the monetary claim and an explanation of the amount selected.

This is a working list for the substance of the dispute, rather than the complete set of procedural particulars. In economic proceedings, circumstances, evidence, calculations and remedies form part of the mandatory contents of a claim (art. 149, Economic Procedure Code).

If continued distribution would make the eventual judgment difficult to enforce, interim relief may be requested. An order prohibiting specified actions by the defendant is one available measure (art. 94, Economic Procedure Code), but it must be proportionate to the claim. The application should explain why the particular measure is necessary; it does not replace proof of infringement.

General particulars, attachments, court payments and electronic filing are covered in the articles on filing a civil claim and filing an economic court claim. They are relevant after identifying the competent court. A copyright claim supplements that general filing package with evidence of rights in the particular program and its use by the defendant.

Frequently asked questions

Does an employer own every program its developer writes?

No. The connection with duties or an assignment matters, rather than the developer's job title or ownership of the computer alone. A work outside those boundaries is not a service work. Code created under an employment assignment is subject to the employer-ownership rule unless otherwise agreed. A dispute therefore examines the assigned work and the circumstances in which the particular program was created.

Does paying a contractor transfer exclusive rights?

Payment establishes settlement under the agreement, but its rights provisions determine what is transferred. Rights not specified as transferred are presumed not to be transferred (art. 1035, Civil Code). The customer should compare the agreement with its intended uses: modifying, distributing, licensing and transferring the product to another owner may require different express rights. Receiving the files does not resolve that issue by itself.

Can an unregistered program be protected?

Yes. Copyright arises on creation (art. 4, Software Law), and registration is not a condition of protection. Ownership and infringement must nevertheless be established in a dispute. Agreements, assignments and dated development materials help explain where the code came from; a registration certificate adds register information whose accuracy the other party may challenge.

Can authorship be sold with the software?

Economic rights may be transferred to the extent allowed by law. The right to be recognised as author cannot be assigned or transferred (art. 1033, Civil Code), so a customer or employer does not become the author by paying, registering or signing an agreement. Documents should distinguish the individuals who created the work from the right holder entitled to use it and dispose of its economic rights.