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Tell us what you do and where you live. We show which society to join, what it asks for, what it costs and where to apply.

Step 3 · your societies

Songwriter — living in Australia

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As a songwriter

Join this society in Australia

Writers generally join one authors' society for a given territory and right. That society collects your writer share from other countries through its agreements with sister societies, so you don't join a second one for the same rights.

APRA AMCOS

Australasian Performing Right Association / Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society · Australia, New Zealand

Your home society
Who can join
Songwriters, Publishers
Joining fee
None for writers: 'It's free to join'. Publisher fees: not published.
Yearly fee
Not published
Processing time
Writers: not published. Publishers: completed applications go to the APRA Board for approval, 'usually each quarter'.
Apply online
Yes — writers apply for APRA and/or AMCOS through the online portal. Publishers start with an enquiry form, then get an application form.
Members from abroad
Writers: you cannot join APRA if you are a member of an overseas PRO (no residency rule stated). Publishers outside AU/NZ may apply for Associate Membership; extra payment conditions may apply.
Who is eligible
  • APRA (performing rights): you write or compose your own songs AND they are performed live (by you or others), OR broadcast on radio/TV, OR available to stream online.
  • AMCOS (mechanicals, separate): you own the copyright, are not in an overseas mechanical society, and at least one unpublished work is commercially reproduced (e.g. on Spotify).
  • Writer membership is individual only, not open to companies, organisations or groups; in a band only the writers join.
  • Publisher Full Member: bona fide publishing business in AU/NZ/South Pacific, deal with at least one APRA writer, local bank account, ASIC/NZ Companies Office registration.
What to have ready0 of 5 ready
Apply at APRA AMCOS ↗
Sources and notes

NZ residents use the same process: the .co.nz join page has the same criteria and links to the same portal (portals.apraamcos.com.au/join/writer).

If all your works are published, your publisher usually collects mechanicals and you don't need to join AMCOS.

You become an APRA Writer Full Member (voting rights) after receiving APRA royalties and Board approval; new AMCOS members start as Associate Members (Full after 3 years with earnings).

Opt-out and licence-back options let you deal directly with certain music users.

Sources — APRA AMCOS's own pages, read on 2026-10-06. Fees and rules change: the society's site is the reference.

How we chose these

Your home society comes first: it is the one you join for the rights listed. The joining details come from each society's own website, read on the date shown on its card. Countries we haven't checked yet show the society from our worldwide directory, with a link to its site.

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Why join?

Songwriters

Societies pay the writers registered with them. If you write songs and aren't a member of an authors' society, your writer share of radio, TV, live and streaming plays can't reach you. It sits unidentified until it is claimed, or is shared out to others.

Performers

When a recording you are on is broadcast or played in public, performers are owed a share (neighbouring rights). It is paid through performers' societies, and registering is how it finds you.

Producers and publishers

Master owners collect their share of the same plays through producers' societies. Publishers collect the publisher share of the songs through the authors' society. Both collect through a society membership.

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