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We are unable to offer direct deposit to non-US banks.

However, affiliates with non-US banks are eligible to receive payments through wire transfer. Please note your bank may charge a fee to process wire transfer payments. You can request a wire transfer form by emailing International@bmi.com.

As long as you are not a member of any other performing rights organization in the world, you are free to affiliate with BMI if you believe you will be earning performance royalties.

Generally, the international rights society collects the royalties and distributes them to the sub-publisher you have an agreement with.

BMI is only entitled to collect your publisher performance royalties if you have not assigned your performing rights to a publisher in another territory. You should review your contracts carefully for the details on the rights you have assigned.

If you have entered into an agreement with another publisher and that publisher is assigned the right to collect a portion or all of your performance royalties in another country, you should notify BMI.

More importantly, if your agreement terminates, you should notify BMI of this termination.

Forms containing the information required by BMI are being furnished for your convenience with the required information: International Agreement Notice or Termination of International Agreement.

You can send this information to our International Administration Department via email, fax (615) 401-2759 or postal mail.

Although BMI does not log all performances in other countries (this is handled by the society in that country), BMI does monitor and analyze major performances of BMI repertoire on radio, television and cinema in many countries around the world. We then provide song registrations and cue sheets pertaining to those performances to such countries. Our objective is to ensure, on a proactive basis, that BMI affiliates receive accurate royalties payments from foreign societies in a timely manner.

Please see our BMI Member International Overview.

By copyrighting your work in the United States, your work is protected in the territories which adhere to the Berne Convention.

Yes. Your work is protected in the U.S. However, in order to receive the full benefits of the U.S. Copyright Law (such as the ability to sue for infringement in the United States of America), you should also register your work with the U.S. Copyright Office.

No. Once your work is registered with BMI, it is registered throughout the world. See our Member International Overview for more information.

If you expect to receive performance royalties, all you have to do is make sure your work is registered with BMI. However, this does not mean that your mechanical rights are registered. You should contact The Harry Fox Agency if you have questions in this regard.

Most foreign performing rights societies base their distributions on a sample. That means, they do not pay on all performances. They survey a radio station for a certain period and pay royalties based on the works which appear on their survey. However, if you believe your work is receiving considerable performances, you should contact your local Writer/Publisher Relations representative. Your request should be received within nine months of the perceived omission or error.

Most payments are distributed to BMI writers and publishers between one and two years after the performance occurs in a foreign country.

You should check the distribution schedule included with your royalty statement for the performance period being distributed for each individual country.

Keep in mind most foreign societies will not make adjustments less than $50.

Most payments are distributed to BMI writers and publishers between one and two years after the performance occurs in a foreign country.

Please see our page about “About Live Performances Overseas” for more information on this topic.

BMI does not log your performances in other countries. The performing rights organization in the country of performance logs your performances. Each society requires a different amount of time to identify and distribute royalties to BMI. Most societies make distributions to BMI on an annual or semi-annual basis. When BMI receives these royalties, the payments are identified as quickly as possible to expedite payments to our affiliates.

The international rights societies pay royalties on music performed in cinemas or theaters. If you are aware that a particular movie is playing in a cinema or theater you should speak with your production company and have them provide a cue sheet to BMI especially if the film was not released in the United States. Also, if you are aware that the name of a particular movie has been changed into another language, you should contact the International Administration Department.

BMI does not deal with the individual publishing companies in other countries. We only deal with the foreign rights societies for the collection of performance royalties.

BMI is a performing rights society. We do not act as a publisher or promoter of music. Please refer to About BMI section of our web site.

Please see our FAQ for members of foreign rights societies.

See our Tax Information page for complete details on selecting and completing the appropriate international tax form.