Church Healthcheck
This healthcheck is designed to help your church understand where you are using copyright works in your services and activities, and when licensing may be required.
As you review the questions, please consider all areas of church life, including youth & children's ministry, mid-week groups and clubs, and third-parties using your premises.
Does your church, or anyone using your facilities...
Licence to consider: Church Copyright Licence™
Permission is required when the words of copyrighted hymns and worship songs are reproduced in service/song sheets, on OHP acetates, or using a computer projection system. CCLI's Church Copyright Licence provides comprehensive coverage for more than 600,000 songs.
Licences to consider: CCLI Streaming Licence™ or CCLI Streaming Plus Licence™
CCLI's streaming licences extend the cover of the Church Copyright Licence to include online worship. While the Streaming Licence permits you to stream your musicians playing live, the Streaming Plus Licence enables you to also use authorised song recordings (artist tracks, backing tracks, and multitracks) during your streams.
Licence to consider: CCLI Music Reproduction Licence™
Permission is often required to copy typeset sheet music, even if the song you're copying is no longer in copyright. The CCLI Music Reproduction Licence permits you to photocopy, scan, and file-share pages from authorised songbooks and music publications.
Learn more about the CCLI Music Reproduction Licence.
As YouTube doesn’t own the videos uploaded to its platform, it's terms restrict them to private viewing only without the permission of the copyright owner(s).
Lyric Videos
More and more churches are turning to YouTube for lyric videos when musicians aren't available. But finding videos that have been uploaded with the owner's permission, are authorised for church use, and are suitable for a worship service is a growing challenge. That's why CCLI has created SongSelect Lyric Videos. Our videos are easy to use, ad-free, and fully legal to use in church. They are recorded in congregation-friendly keys, and feature simple customisation tools so you can adapt them to your needs. SongSelect Lyric Videos are available via an affordable annual subscription.
Film and TV content
CCLI's Church Video Licence provides the required permission to show authorised film content, provided you are playing it from an official source, such as the studio's official channel.
For all other video content on YouTube, or any other video-sharing platform, CCLI recommends that you only show it if you are sure they have been uploaded with the copyright owner's permission, and you have the owner's explicit permission to show it in public.
Learn more about showing videos from YouTube.
Licence to consider: Church Video Licence™
The Church Video Licence permits you to show authorised film content during services, and to show full-length films in all areas of your ministry, including church film nights, youth & children's work, and community events.
Learn more about the Church Video Licence.
CCLI recommends that you never use any creative works that may be under copyright, unless you have the permission of the owner. This would include images, music, videos, articles, or text found on the internet. A copyright owner has both a moral and economic right over their work, meaning if you use or make changes to it without their consent, they have a right to charge you.
If in doubt, CCLI is here to help.
