In order to balance the rights of creators and the rights of users of copyright-protected materials, exceptions are included in the Copyright Act which allow for some limited copying of works by those who do not own the copyright for the works. Under these exceptions, copying is permitted only for certain purposes. This FAQ outlines the exceptions as they relate to research, private study and education.

Fair dealing 

See the What is fair dealing? FAQ. 

Educational exceptions

An educational institution or people acting under its authority (For example, faculty members, teaching staff, instructors), are permitted to do the following:

Works available through the internet (section 30.04 of the Copyright Act)

Reproduce and communicate works available on the internet for educational purposes to students enrolled in a class (for example, handing out the work in hardcopy, posting the work on a learning management system), provided that:

1. The works are available online openly and not protected by “digital locks” such as a paywall or password-protection.
2. There is no clearly visible notice specifically prohibiting the intended use of the work (this notice needs to be more than just the copyright symbol “©”).
3. The work has not been made available on the internet in violation of the copyright owner’s rights.
4. The work is cited when you use it, with the source of the materials and the name of the author or creator if their name is available.

Note: Although open materials on the internet are publicly available, the vast majority of online materials are protected by copyright. Before using material from the internet, remember that the same Copyright Act protection applies to electronic works as it does to print works. Linking to online materials whenever possible, as opposed to copying and distributing online materials, minimizes the risk of any copyright issues with using those materials.

Reproduction for display (section 29.4 (1) of the Copyright Act)

Reproduce a work or do any other necessary act, in order to display it in the classroom for educational purposes as long as the work is not already commercially available in an appropriate format. This would include, for example, scanning an image in a textbook for inclusion in a PowerPoint presentation.

Reproduction for tests or exams (section 29.4 (2) of the Copyright Act)

Reproduce, translate, perform or broadcast materials protected by copyright on university premises for a test or exam, as long as the work is not already commercially available in an appropriate format.

Showing a film in class (section 29.5 of the Copyright Act)

Show a film or other cinematographic work (as long as it is a legal copy) in the classroom, as long as it is for educational or training purposes and as long as the work is not an infringing copy.

Reproduction for lessons by telecommunication (section 30.01 of the Copyright Act)

Lessons, including tests and exams, may be recorded and communicated to students enrolled in the course, provided that:

1. The recording or copy is destroyed within 30 days after the end of the course.
2. The institution takes measures to limit the audience to only students enrolled in the course in which the lesson was given.
3. The institution takes measures to prevent further copying and distribution of the lesson by the students in the course.

Performances, sound recordings, broadcasts and telecommunication (sections 29.5 and 29.7 of the Copyright Act)

• Performances of works such as plays or music can be performed live by students without infringing copyright if the performance takes place on the premises of the school and the audience is primarily students of the school or instructors.
• Play sound recordings for students on the premises of an educational institution for educational purposes, as long as the recording is not an infringing copy.
• Play radio or television programs live when they are being broadcast. It has been interpreted that this, arguably, includes webcasts.

News and commentary (section 29.6 of the Copyright Act)

Instructors may copy news and news commentary from radio and television broadcasts for educational or personal use. The copy can be shown in a classroom to MRU students for educational purposes.

Persons with perceptual disabilities 

Persons with a perceptual disability (that is, with difficulty reading or hearing) or a person acting on their behalf, may copy a work protected by copyright in alternate formats such as braille, talking books or sign language. This exception in the Copyright Act (section 32) does not apply to a cinematographic work, such as a movie. Additionally, making a copy in an alternate format is not permitted by this exception if the work is already commercially available in an appropriate alternate format.

For information and assistance with accessing resources to accommodate perceptual disabilities, please contact Access and Inclusion Services.

Other exceptions

Non-commercial user-generated content (the “mash-up” exception) (section 29.21 of the Copyright Act)

An individual can use a published or otherwise publicly available existing work to create a new work, as long as:

1. The new work is being created for only non-commercial purposes.
2. The existing work being used is a legally-obtained copy.
3. The existing work being used is cited and the citation includes the source of the original work and the name of the author or creator if their name is available.
4. The use of the existing work does not substantially adversely affect the copyright owner of the existing work, financially or otherwise.

Back-up copies (section 29.4 of the Copyright Act)

An individual may make a copy of a work from a legally-obtained source (i.e., a work that they have purchased or have a licence to use) for back-up purposes in case the copy is damaged or lost. For example, you may copy a song you have purchased through iTunes from your computer to an external hard drive.

Format shifting because of obsolete technology (section 29.22 of the Copyright Act)

If the means to play a video or audio format no longer exists and there is no commercial copy available, a copy may be made in a different format to protect the original for preservation purposes. This means that as long as you can purchase video home system (VHS) players, VHS is a valid format and you are not permitted to copy material from VHS to digital video disc (DVD) without permission from the producer or distributor. Assuming that the program has public performance rights associated with it, those rights would be format-specific, meaning that you would need to purchase public performance rights again if you shift the format of the material.

This FAQ has been adapted from "Exceptions in the Copyright Act" by the University of Saskatchewan, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Canada License.