Fair Dealing: What Can I Use? - FACT SHEET F079v11

Sep 15, 2026

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Fair dealing guidance explains when copyright material may be used without the copyright owner’s permission for specified purposes under Australia’s Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). It outlines key requirements: the dealing must be for an allowed purpose and must be fair in all circumstances, including consideration of commercial use and whether the owner is effectively disadvantaged. It also compares Australian fair dealing with U.S. “fair use” and details purpose-specific examples such as research, criticism, and parody.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

Key points

When are the fair dealing exceptions relevant?

The fair dealing exceptions to copyright infringement

What does ‘fair dealing’ mean?

Fair dealing for research or study

Fair dealing for criticism or review

Fair dealing for parody or satire

FACT SHEET F079v11 August 2025 Fair Dealing: What Can I Use? In this fact sheet, we give a brief overview of copyright law relating to the use of copyright material , without the copyright owner’s permission , for specified fair dealing purposes. Our Copyright Essentials book provides in-depth guidance on the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) (Copyright Act) set out in this fact sheet. It is available for purchase from our website. Information about our education programs is available here. This fact sheet gives general introductory information about copyright. If you need to knowhow the law applies in a particular situation, we recommend you seek legal advice. Key points • The Copyright Act contains exceptions to copyright infringement for fair dealing with copyright material for specified purposes. • The dealing must be for the specified purpose and must be ‘fair’ in all the circumstances. 1. Copyright law and exceptions Australian copyright law includes a network of exceptions for specific uses and/or specific purposes, particularly for the education and cultural sectors. There are also licensing arrangements enshrined in the Copyright Act which enable users to use copyright material without seeking individual permission for each use. For example, see the statutory licence for educational institutions and for government which permits the use of copyright material without the permission for certain purposes provided a remuneration notice is in place with Copyright Agency, for text and images and/or Screenrights for broadcast material. See our fact sheets, Education: Copyright Basics and Government: Commonwealth, State and Territory. For a use of material (without permission or a licence) not to be considered an infringement of copyright, it must fall under one of the exceptions to copyright infringement. The fair dealing exceptions are some of these. A list of the exceptions to copyright infringement in the Copyright Act may be found in our Exceptions to Copyright Infringement fact sheet. 2. When are the fair dealing exceptions relevant? The fair dealing exceptions are relevant when you are using the whole or a substantial part of copyright material in one of the exclusive ways reserved to the copyright owner (e.g. reproduction) and: (a) copyright has not expired (see our fact sheet Duration of Copyright) , and (b) you do not have permission from the copyright owner (see our fact sheet Permission: Do I Need It?) . See also our fact sheet Quotes and Extracts. 3. The fair dealing exceptions to copyright infringement Under the fair dealing exceptions listed in the Copyright Act , copyright material may be used without permission if your use is for one of the specified purposes and is also fair. These purposes are: • research or study • criticism or review • parody or satire • reporting news • enabling a person with a disability to access the material • professional advice by a lawyer, patent attorney or trade mark attorney • judicial proceedings or reporting judicial proceedings. Australia’s fair dealing provisions are different to the concept of ‘fair use’ copyright laws of the United States. While US law suggests a number of purposes that may be considered to be within the scope of fair use (such as scholarship, research or news reporting) it does not set out all such purposes. So, the circumstances in which fair use may apply are less certain than those that fall within the specific fair dealing exceptions that apply in Australia. 3.1 What does ‘fair dealing’ mean? In this context, a ‘dealing’ with copyright material is use of the material in any of the ways reserved to the copyright owner (e.g. to reproduce) . Whether a dealing is ‘fair’ will depend on all of the circumstances of the use. The factors that may be taken into account to determine whether a use is fair include whether the person using the material for commercial purposes and whether the co

FAQs

What does “fair dealing” mean for copyright material use?

A dealing is a use of copyright material in ways reserved to the copyright owner (e.g., reproduction). Whether it is “fair” depends on all circumstances, including commercial purpose and potential impact on the copyright owner.

When do the fair dealing exceptions apply?

They apply when using the whole or a substantial part of copyright material in an exclusive way (such as reproduction) and the copyright has not expired, and you do not have permission from the copyright owner.

What purposes are covered by Australia’s fair dealing exceptions?

Allowed purposes include research or study, criticism or review, parody or satire, reporting news, enabling access for a person with a disability, professional advice by specified legal professionals, and judicial proceedings or reporting them.

Sep 15, 2026

Uploaded by Logic