Selected year snapshot
For 2024, the active event in this file is Copyright (Amendment) Act 2015 (S.B. 2015 no. 83).
60%
Current rationale
The Copyright (Amendment) Act 2015 (S.B. 2015 no. 83 of 17 April 2015) amended the Auteurswet. Based on the WIPO Lex record, this amendment updated the copyright law but the full text of the amendment could not be retrieved via web search in machine-readable form. The WIPO Lex entry confirms the existence of this amendment act. From available secondary references, the 2015 amendment primarily updated the duration of copyright (extending from 50 to 70 years after the author's death) and made other modernizing changes. There is no indication from available sources that the 2015 amendment materially changed the exceptions and limitations provisions relevant to research, private study, or TDM. The pre-existing private use exception (Art. 16b) appears to remain in force. Without access to the full verbatim text of the amendment, I cannot confirm whether any research-relevant exceptions were added, broadened, or narrowed. The classification remains LIGHT BLUE based on the continued applicability of the private use/study exception. No TDM-specific exception has been identified.
Exceptions considered
Reproduction of a limited number of copies for own practice, study, or use by the person making or ordering the copies (pre-existing, believed still in force)
Short quotations from works in announcements, reviews, polemics, or scientific treatises (pre-existing, believed still in force)
Law changes
Auteurswet 1913 (Copyright Act 1913)
Baseline · Effective 1990-01-01
60%
Relevant section: Articles 16-18, 22-23
Dates: Effective 1990-01-01 · Enacted 1913-03-22
Why this score
Suriname's copyright law in force on 1990-01-01 is the Auteurswet 1913 (originally the Dutch Copyright Act of 1912, applied to Suriname and retained after independence in 1975, with amendments). The law contains exceptions relevant to research: Article 16b permits reproduction of a limited number of copies of a work for the sole purpose of own practice, study, or use ('eigen oefening, studie of gebruik') by the person who makes or orders the copies, provided this does not serve to make the work publicly available. This is a private/personal use exception that covers reproduction of full works but is restricted to the individual user ('degene, die de verveelvoudiging vervaardigt of doet vervaardigen') and does not authorize sharing or communication. Article 22 permits short quotations from literary, scientific, or artistic works in announcements, reviews, polemics, or scientific treatises, but this is limited to quotations (excerpts), not full works. The most permissive exception for research purposes is Article 16b, which permits full-work reproduction but only for private study/use by the individual. This maps to LIGHT BLUE: reproduction of full works is permitted, but restricted to individuals acting privately, with no authorization for sharing. Classification-neutral factors (non-commercial restriction, copy limits) were not factored into the color decision. I was unable to retrieve the full verbatim text of the 1913 Act as in force on 1990-01-01 via web search; the Wikisource version and WIPO Lex entries confirm the existence and general structure of the law but the full text of the exceptions chapters could not be fully copy-pasted from search results.
Exceptions considered
Reproduction of a limited number of copies for own practice, study, or use by the person making or ordering the copies, not serving public distribution
Short quotations from works in announcements, reviews, polemics, or scientific treatises
Reproduction of works in the interest of public security or for official government proceedings
Source links
Copyright (Amendment) Act 2015 (S.B. 2015 no. 83)
Relevant update · Effective 2015-04-17
60%
Dates: Effective 2015-04-17 · Enacted 2015-04-17
Why this score
The Copyright (Amendment) Act 2015 (S.B. 2015 no. 83 of 17 April 2015) amended the Auteurswet. Based on the WIPO Lex record, this amendment updated the copyright law but the full text of the amendment could not be retrieved via web search in machine-readable form. The WIPO Lex entry confirms the existence of this amendment act. From available secondary references, the 2015 amendment primarily updated the duration of copyright (extending from 50 to 70 years after the author's death) and made other modernizing changes. There is no indication from available sources that the 2015 amendment materially changed the exceptions and limitations provisions relevant to research, private study, or TDM. The pre-existing private use exception (Art. 16b) appears to remain in force. Without access to the full verbatim text of the amendment, I cannot confirm whether any research-relevant exceptions were added, broadened, or narrowed. The classification remains LIGHT BLUE based on the continued applicability of the private use/study exception. No TDM-specific exception has been identified.
Exceptions considered
Reproduction of a limited number of copies for own practice, study, or use by the person making or ordering the copies (pre-existing, believed still in force)
Short quotations from works in announcements, reviews, polemics, or scientific treatises (pre-existing, believed still in force)
Source links
Auteurswet 1913 (as amended through S.B. 2015 no. 83)
Current law confirmation · Effective 2025-01-01
60%
Relevant section: Art. 16b, Art. 22
Dates: Effective 2025-01-01
Why this score
As of 2025, Suriname's copyright law is the Auteurswet 1913 as last amended by the Copyright (Amendment) Act 2015 (S.B. 2015 no. 83). The most permissive research-relevant exception remains the private use/study provision (Art. 16b), which permits reproduction of a limited number of copies of a work for the individual's own practice, study, or use, provided the copies are not used for public distribution. This covers full works but is restricted to individual/private use and does not authorize sharing or communication to the public. There is no general fair use or fair dealing clause, no TDM-specific exception, and no institutional/library exception broader than the private use provision. The quotation exception (Art. 22) permits only short excerpts. Classification: LIGHT BLUE — full-work reproduction is permitted but only for private/personal study by individuals, with no sharing authorized. Classification-neutral factors (non-commercial purpose, copy number limits) were not factored into the color. No subsequent amendments to the Auteurswet after 2015 were identified via web search.
Exceptions considered
Reproduction of a limited number of copies for own practice, study, or use by the person making or ordering the copies, not for public distribution
Short quotations from works in announcements, reviews, polemics, or scientific treatises