Electronic IEEE Copyright Form

Related information
IEEE Publications Menu
The electronic IEEE Copyright Form (eCF) was introduced to authors and volunteers in May 2004. Since its inception, the eCF has successfully proven itself to be a highly effective tool that not only accomplishes its main goal of transferring ownership rights of the intellectual property to IEEE but does so by also saving significant amounts of time and effort on the part of IEEE authors, volunteers, and staff.

The eCF is available to all IEEE publications at no cost

As conference organizers begin preparing for the paper submission process, they are advised that IEEE policy requires all authors intending to publish their papers in the IEEE Xplore® digital library must provide a transfer of copyright.

The following is the step-by-step process for eCF registration for conferences:

  • Complete the IEEE Conference Application. The Conference Application allows organizers to officially register conferences or events with IEEE.
  • Submit the IEEE Conference Publication Form. The Conference Publication form is a request for approval to submit conference papers to the IEEE Conference Publication Program (CPP) and the IEEE Xplore digital library.
  • An eCF registration form will be sent to the Publication Chair 90 days prior to notice of acceptance date. If the Publication Chair wants to begin this process prior to the 90 day of notice of acceptance date they can contact IEEE Meetings, Conferences & Events (MCE), +1 855 340 4333 (Toll Free US & Canada), +1 732 562 3878 (Worldwide), email: IEEE-MCE@ieee.org
  • Once the eCF form is completed the IEEE Intellectual Property Rights Office will contact organizers to complete their site setup.
  • When the conference’s paper submission site is set up to use the eCF, it will be able to pass article metadata via an encrypted string attached to the URL, after which time the eCF tool can be invoked directly by authors from the access-controlled site. A brief process will guide authors to the appropriate form, which is signed by typing in their names and clicking on a "Submit" button.

Contact IEEE Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Office at copyrights@ieee.org with any questions, or if your IEEE conference registration for the eCF was not completed.

Additional information: