ACS is a not-for-profit community interest company dedicated to the administration of the Artist’s Resale Right (ARR) and copyright. We collect and distribute ARR and copyright royalties to visual artists and artists’ estates who have specifically mandated us to do so. ACS administers the Artist’s Resale Right in line with the UK Artist’s Resale Right Regulations (2006 & 2011) which implement European Directive 2001/84/EC.
ACS was founded at the request of artists and Art Market Professionals who were worried about the monopolistic implications of having only one collecting society dedicated to the administration of the Artist’s Resale Right and recognised the need for a transparent, fair and professional society that puts artists’ needs first. As a community interest company, ACS operates solely for the benefit of its member artists and the artistic community. This means that any surplus income (following the deduction of administration costs) is locked in to the company and must be used to benefit ACS’ members or the artistic community. This is done through a range of sponsorships and bursaries that support individual artists, artistic organisations and charities. You can read more about these activities here.
ACS collects Artist’s Resale Right royalties on behalf of its members in the UK and throughout European Economic Area (EEA). In order to ensure collection outside the UK, ACS uses the services of a number of European collecting societies. If a foreign collecting society’s commission is higher than the ACS commission rate, where legally possible, ACS will always collect directly from Art Market Professionals (auction houses, galleries and dealers) in that country. This ensures that ACS member artists and estates are never charged more than is absolutely necessary.
You can see a full list of European collecting societies that ACS hold a unilateral agreement with here.
ACS’ Activities
ACS administers the collection and distribution of the Artist’s Resale Right and copyright on behalf of its member artists and artists’ estates.
ACS’ activities are governed in accordance with the UK’s Collective Management of Copyright (EU Directive’Regulations) 2016. To see the full list of ACS’ obligations in relation to right holders please click here.
Artist’s Resale Right
The Artist’s Resale Right is a royalty generated on the sale price of original works or art that are sold on the secondary market, through an Art Market Professional (an auction house, gallery or dealer). It was introduced into UK law in 2006 and the threshold at which it would apply was set at €1,000. In 2011, an amendment to the legislation extended the Right to the estates of deceased artists in the UK, which came into force on 1st January 2012.
Under the UK regulations, the Artist’s Resale Right can only be administered by a registered collecting society, requiring artists or their estates to mandate a collecting society, such as ACS, to do so on their behalf.
Visual artists who are UK and EEA citizens, and their estates, qualify for the Artist’s Resale Right and can therefore appoint ACS to administer the Artist’s Resale Right on their behalf. This is done by signing a mandate agreement. You can see a sample copy of this agreement here. By doing so, the artist or estate appoints ACS as the sole body that can collect the Artist’s Resale Right on their behalf in the UK and the EEA. There are no fees or membership costs to register with ACS and you can join ACS here.
Once appointed to collect the Artist’s Resale Right on behalf of an artist or estate, ACS will track sales and all eligible transactions of the artist’s or estate’s work throughout the UK and EEA. This is done through a variety of methods, including a sales information request which is sent to Art Market Professionals throughout the UK every quarter. Royalties are then collected from the sellers and distributed directly to the artist or their estate at the end of the month in which they are received. These royalties are calculated using the sliding scale, as outlined in the UK legislation. Please see our ARR calculator for more details. Distributed royalties are accompanied by a payment statement which details:
– the title of the work(s) sold
– where the work(s) was / were sold
– the date of the sale of the work(s)
– the sale price of the work(s)
– the Artist’s Resale Right royalties that apply
– the 15% deduction of ACS commission
– the net payment made to the artist or their estate
As ACS does not charge fees or membership costs, we cover our administration costs by deducting a 15% commission from royalties collected.
ACS members can terminate their agreement with ACS for the collection of Artist’s Resale Right by providing three months’ notice in writing.
Copyright
The ACS copyright service manages copyright on behalf of artists and estates who have appointed us to do so. It was established to increase the income of artists and their estates and to relieve them of the administrative burden of handling the copyright themselves. We will always insist that the artists or artist’s estate is fully credited when any of their images are reproduced. We also endeavour to police all reported licensing infringements and to act accordingly and will provide advice and support if a member’s works is used without permission. Our service is personalised to provide for the wishes of our members so that artists and artists’ estates are able to maintain total control over the usage and distribution of their work. Furthermore, artists and estates are able to specify instances in which they might wish copyright fees to be waived, for example in the use of educational literature.
Artists and their estates can appoint ACS to manage their copyright by signing a five-year contract. You can see a sample copy of the ACS copyright agreement here. There are no fees or membership costs to register with ACS for the management of your copyright and you can join ACS by contacting us here.
We charge copyright fees for all usages of the work of our members on behalf of the artist or estate. You can see a copy of our standard copyright fees here. To view our standard copyright licence please click here. Copyright fees are paid to our artists or estates on a quarterly basis with a statement detailing the following:
– the title of the work(s) used
– how / where the work(s) was / were used
– the company that requested the use
– the medium of the use
– the exchange rate (if applicable)
– the royalty paid
– the percentage of the royalty the artist or estate receives
– the net payment made to the artist or their estate
As ACS does not charge fees or membership costs, we cover our administration costs by deducting a 25% commission from royalties collected.
ACS members can terminate their agreement with ACS for the management of their copyright by providing three months’ notice in writing.
Accountability and Governance
ACS is governed by a Board of Directors, which consists of twelve members. ACS always endeavours to appoint artists or artists’ estates who are represented by ACS for the Artist’s Resale Right to constitute half of this membership. The other Directors consist of copyright experts, dealers, curators, art consultants and legal professionals. Each Director is appointed for a period of three years at the end of which they are eligible for re-appointment for a further term of three years.
The Board of Directors meets once a year for an AGM in which they discuss the company’s activities and developments over the previous year. They also discuss possible future developments and upcoming events. All members of ACS can contact us to discuss any issues that they would like discussed during the AGMs. Members of ACS will be notified of any major changes or decisions made at an AGM.
For information on issues that have arisen in previous years, please see our Annual Reviews.
Service Levels
Artist’s Resale Right
ACS distributes Artist’s Resale Right royalties directly to the artist or their estate at the end of the month in which they are received. These royalties are calculated using the sliding scale, as outlined in the UK legislation. Please see our ARR calculator for more details. Distributed royalties are accompanied by a payment statement which details the following:
– the title of the work(s) sold
– where the work(s) was / were sold
– the date of the sale of the work(s)
– the sale price of the work(s)
– the Artist’s Resale Right royalties that apply
– the 15% deduction of ACS commission
– the net payment made to the artist or their estate
Copyright
We charge copyright fees for all usages of the work of our members on behalf of the artist or estate. Copyright fees are paid to our artists or estates on a quarterly basis with a statement detailing the following:
– the title of the work(s) used
– how / where the work(s) was / were used
– the company that requested the use
– the medium of the use
– the exchange rate (if applicable)
– the royalty paid
– the percentage of the royalty the artist or estate receives
– the net payment made to the artist or their estate
Distribution of Royalties
Members are paid royalties based on the portion of the royalty they are entitled to receive. Living artists are, for example, entitled to 100% of the Artist’s Resale Right. However, where multiple beneficiaries have inherited a royalty, the percentage per beneficiary will naturally be lower.
ACS distributes all Artist’s Resale Right royalties to all members at the end of the month in which they were received, providing we hold current correspondence and correct bank details. Payments are normally transferred on the last working day of the month. The distribution includes all royalties that were paid to ACS on or before the 24th of each month. Copyright royalties are paid to all members on a quarterly basis.
The total of each payment sent to a UK based bank account must reach the ACS payment threshold of £20.00. The total of each payment sent to an overseas bank account must reach the ACS payment threshold of £40.00. If the total payment due does not reach the ACS payment threshold, the monies will be held until other royalties are collected. Payment will then be made at the end of the month in which the threshold has been reached.
ACS only administers royalties on behalf of artists and artists’ estate for whom we hold a mandate. By doing so we hope to ensure that we are able to pay all royalties as and when they are received.
If payment is returned to ACS due to incorrect details, the royalties will be held until the member can be contacted and the correct payment details can be provided. Payment will be made at the end of the month in which the correct details have been provided.
If royalties are non-distributable, ACS will do its utmost to locate the correct rights holder in order to pay them. If after six years ACS is not able to locate the correct rights holders, ACS will return the royalties to the source from whence they came.
Contacting ACS
ACS guarantees to treat all enquiries and discussions in a fair, honest and impartial manner and to be courteous, clear and friendly in all our correspondence. Furthermore, we will always treat enquiries in the strictest confidence.
You can contact ACS by telephone on +44 (0)345 11 22 400. We endeavour to answer all telephone calls. If you leave a message or a request to be called back, we will respond within 24 hours.
You can also contact ACS by emailing info@artistscollectingsociety.org.uk. We endeavour to answer emails on the day they are received or within 24 hours of being received.
If you would prefer to discuss matters in person, you can visit the ACS office at:
17 – 19 Garway Road
London
W2 4PH
The standard office hours of the ACS team are 9.30am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday and we can be contacted at any point during these hours.
Data Protection
As a not-for-profit organisation, ACS is exempt from registration with the Information Commissioner. However, we nonetheless adhere to the principles set out in the Data Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 (GDPR). These two pieces of legislation govern the protection of personal data in the UK. This means that ACS will not disclose its members’ personal information without the permission of the individual member in question.
The GDPR is designed to give people greater control over how companies and organisations use their personal information.
We have updated the ACS Privacy Policy to ensure that it clearly sets out how ACS handles our members’ data and that we are compliant with the GDPR.
If a member wishes to update their personal data, or wishes to access the personal data we hold, this can be done by contacting us via email, telephone or post.
Please also see the Privacy Policy below.
Queries, Complaints and Dispute Resolution
We always want to hear from our members if they have any complaints regarding our service, failure to adhere to this code or suggestions for improving our service.
To do so, members should contact the ACS Senior Manager. This can be done by:
Telephoning the Senior Manager on +44 (0) 20 7908 1634.
Emailing the Senior Manager here.
Writing to the Senior Manager at:
Senior Manager
Artists’ Collecting Society
17 – 19 Garway Road
London
W2 4PH
ACS will aim to respond to complaints within five working days of receiving the complaint and during each stage of the formal complaints procedure. This is as follows:
1. The Senior Manager will respond to your complaint.
2. If you are dissatisfied with this response, the matter will be referred to the Managing Director.
3. If you remain dissatisfied, the matter will then be referred to our Board of Directors for further investigation.
