India was the first country to ratify the Marrakesh Treaty, a WIPO copyright instrument that requires member states to permit production and cross-border sharing of books and other published works in accessible formats for persons who are blind, visually impaired, or print-disabled. This article explains what the Treaty requires and how India’s Copyright Act gives it domestic effect.
| Quick answer |
| • The Marrakesh Treaty (adopted 27 June 2013, in force 30 September 2016) obligates member states to provide exceptions to the rights of reproduction, distribution, and making available to the public, to facilitate accessible-format copies of published works for blind, visually impaired, and print-disabled persons. • India ratified the Treaty on 24 June 2014, becoming the first country to do so. Its domestic framework was already aligned: Section 52(1)(zb) of the Copyright Act, 1957 (inserted by the Copyright Amendment Act, 2012) permits adaptation, reproduction, and distribution of works in accessible formats for persons with disability. • At the individual level, Section 52(1)(zb) permits any person to facilitate access for a person with disability for private or personal use, education, or research. Organisations must fall within the statutory category, operate on a non-profit cost-recovery basis, restrict copies to persons with disabilities, and take reasonable steps to keep copies out of ordinary commercial channels. |
The access gap the Treaty addresses
Before the Marrakesh Treaty, the majority of books published each year worldwide were not available in formats accessible to persons with visual impairments. The World Blind Union estimated that fewer than 10 per cent of books were produced in Braille, large print, audio, or other formats that blind and print-disabled readers could use. This chronic shortage is referred to as the “book famine.”
The shortfall arose partly from copyright law itself. Producing an accessible-format copy of a book, whether by converting it to Braille, recording it as an audiobook, or encoding it for screen-reader use, ordinarily requires the copyright holder’s authorisation: reproduction, adaptation, and distribution are exclusive rights. Where rights holders declined to grant that authorisation, or where a book had no accessible version available at a commercially reasonable price, readers with visual impairments had no lawful route to access the work.
Before 2013, many countries had partial exceptions in their national copyright laws, but those exceptions differed widely and cross-border sharing of accessible copies was rarely permitted. A Braille copy produced lawfully in one country could not be exported to another without separate authorisation, even if the recipient country had no accessible edition of its own. This duplication of effort, and the resulting gaps, were the direct targets of the Treaty.
What the Marrakesh Treaty requires
The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled was adopted on 27 June 2013 at a diplomatic conference in Marrakesh, Morocco. It is administered by WIPO and entered into force on 30 September 2016, three months after the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession was deposited, as required by Article 18. As of March 2026, the Treaty has 103 Contracting Parties covering 129 countries; the European Union joined as a single contracting party on behalf of its member states.
Who qualifies as a beneficiary person
Article 3 defines “beneficiary person” as a person who is blind; or who has a visual impairment or perceptual or reading disability that cannot be improved to give visual function substantially equivalent to that of a person without such impairment, making that person unable to read printed works to substantially the same degree; or who is unable, through physical disability, to hold or manipulate a book, or to focus or move their eyes to the extent that would be normally acceptable for reading. The definition covers visual, perceptual, reading, and physical disabilities, and applies regardless of any other disabilities.
What an accessible format copy is
An “accessible format copy,” defined in Article 2(b), is a copy in an alternative manner or form that gives a beneficiary person access to the work as feasibly and comfortably as a person without visual impairment or other print disability. The copy must be used exclusively by beneficiary persons and must respect the integrity of the original work, taking due account of the changes needed to make the work accessible. Accessible formats include Braille, large print, audio recordings, digital text formatted for screen-reader use, and other adapted versions.
The domestic exception each member state must provide
Article 4(1)(a) requires each Contracting Party to provide in its national copyright law a limitation or exception to the right of reproduction, the right of distribution, and the right of making available to the public, to facilitate the availability of works in accessible format copies for beneficiary persons.
Under Article 4(2)(a), authorised entities must be permitted, without the authorisation of the copyright right holder, to make an accessible format copy of a work, obtain such a copy from another authorised entity, and supply those copies to beneficiary persons by any means, including by non-commercial lending or by electronic communication. Four conditions must all be met: the authorised entity must have lawful access to the work; the copy must introduce only the changes needed for accessibility; the copies must be supplied exclusively for use by beneficiary persons; and the activity must be carried out on a non-profit basis.
Article 4(2)(b) separately provides that a beneficiary person, or someone acting on their behalf including a primary caretaker or caregiver, may make an accessible format copy for the personal use of the beneficiary person, or assist the beneficiary person to make and use such copies, where the beneficiary person has lawful access to the work.
Under Article 4(5), it is a matter for national law to determine whether these limitations or exceptions are subject to remuneration. Member states may, but are not required to, mandate payment to rights holders.
Authorised entities: who can act under the Treaty
Article 2(c) defines “authorised entity” as an entity authorised or recognised by the government to provide education, instructional training, adaptive reading, or information access to beneficiary persons on a non-profit basis. Government institutions and non-profit organisations that provide equivalent services as one of their primary activities or institutional obligations also qualify.
An authorised entity must under Article 2(c) establish and follow its own practices to confirm that the persons it serves are beneficiary persons, to limit distribution of accessible format copies to beneficiary persons and other authorised entities, to discourage unauthorised reproduction and distribution, and to maintain due care in handling copies while respecting the privacy of beneficiary persons.
The Treaty does not prescribe a formal government registration or certification procedure for authorised entities. Member states may, however, create such procedures under their own national law.
Cross-border sharing: Articles 5 and 6
Article 5(1) requires that accessible format copies made under a domestic limitation or exception may be distributed or made available by an authorised entity to a beneficiary person or another authorised entity in a different Contracting Party. Article 6 covers importation: to the extent national law permits an authorised entity to make an accessible format copy, the national law must also permit them to import an accessible format copy for the benefit of beneficiary persons, without the authorisation of the rights holder.
These two provisions together address the duplication problem: a country that has produced an accessible copy may share it with other member countries’ authorised entities, rather than each country producing its own copy of every work.
India’s domestic framework: Copyright Act, 1957
India had already aligned its domestic copyright law with the Treaty’s requirements before formally ratifying it. The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012 inserted Section 52(1)(zb) into the Copyright Act, 1957, establishing a broad non-infringement exception for accessible formats. India deposited its instrument of ratification with WIPO on 24 June 2014, becoming the first country to ratify the Treaty. WIPO announced this on 30 June 2014, at a ceremony during the 28th session of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights.
Section 52(1)(zb): the accessible-format exception
Section 52(1)(zb) provides that the following acts do not constitute infringement of copyright: the adaptation, reproduction, issue of copies, or communication to the public of any work in any accessible format, by:
- any person to facilitate persons with disability to access to works, including sharing with any person with disability of such accessible format for private or personal use, educational purpose, or research; or
- any organisation working for the benefit of persons with disabilities in case the normal format prevents the enjoyment of such works by such persons.
The section covers “any work” under the Copyright Act, 1957, which is broader than the Treaty’s practical focus on text-based and illustrated published works.
Two provisos govern the exception. First, copies in accessible format may be made available to persons with disabilities on a non-profit basis but only to recover the cost of production. Second, the organisation must ensure that the copies are used only by persons with disabilities and must take reasonable steps to prevent copies from entering ordinary channels of business.
What “any organisation” means under the Explanation
The Explanation to Section 52(1)(zb)(ii) defines “any organisation” to include: an organisation registered under Section 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 and working for the benefit of persons with disability; an organisation recognised under Chapter X of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995; an organisation receiving grants from the Government for facilitating access to persons with disabilities; and an educational institution, library, or archives recognised by the Government.
Note: The Explanation still refers to the 1995 Act by name. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 later repealed the 1995 Act. Section 52(1)(zb) has not been amended to update this reference. Organisations that were recognised under the 1995 Act and now operate under the 2016 Act framework should obtain advice on how their qualifying status is treated under the current statutory text.
Compulsory licence under Section 31B
Where Section 52(1)(zb) does not apply, for example where a person or organisation works for the benefit of persons with disability on a profit basis or for commercial purposes, that person or organisation may apply to the Commercial Court for a compulsory licence under Section 31B. The court must endeavour to dispose of such an application within two months from receipt and may specify format, print run, and any applicable royalty in the licence it grants.
How the two frameworks fit together
The relationship between the Marrakesh Treaty and Section 52(1)(zb) is one of direct alignment. The Treaty sets the minimum international standard: member states must provide exceptions to reproduction, distribution, and making available. Section 52(1)(zb) delivers that standard in Indian law by making those acts non-infringing for any qualifying person or organisation, subject to the non-profit and exclusivity conditions.
The Treaty’s preamble acknowledges the balance between copyright protection and the public interest, recognising that authors retain their rights while the accessible-format exception carves out a space that does not conflict with the normal exploitation of the work. The moral rights that copyright authors hold under Indian law are not waived or displaced by the exception: an author’s right to attribution, for example, continues to apply to accessible-format copies produced under Section 52(1)(zb).
One practical consideration is that Section 52(1)(zb)(i) extends to “any person” facilitating access for an individual with disability for private, personal, educational, or research use. This individual-level provision mirrors Article 4(2)(b) of the Treaty. No organisational qualification is required at this level. The qualification requirements under the Explanation apply only to organisations acting under sub-clause (ii).
Cross-border exchange in India
The Treaty’s cross-border mechanism operates through Articles 5 and 6. Article 5 permits authorised entities to distribute or make available accessible-format copies to beneficiary persons or authorised entities in another Contracting Party. Article 6 permits importation of accessible-format copies for the benefit of beneficiary persons without the rights holder’s authorisation.
In India, after an accessible-format copy is received from a foreign authorised entity, any subsequent distribution, issue of copies, or communication to the public by the Indian organisation must still satisfy Section 52(1)(zb) safeguards: the copy should be used only for persons with disabilities, on a non-profit cost-recovery basis, and kept out of ordinary commercial channels.
Organisations that hold registered copyrights and want to understand how those rights interact with accessible-format exceptions can read the copyright registration procedure in India for context.
Digital works and technological protection measures
Article 7 of the Marrakesh Treaty requires Contracting Parties to ensure that legal protections for technological protection measures do not prevent beneficiary persons from enjoying the limitations and exceptions the Treaty provides.
In India, Section 65A of the Copyright Act, 1957 penalises circumvention of effective technological measures applied to protect rights conferred by the Act, where the circumvention is carried out with the intention of infringing those rights. Section 65A(2)(a) provides that nothing in Section 65A(1) prevents any person from doing anything for a purpose not expressly prohibited by the Act. Because Section 52(1)(zb) creates an express non-infringement exception, circumvention for the purpose of producing an accessible format copy under that exception is a purpose not expressly prohibited. However, the proviso to Section 65A(2)(a) adds a record-keeping obligation: any person who facilitates circumvention by another person for such a purpose must maintain a complete record of that other person, including name, address, and all relevant particulars necessary to identify them and the purpose for which they were facilitated.
The intersection of Section 65A and Section 52 has not been definitively resolved by Indian courts. Organisations working with digital works should take specific advice on record-keeping obligations and the current state of the law before relying on Section 65A(2)(a) as a basis for circumventing technological protection measures.
Allowed and not allowed at a glance
| Allowed under Section 52(1)(zb) | Not allowed |
| Converting a book to Braille, large print, audio, or screen-reader format for persons with disability | Distributing accessible copies through ordinary commercial channels |
| Any person sharing an accessible format copy with a person with disability for private, educational, or research use | Sharing accessible copies with the general public |
| Qualifying organisations recovering only the cost of production | Making a profit from accessible-format copies without a Section 31B licence |
| Changes needed to make the work accessible in the alternative format | Unnecessary alterations to the work beyond what accessibility requires |
| Importing accessible-format copies from authorised entities in other Marrakesh Treaty member countries | Importing and then distributing accessible copies outside the Section 52(1)(zb) safeguards |
What this means in practice
For organisations working with persons who are blind, visually impaired, or print-disabled in India, the combined effect of Section 52(1)(zb) and the Marrakesh Treaty framework is that:
Accessible-format copies of books and other published works may be produced without the prior authorisation of the copyright holder, provided the organisation qualifies under the Explanation to Section 52(1)(zb), the copies are made available only to persons with disabilities, and the activity is carried out on a non-profit basis with only the cost of production recovered.
Works produced in accessible format in another Contracting Party to the Marrakesh Treaty may be imported by a qualifying Indian organisation, and then distributed to beneficiary persons in India, subject to Section 52(1)(zb) safeguards applying to all subsequent distribution.
For legal or compliance questions specific to a particular organisation or project, Intepat’s copyright services team can provide guidance tailored to the circumstances.
FAQ
The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled is a WIPO copyright treaty adopted on 27 June 2013. It requires member states to permit production and cross-border sharing of accessible-format copies of published works for blind, visually impaired, and print-disabled persons without the copyright holder’s authorisation, subject to safeguards.
The Treaty entered into force on 30 September 2016, three months after the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession was deposited with WIPO, as required by Article 18. As of March 2026, the Treaty has 103 Contracting Parties covering 129 countries, with the EU joining as a single contracting party on behalf of its member states.
Yes. India deposited its instrument of ratification with WIPO on 24 June 2014, and WIPO announced on 30 June 2014 that India had become the first country to ratify the Treaty. India had already introduced the domestic exception through the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, which inserted Section 52(1)(zb) into the Copyright Act, 1957, before formal ratification.
Section 52(1)(zb) permits adaptation, reproduction, and distribution of any work in any accessible format by a person facilitating access for a person with disability (for personal, educational, or research use) or by a qualifying organisation working for persons with disabilities. Copies must be made available on a non-profit, cost-recovery basis and restricted to persons with disabilities.
Under Article 2(c), an authorised entity is one authorised or recognised by the government to provide education, instructional training, adaptive reading, or information access to beneficiary persons on a non-profit basis. Government institutions and non-profit organisations providing equivalent services as a primary activity also qualify. In India, the Explanation to Section 52(1)(zb) describes the corresponding domestic category of qualifying organisations.
Yes, within Contracting Parties to the Marrakesh Treaty. Article 5(1) requires that accessible format copies made under a national limitation or exception may be distributed or made available by an authorised entity to a beneficiary person or another authorised entity in a different Contracting Party. Article 6 additionally covers importation. The Treaty covers 129 countries as of March 2026, enabling a broad network of cross-border exchange.
Section 52(1)(zb) applies to “any work,” regardless of medium. Article 7 of the Treaty requires that technological-protection laws not block beneficiary persons from using Treaty exceptions. Under Section 65A(2)(a), circumvention for a purpose not expressly prohibited by the Act is not penalised, though a facilitator must maintain records. The Section 65A and Section 52(1)(zb) interaction is not definitively settled; specific advice is recommended.
Section 52(1)(zb) applies only where the activity is carried out on a non-profit basis. An organisation working for the benefit of persons with disability on a profit basis or for commercial purposes may apply to the Commercial Court for a compulsory licence under Section 31B of the Copyright Act, 1957. That licence specifies the permitted format, print run, and any applicable royalty.
This article covers the Indian copyright law position as at updated on June 2026. The Marrakesh Treaty text cited is the authentic WIPO text at wipo.int/wipolex/en/text/301016. The Copyright Act provisions cited are from the Copyright Act, 1957 as amended by the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012. This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Readers with specific questions about a particular work, organisation, or project should consult a qualified IP practitioner.