Copying Ordnance Survey paper mapping for business use

Ordnance Survey paper mapping is protected by Crown Copyright. We have delegated authority from The Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office to decide the terms and conditions under which our customers can copy our paper maps. This can be done in a number of ways, subject to your particular circumstances

Paper Map Copying Licence

In most cases, customers will require our Paper Map Copying Licence. In summary, subject to the applicable fee being paid, this Licence allows our customers to:

Copy unlimited amounts of original Ordnance Survey mapping to support their day-to-day business administration.
Make copies of mapping in either paper or electronic form – although electronic copies are subject to some specific rules
Include copies of mapping in leaflets, in brochures and on web pages, subject to the rules set out in the Licence.
Use copies of mapping as part of a professional service, subject to the rules set out in the Licence.
Copy Ordnance Survey mapping in all offices where your business operates, subject to the applicable fee payable for that number of offices.
Copy mapping based on Ordnance Survey mapping produced by another publisher, subject to you obtaining permission to copy the mapping involved directly from that publisher.

Apply online for this licence

You will receive your licence by email shortly after submitting your application.

Paper Map Copying Licence

This document details the terms of the Licence. If you prefer not to apply online, you may print, complete and send it to us by post or fax (contact details are provided on the form).

Your company or organisation might already hold a Paper Map Copying Licence. You are welcome to contact us for confirmation.

Copying under the principle of Fair Dealing

You can make copies of Ordnance Survey mapping in accordance with the principles of fair dealing as set out in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This entitles you to make copies of our mapping for the purposes of criticism, review, news reporting and research for a non-commercial purpose. If you make a copy for any of these purposes you must, where possible, provide an acknowledgement in the following form:

Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of HMSO.
© Crown Copyright. All rights reserved.

It is your responsibility to ensure your activities comply with the relevant statutory provisions. If you need to make further copies that fall outside these provisions, you must seek permission from us before making any copies. We will make a charge when we grant such permission if your copying activity falls under the terms of one of our fee-based licences.

Copying out of copyright mapping

Crown copyright exists in Ordnance Survey mapping for 50 years from the end of the year in which it was published. You can copy mapping that is older than this without a licence from us. If you are unsure if the mapping is over 50 years old, please contact us to check.

You are not obliged to include an acknowledgement on any copies of out of copyright mapping. However, if you wish to use one, we suggest either of the following:

...or:

Reproduced from the {insert year of publication} Ordnance Survey map.

Copying superseded mapping

We permit customers to copy superseded Ordnance Survey published paper maps owned and held by public libraries. It is entirely at the discretion of the library involved as to whether they allow customers access to their superseded maps.

This is a fee-based licence and any maps copied under this licence may only be used for your internal business administration. You must apply to us for the licence, explaining your need for copies of superseded mapping and why the current edition on sale is not suitable. To learn more about this licence and how it may be used, please contact us.