{"id":3932,"date":"2023-01-18T14:26:08","date_gmt":"2023-01-18T13:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.centre-mersenne.org\/the-legal-deposit\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T14:13:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T12:13:19","slug":"the-legal-deposit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.centre-mersenne.org\/en\/the-legal-deposit\/","title":{"rendered":"The legal deposit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is legal deposit<\/strong>?<\/h2>\n\n

The BnF provides the following definition<\/a> of legal deposit: \u201cAs set out in the Code du Patrimoine, legal deposit is the obligation on every publisher, printer, producer and importer to deposit every document they publish, print, produce or import with the body authorised to receive such deposits, depending on the nature of the document. This obligation applies to any document distributed in sufficient numbers to an audience extending beyond the family circle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

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The legal deposit it is regulated by the Code du Patrimoine<\/u><\/a>, articles L131-1 to L133-1 et R131-1 \u00e0 R133-1. It is mandatory<\/strong> and ensures the collection and preservation<\/strong> of documents published in France. Comme le souligne la biblioth\u00e8que municipale de Lyon<\/a> : \u00ab L\u2019ensemble des documents imprim\u00e9s \u00e0 une \u00e9poque donn\u00e9e est le fid\u00e8le reflet des activit\u00e9s, des pr\u00e9occupations, des id\u00e9es, des modes de ce temps, et constitue ainsi un t\u00e9moignage exceptionnel et irrempla\u00e7able sur la vie sociale, culturelle, \u00e9conomique, politique, artistique de ce temps\u2026 Il est donc primordial de le pr\u00e9server et de le conserver pour les g\u00e9n\u00e9rations futures \u00bb. In addition, records are associated with each deposited document, allowing them to be searched in the databases and thus consulted in the BnF’s research rooms. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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joshveitchmichaelis, CC BY-SA 2.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

Because of its mandatory nature, legal deposit allows libraries to collect documents that do not go through the usual publishing channels. The Lyon Municipal Library\u2019s website<\/a> also adds that legal deposit \u2018is also essential in other fields, particularly in the legal sector (as evidence of the date of publication of a work) and the economic sector (publishing statistics, a reference for the book trade, etc.)\u2019 <\/p>\n\n

Which documents are concerned?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
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Ron Lach, Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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The BnF\u2019s legal deposit website<\/a> states: \u201cAll documents made available to the public in multiple copies, whether for a fee or free of charge, are subject to legal deposit. This obligation applies not only to printed documents but also to maps and plans, photographs, musical scores, audiovisual materials, software, databases, video games, etc.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full list of documents subject to legal deposit is available here:https:\/\/www.bnf.fr\/fr\/depot-legal-pour-quels-documents<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

Who deposits?<\/h2>\n\n

In France, the deposit concerns:<\/p>\n\n