Are North Korean stamps public domain?

It depends on the date. In the archive's reading, North Korean stamps issued in 1975 or earlier are public domain in 2026, because North Korea's 50-year term for works whose author is an institution has run out for them. The line moves forward one year each January.

Are North Korean stamps public domain in the United States?

It is not settled for stamps. Commons' general rules for North Korea call works first published before 1953 public domain in the United States, but its note on stamps does not take up American status. That status turns on a work's North Korean status on April 28, 2003.

Are North Korean stamps from 1946 to 1948 public domain?

Yes, in the archive's reading, though the question is open. The first North Korean stamps were issued on March 12, 1946, before the state was founded on September 9, 1948, and the archive applies the same 50-year rule to them. Commons' note on stamps does not say whether stamps issued before the state existed fall under its law.

North Korea

Are North Korea stamps public domain?

North Korean stamps issued in 1975 or earlier are public domain in 2026, in the archive's reading of Wikimedia Commons, which applies North Korea's 50-year term for works whose author is an institution. The line moves forward one year each January. American status is a separate question that Commons' note on stamps does not answer.

Why 1975?

North Korea's Copyright Law of 2001 protects a work whose author is an institution, enterprise or organization for up to 50 years from publication, counted from January 1 of the next year, and Commons applies that article to stamps.¹ In the archive's reading, a stamp issued in 1975 was protected through 2025 and became free on January 1, 2026. North Korea had no copyright law before 2001, but Commons reads a 2011 court case in Japan as showing that the government does not treat older works as public domain.¹ Commons also requires a file to be free in the United States, which turns on a work's North Korean status on April 28, 2003. Its general rules call works first published before 1953 public domain there; its stamp note does not take up the question.¹

Postal history and copyright

Korea was under Japanese rule from 1910. After 1945 the north was occupied by the Soviet Union, and separate governments formed in the north and south in 1948.¹ The Democratic People's Republic of Korea dates its founding to September 9, 1948,² but the first North Korean stamps were issued earlier, on March 12, 1946.³ Commons' note on stamps does not say whether stamps issued before the state existed fall under its law; the archive applies the same 50-year rule to them, and the question is open.

References 3

↑ Copyright rules for North Korea. Wikimedia Commons, October 5, 2026. Accessed October 8, 2026.
↑ North Korea (Q423). Wikidata. Accessed October 8, 2026.
↑ Postage stamps and postal history of North Korea. Wikipedia, August 14, 2026. Accessed October 8, 2026.

Copyright law in North Korea

North Korea’s own stamps follow the rule below. The historical issuers named here are read under the country’s general copyright law. A design answers Likely yes or Likely no only when every term that could apply agrees, and Unclear when they disagree.

Named designer: 50 years after the designer’s death
Work of the state: 50 years from issue
Note: Stamps count as works of an institution, protected 50 years from issue.

Historical issuers read under this law: Korea (Empire), Korea (Indian Custodian Forces), Korea (Japanese Post Offices), North Korea (Russian Occupation), South Korea (North Korean Occupation).

Read from Wikimedia Commons, copyright rules for North Korea, revision 1283405276, checked October 8, 2026

The rule by period

PeriodRule

Any datePublic domain 50 years after the end of the year of issue.In the archive's reading, a stamp becomes free on January 1 of the 51st year after its year of issue, as a work of an institution.

North Korea stamps and the public domain: questions

Are North Korean stamps public domain?: It depends on the date. In the archive's reading, North Korean stamps issued in 1975 or earlier are public domain in 2026, because North Korea's 50-year term for works whose author is an institution has run out for them. The line moves forward one year each January.
Are North Korean stamps public domain in the United States?: It is not settled for stamps. Commons' general rules for North Korea call works first published before 1953 public domain in the United States, but its note on stamps does not take up American status. That status turns on a work's North Korean status on April 28, 2003.
Were North Korean stamps free before the 2001 copyright law?: Not in the archive's reading. North Korea had no copyright law before 2001, but Commons reads a 2011 court case in Japan as showing that the government does not treat older works as public domain. The archive applies the 50-year term to North Korean stamps from before 2001 as well.
Are North Korean stamps from 1946 to 1948 public domain?: Yes, in the archive's reading, though the question is open. The first North Korean stamps were issued on March 12, 1946, before the state was founded on September 9, 1948, and the archive applies the same 50-year rule to them. Commons' note on stamps does not say whether stamps issued before the state existed fall under its law.