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The short answer
Paying a Nigerian contractor does not by itself transfer the copyright in what they create. Both the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (section 90(3)) and Nigeria's Copyright Act 2022 (section 30(3)) say an assignment only works if it is in writing, and the UK Act requires it to be signed by or for the person assigning. Put a signed assignment clause in the contract, cover future work properly, and deal with moral rights.
A UK business commissions a logo, an app or a set of course videos from a freelancer in Nigeria, pays every invoice, and assumes it owns the result. Then it tries to register a trade mark, sell the business, or stop the freelancer reusing the design, and finds the paperwork does not support it. The fix is cheap if done at the start and expensive later.
Why payment is not ownership
Copyright is property that moves only by assignment, will or operation of law. Section 90(1) of the UK Act describes it as personal or moveable property, and section 90(3) says an assignment "is not effective unless it is in writing signed by or on behalf of the assignor". Nigeria's Copyright Act 2022 takes the same approach: section 30(3) says an assignment or exclusive licence has no effect unless in writing, while section 30(4) lets a non-exclusive licence be written, oral or implied from conduct.
So without a written assignment, the most a paying client usually has is a licence to use the work, possibly non-exclusive and possibly limited to the purpose it was made for. Section 30(7) of the Nigerian Act also makes clear that owning the physical material does not confer the copyright.
Commissioned photographs: a Nigerian example
Nigeria's Act spells this out for photographs. As summarised by OAL on Mondaq (16 July 2026), section 28 gives the photographer copyright unless a written agreement says otherwise, and someone who commissions a photo for private use gets only a non-exclusive licence to use it non-commercially.
What a good assignment clause covers
- Present words of transfer: "the Contractor hereby assigns" rather than "will assign", so rights move as the work is created.
- Scope: all copyright and other intellectual property in the deliverables, worldwide, for the full term.
- Future work: Nigeria's section 30(10) allows future works to be assigned but not "all future works", so tie the clause to work created under this contract.
- Pre-existing material: the contractor keeps ownership of tools or code they already had, and gives you a licence to use what is built in.
- Moral rights: see below.
- Further assurance: the contractor will sign any further documents needed, for example to register a design or trade mark.
- Signature: signed by the contractor personally, or by an authorised officer if they trade through a company.
Moral rights
Moral rights (to be named as author and to object to distortion of the work) are treated differently from copyright. On OAL's reading of section 14 of Nigeria's Act, they cannot be signed away during the author's lifetime. A common approach is for the contractor to agree not to assert them against you and your successors, rather than to transfer them. Ask a lawyer how far that goes under Nigerian law for your case.
Timing: assign on payment or on creation?
The contractor will reasonably want to keep ownership until paid. You want rights from day one. A middle course: rights are assigned as created, but the contractor may terminate your licence to use unpaid work. Whatever the choice, write it down; an unclear clause is worse than either option.
Enforcement
If a dispute arises, you will be relying on the signed document. Keep the original signed copy (an e-signature with an audit trail is easier to prove than a scanned page), every version of the deliverables and the payment records. If the contract chose English law and courts, enforcing a judgment against someone in Nigeria still means acting in Nigeria, so a clear written assignment that the contractor cannot dispute is worth more than any court route.
Registered rights
Copyright arises automatically, but some rights only exist if registered, such as trade marks for a brand name or logo. If a Nigerian contractor designed your logo, the written assignment is what lets you show the registry that you own the artwork you are registering. Ask for the original source files too: owning the rights is of limited use if the only editable copy sits on the contractor's laptop.
Fixing an old project
If work was done without an assignment, ask the contractor to sign a confirmatory assignment now, ideally for a modest additional payment so there is clear consideration. Do this before you sell the business, raise money or file for registrations.
Steps
- Add a signed, written assignment clause to every contract before work starts.
- List what the contractor brings in already and what licence you get to it.
- Include a moral rights waiver or non-assertion clause.
- Collect the signed copy and keep it with the project files.
- For older work, obtain a confirmatory assignment.
Related: subcontracting work to Nigerian developers and contract terms with Nigerian clients.
Where Pryme fits
Payment records support your side of the story. A Pryme Business Account keeps every payment to a contractor on a dated statement, and verifiable receipts made with VerifyDoc.ai can be checked by anyone as genuine and unaltered. See business accounts.
Questions people ask
If I pay a Nigerian freelancer, do I own the copyright?
Not automatically. Copyright passes only by a written assignment under both UK and Nigerian law. Without one you usually have a licence to use the work.
Does an IP assignment need to be signed?
Under section 90(3) of the UK Act, yes, by or on behalf of the assignor. Nigeria's section 30(3) requires writing.
Can a Nigerian contractor waive moral rights?
On OAL's reading of section 14 of Nigeria's Copyright Act, moral rights cannot be signed away during the author's life. Contracts often use a promise not to assert them instead.
What if the work was done years ago with no contract?
Ask the contractor to sign a confirmatory assignment now, ideally for a small additional payment.
Sources
- legislation.gov.uk: Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 90 · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq (Esher & Makarios): assignment of intellectual property rights in Nigeria (24 Sep 2024) · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq (OAL): who owns your photos under Nigeria's Copyright Act (16 Jul 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.