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Publishing Map

Rights · Library of Congress

What is an LCCN

A Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN) is the number the Library of Congress assigns to the catalog record for a book in its cataloged collections. A Preassigned Control Number (PCN) is an LCCN assigned before publication. The Library states there is no charge. A PCN is not copyright registration, and it is not an ISBN. Receiving one does not mean the Library will keep the book. The author guide, the CIP guide, the library-science FAQ, and the Copyright Office FAQ were read live on 22 October 2026. The scope, eligibility, how-to-apply, and PCN FAQ pages were read the same day from Internet Archive captures of 15 and 19 August 2026, because the live loc.gov HTML returned a Cloudflare challenge.

Publishing Map's take

An LCCN is the number the Library of Congress assigns to a catalog record, and a PCN is that number assigned before publication. The Library states there is no charge, and its CIP guide says a self-publisher is not eligible for Cataloging in Publication.

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The short answer

  1. An LCCN identifies a Library of Congress catalog record. Librarians use it to find that record. A PCN is that number assigned before the book is published.[592][594]
  2. There is no charge for a PCN. You must send a copy of each book that received an LCCN, immediately on publication. The FAQ says to allow up to 30 calendar days to receive the number.[589]
  3. Authors and self-publishers open a PrePub Book Link account and can submit a request without waiting for account approval. A publisher account usually takes about 10 business days to approve.[590]
  4. Books published only as ebooks are ineligible. The CIP publisher guide says self-publishers are ineligible for Cataloging in Publication and may use an author or self-publisher PCN account. The library-science FAQ says self-published and independently published books, especially literary works, are not likely to be selected for the Library's permanent collections.[588][593][622]
  5. The Library says the PCN program has no relationship to copyright registration. An ISBN is not required on the request. A 10-digit ISBN is not accepted.[589][592][595]

01

What is an LCCN, and what is it used for?

The author guide says an LCCN is the unique number on the catalog record for each book in the Library's cataloged collections. Librarians use it to locate that record. The library-science FAQ says the Library assigns the number while the book is being cataloged, and that a PCN is the same number assigned before publication. Not every book with an LCCN is cataloged or added to the collections. The PCN FAQ says a brief record is created for every book submitted through the program, and that records for authors and vanity presses are usually suppressed from the online catalog. If the Library selects the book, that record is unsuppressed and fully cataloged. The publisher prints the number.[592][594]

  • An LCCN is a catalog-record number. This page does not describe a call number.
  • A public library order is a separate decision, on the libraries answer.

02

What is the PCN program, and who is eligible?

The scope page says forthcoming US monographs are eligible except the categories it lists. A preassigned number does not oblige the Library to catalog a book it does not select. Selection happens when the printed book arrives. Ineligible works are: books already published; books with no US city on the title page or copyright page; books already in CIP or headed there; ebooks published only electronically; serials; custom editions; items under 50 pages, except genealogies, children's literature, and museum or gallery exhibition catalogs; textbooks below college level; items not meant for wide library distribution; religious instructional materials; expendable educational materials; transitory or consumable materials; translations other than Spanish; mass-market paperbacks; articles reprinted from serials; audiovisual materials, mixed media, and software; music scores; and microforms. The FAQ adds that books must be in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and/or Spanish. The author guide requires a US place of publication and a US address. The eligibility page uses a different contact test: a publisher must keep a US editorial office that can answer bibliographic questions, and an author must have a US phone number that can be reached. This answer does not treat those as one rule.[588][591][592][594]

  • An ebook-only book is outside the program. A forthcoming print book is not that exclusion.
  • Final selection follows receipt of the printed book.

03

How do you apply, what does it cost, and how long does it take?

Authors and self-publishers can open a PrePub Book Link account immediately and submit a request without staff approval of the account. Publishers apply for a PCN Publisher Account first. Approval usually takes about 10 business days, and the FAQ says most account approvals take place within 10 business days. Each imprint needs its own account. The author guide calls the author account fast and simple and gives it no day count. The FAQ says to allow up to 30 calendar days to receive the LCCN, and to apply early because a heavy workload can take longer. There is no charge. The FAQ states no postage price. An ISBN is not required. If you enter one, it must be 13 digits. From 20 May 2019, a 10-digit ISBN is not accepted. If staff ask a question, you have 7 days to answer before the request is cancelled. A change request is available after the request is closed, if the publication date is still ahead or no more than 60 days past. The how-to-apply page says to print the LCCN on the copyright page in this form: Library of Congress Control Number: 2019012345. That number is the page's example.[589][590][592]

  • The author account and the publisher account are different applications.
  • No program fee is stated. Postage for the required copy is not priced.

04

What must you send after publication?

Send one copy of every book that received an LCCN, immediately on publication. Missing copies can mean suspension. The books become Library property and are not returned. The FAQ address is Library of Congress, U.S. Programs, Law, and Literature Division, Cataloging in Publication Program, 101 Independence Avenue, S.E., Washington, D.C. 20540-4283. Books already published are outside PCN. Copyright deposits are reviewed by selection librarians. The Library does not give a status report on those deposits.[588][589][594]

  • The PCN copy is not a copyright registration deposit.
  • The FAQ says immediately upon publication and states no other deadline.

05

How is PCN different from CIP, and can a self-publisher get CIP?

The PCN FAQ says CIP creates a full record for forthcoming books most likely to be widely acquired by US libraries, prints a data block on the title-page verso, and distributes the record. It is open only to publishers who meet the criteria. PCN assigns an LCCN, which the publisher prints. A title in one program cannot enter the other. The CIP guide says there is no charge for CIP, and the publisher must send a copy of each CIP book on publication. It says self-publishers are ineligible: authors and editors who pay for or subsidize their own works, who often do not publish more than three authors, and whose books are rarely widely acquired. They may open an author or self-publisher PCN account. Each CIP imprint needs three titles by three authors, each held by at least 1,000 US libraries in print or ebook. Staff check WorldCat. Vendors, printers, and fee-for-service publishers are ineligible for CIP. Fee-for-service publishers may still open a PCN publisher account. The library-science FAQ, checked 23 October 2026, says: "Many books that receive an LCCN through the PCN Program are self-published or independently published. These categories of books, especially literary works that fall under these categories, are not likely to be selected for the Library's permanent collections." That sentence is about the collection, not about CIP eligibility.[589][593][622]

  • The self-publisher exclusion is the CIP guide's wording.
  • Three titles and 1,000 libraries are the CIP test, not the PCN test.

06

Is an LCCN the same as copyright registration or an ISBN?

No. The PCN FAQ says the program has no relationship to copyright registration. Copyright records document ownership. PCN assigns numbers to titles the Library may add. Deposits for mandatory deposit under section 407 and for registration under section 408 are separate. The Copyright Office FAQ says protection exists from the moment the work is created, registration is voluntary, and registration is recommended because it places the claim on the public record. Registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees. That FAQ does not mention an LCCN or an ISBN. The PCN FAQ says an ISBN is in no way related to an LCCN. The author guide says an ISBN is not required on the request. Fees are on the copyright answer.[589][592][595]

  • Mailing the PCN copy does not register the copyright.
  • Printing an ISBN does not assign an LCCN.

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