Can a church project NIV verses without permission?

Biblica allows up to 500 verses to be quoted without written permission, provided they are not a complete book and are under 25% of the work, and church media needs only "(NIV)" after each quote. Projection is not named explicitly, so check Biblica's current terms.

Does a CCLI licence cover Bible verses?

No. The CCLI Church Copyright Licence covers reproducing worship songs, such as projecting lyrics. Bible translations are covered by each publisher's own permissions.

Do we need a CCLI Streaming Licence to show lyrics on a livestream?

Generally yes. The Streaming Licence is an add-on to the Church Copyright Licence that covers live performance of covered songs in online services, including lyrics on screen.

Can We Project Bible Verses? Copyright, Translations and CCLI

Q: Is the KJV public domain?

Outside the UK, yes. In the UK the rights are vested in the Crown, so it is not public domain there; check the Crown's patentees if you are unsure how this affects your use.

Yes, churches can usually project Bible verses during services, but the rules depend on the translation: the major publishers allow a set number of verses without written permission if you show the right notice, while public-domain texts such as the World English Bible carry no such limits. Song lyrics are a separate matter, normally covered by a CCLI Church Copyright Licence, with a Streaming Licence for online services. This guide sets out the main points so your media team knows what to check.

Please note: this is general information to help you ask the right questions, not legal advice. Publisher and CCLI terms change, and they differ by country. Always check the current terms from the publisher or CCLI, and take advice if you are unsure.

Can we project Bible verses without breaking copyright?

Modern translations are copyrighted works owned by their publishers. Each publisher sets out what you may quote without asking, usually in the copyright page of the Bible or on a permissions page. The common pattern among the major English translations is:

a limit on the number of verses you may quote without written permission,
a rule that the quotes must not make up a complete book or too large a share of the work,
a short notice, such as the translation abbreviation, after each quotation in church materials.

Projection is not always named directly, which is why it is worth reading each publisher's terms carefully.

What do the major publishers allow?

NIV (Biblica; Hodder & Stoughton in the UK)

Biblica's permissions allow up to 500 verses to be quoted without written permission, provided the verses do not amount to a complete book and are less than 25% of the work. In non-saleable church media, such as bulletins, orders of service, posters and overhead transparencies "or similar materials", only "(NIV)" is needed after each quotation. Screen projection is not named in that wording; many churches treat it as similar material, but check with Biblica if in doubt.

ESV (Crossway)

Crossway allows up to 500 verses without a licence, provided they are less than half of any one book, less than 25% of the work, and not used in a commentary or reference work. For church bulletins and orders of service, "(ESV)" is appended to quotations. Projection is not explicitly addressed, though transparencies are listed among non-saleable media. "ESV" is also a trademark.

NLT (Tyndale)

Tyndale allows up to 500 verses without permission, provided they are less than 25% of the work and not a complete book. Its terms explicitly name "screen projections" as non-saleable media needing only "(NLT)" after each quotation, the clearest statement on projection among the major publishers. Note that sermon recordings are limited to 50 verses per recording, which matters if you publish recorded services.

NKJV (Thomas Nelson, HarperCollins Christian Publishing)

The NKJV permission text allows up to 500 verses without permission, provided they are not a complete book, are less than 25% of the work and are not in a commentary. It states that stand-alone quotations may be projected in a worship setting without written permission if correctly cited. Older notices mentioned a higher figure, which is now outdated.

Is the KJV public domain?

It depends where you are. Outside the UK, the King James Version is public domain. In the UK, the rights are vested in the Crown. Cambridge University Press acts as the Crown's patentee in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the Scottish Bible Board in Scotland. Printing the KJV in the UK, or importing printed copies, requires permission.

Whether this affects projecting the KJV in UK church services has not been clearly settled in the sources we found. In practice it is widely projected, but it is not accurate to call the KJV "public domain worldwide". If your church publishes KJV text in print or online in the UK, check with the patentee.

What about the World English Bible?

The World English Bible (WEB) is public domain, so you can project, print and stream it without permission. One condition: "World English Bible" is a trademark of eBible.org, and modified text must not be published under that name. If you edit the wording, call it something else.

How do the translations compare?

Translation	Status	Verses without written permission	Notice after quotes	Projection mentioned?
NIV	Copyright (Biblica)	Up to 500; not a complete book; under 25% of the work	"(NIV)" in non-saleable church media	Not named; "similar materials"
ESV	Copyright (Crossway)	Up to 500; under half of any book; under 25%; not commentary	"(ESV)" in bulletins and orders of service	Not explicitly
NLT	Copyright (Tyndale)	Up to 500; under 25%; not a complete book	"(NLT)"	Yes, "screen projections" named
NKJV	Copyright (Thomas Nelson)	Up to 500; not a complete book; under 25%; not commentary	Correct citation	Yes, "projected in a worship setting"
KJV	Crown copyright in the UK; public domain elsewhere	No publisher limit outside the UK	Not required outside the UK	UK position unclear; check
WEB	Public domain	No limit	Not required	No restriction

These summaries are based on publishers' published terms as of October 2026. Check each publisher's site for the current wording.

How do you use a licensed translation in OpenMico?

OpenMico ships with the KJV and the World English Bible, and more historical editions can be downloaded within the app. It does not supply licensed translations such as NIV, ESV, NLT or NKJV. Where your church holds the rights to a translation, you can import it, and the scriptures documentation explains how.

A few practical habits help you stay within publisher terms:

Show the reference and abbreviation on scripture slides, such as "John 3:16 (NLT)". Build it into your scripture theme so it appears every time.
Keep quotations proportionate. A sermon's readings sit well within the verse limits, but a series that projects whole books may not.
Think about recordings. If you publish recorded sermons, check limits such as the NLT's 50 verses per recording.
Use the right translation on each output. In OpenMico each output can carry its own translation, so a livestream could show a public-domain text if your licensed translation's terms do not cover online use.

For the projection workflow itself, see how to display Bible verses during a sermon, and for how the Bible features work, the Bible presentation software page.

Does a CCLI licence cover song lyrics?

Bible verses and song lyrics are licensed separately. For worship songs, most churches in the UK and US use CCLI.

The Church Copyright Licence

The CCLI Church Copyright Licence (CCL) covers reproducing worship songs for congregational singing, including projecting lyrics, printing lyrics and song sheets, and making translations or arrangements where no authorised version exists. It is an annual licence and the fee scales with the size of the church.

Common practice is for lyric slides to show the song title, writer credits, the copyright notice and your CCLI licence number. Churches also report the songs they use: in the UK, CCLI asks churches to report regularly, ideally weekly. Report as CCLI instructs; many churches use auto-reporting through participating software.

The CCL does not cover everything:

photocopying from songbooks or sheet music needs the Music Reproduction Licence,
streaming needs the Streaming Licence,
playing recorded music in the UK needs PRS and PPL licences, which are sold via CCLI.

The Streaming Licence

The CCLI Streaming Licence is an add-on that requires a CCL. It covers live performance of covered songs in online services, including lyrics on screen. It does not override the terms of platforms such as YouTube or Facebook, so takedown notices can still happen. In the US, CCLI lists it from $84 per year for churches already licensed, or $108 for a church of 100 to 199 people, as of October 2026; check CCLI's site for current pricing in your country.

Streaming Plus adds master recordings and multitracks, such as backing tracks and stems, and is needed for playing recordings before and after a streamed service.

If you stream in the UK on your own website or a platform other than YouTube or Facebook, check whether you also need a PRS for Music licence for online use, as some church guidance mentions one.

For more on lyrics, read how to project song lyrics in church.

A quick licensing checklist

Which translation do we project, and do we have permission to use it?
Do our scripture slides show the reference and translation notice?
Do we have a current CCLI Church Copyright Licence for lyrics?
Do our lyric slides show title, writers, copyright and our licence number?
Do we stream, and if so, do we hold a Streaming Licence?
Are we reporting song use as CCLI instructs?

Getting started

Once your licences are in order, setting up is straightforward. Start with the KJV or World English Bible that come with the app, import any translation you hold the rights to, and build a scripture theme with the notice built in. Download OpenMico for free to try it.