Information for Pearson royalty recipients

Pearson’s royalty recipients are a valued part of our business. Generally, those receiving royalty payments include our esteemed authors, designated royalty payees, and the proprietors of our works who own the right, title & interest to the work itself. Whether you’re an existing payee or interested in starting to work with us, this site should be a useful resource.

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A guide to your new royalty statement

Pearson has recently introduced a new royalty accounting system to help us manage royalty processing more efficiently. As a part of the new system, your royalty statement has a new format. This guide has been created to help you understand the information as it is displayed in your new statement.

Reducing the number of statements that are sent by mail is now more important than ever. Driven by our sustainable values, Pearson will be moving more rapidly to make the switch to electronic statement delivery. Please make sure that we have an up-to-date email on file so that we can alert you when new statements are available for viewing.

A Guide to the Global Royalty Statement

Introducing the Pearson Royalty Portal

The Pearson Royalty Portal is a convenient and secure website providing direct online access to royalty statements and payments. The site offers members a range of simple services:

Online storage of royalty statements with the option to 'go paperless'.
Electronic notifications when statements become available.
Quick access to payment information, alongside a view of the statements.
A simple way to inform the royalty department of a mailing address change.

Learn how to register and navigate the portal

Portal FAQ

How do I register for the Pearson royalty portal?

Payee records set up in our system are flagged to receive electronic invitations to the portal. Using the email that we have on file, you will receive detailed instructions on how to initially access the portal. The invitation email will look something like this, and contain details specific to you that will allow you to register.

Do I need to register again if I was already registered for the previous portal, RoyaltyDirect?

If I was paperless in the prior system, will I automatically be setup again?

Yes, if you had previously designated a paperless setting, we will enable that same setting for you on launch. In between the transition from the legacy portal to the new Royalty Portal, it was not possible for Pearson to continue sending electronic statements, and unfortunately all statements were sent out in the mail. Thankfully, we are now able to update your record so that you are paperless again! As mentioned above, you will still need to register for the new portal in order to access your statements online.

Will my old statements be available in the new portal?

Statements that you have already received in the new statement format are available in the new portal, and you can find them once you register. Additionally, you may also notice that a listing of your payments sent out from the new royalty system is available. Statements sent from the prior royalty system up through the June 2019 period will not be accessible from the new online portal.

Will the new system alert me when a royalty statement is available?

Why is Pearson only sending out Summary statements via mail?

Pearson is putting our sustainable values into practice and finding ways to minimize our environmental impact, including waste mitigation in paper. Royalty statement detail adds up to millions of pieces a paper per year. Just making the switch to Summary Only will make a huge difference. Our ultimate goal is for you to join us in this mission and choose to ‘Go Paperless’ for both your royalty statements and royalty payments.

Do my royalty statements get automatically archived?

At this time, Pearson does not have a set limit on the number of years of history being made available via the portal (from 2019 forward). So for now, any statements & payments issued to you from our new system will be available in the portal. As with any initiative, if storage of historical statements & payments becomes an issue at a later time, we will communicate with you regarding a plan of action.

How do I update my information so that Pearson pays me electronically?

Pearson understands that getting you paid on time is one of the most important parts of our relationship. By switching to direct deposit, the time between Pearson making a payment and the receipt of that payment is significantly reduced. Through the support page, you can easily request updates to banking information. Check out the section on 'Pearson royalty payment basics' for the required forms to accompany your request. Please note that Pearson supports direct electronic & wire payments, although can no longer support the 'For Benefit Of'/'Further Credit To' payment methods.

Is there a URL available so that I can check out the new portal?

The way that the new online portal works is slightly different than a regular website. Every payee being invited to the portal is given a unique weblink that is specific to their account. You are not able to access or navigate the portal without a direct invitation. Once you have registered, you will be provided with the new login link to the portal. We will be sharing guides and tools to assist with navigation of the portal.

Pearson royalty payments basics

Royalty payments can be deposited directly to a checking or savings account, which provides quick access to royalty payments without the hassles of waiting for checks to arrive, cashing them or misplacing them.

If you are a new payee and are not yet on file with Pearson, you will need to fill out the relevant forms for the geography with which you are doing business. Please do your best to provide all required information, so as to avoid any unnecessary payment delays for future royalties:

Royalty information, address and banking detail

Royalty Payee Information Form

Assignment of royalty payments

If you would like future royalty payments issued directly to heirs, a trust or an estate tax identification number that differs from your own, Pearson will need to process an assignment of rights on the account. A request for an assignment must be made through our support page. Please include contact information (email / telephone number) for each assignee, as documents will be issued to them to complete. If there are multiple heirs, please select one person to be the main point of contact. Our royalty team will refer the information to our legal team for any assignment of rights issues.

Royalty income & tax reporting

For new US payees, once your record is created, the system will send you an email containing a link to update your tax forms online. The web questionnaire will guide you through a series of questions to identify the tax form most appropriate for you.

Pearson will report all of your royalty income to the IRS each year, which is inclusive of payments made directly to you as well as any payments for permissions fees, indexing, manuscript preparation, photo research, etc. that are paid to a third party and recoupable against your royalty earnings. You will receive a 1099 or 1042 each January stating the amount of royalty income you earned in the previous calendar year.

Legal name changes

If you have a legal name change, Pearson must make the required updates to your payment & tax details. A request for a legal name change must be made through our support page. Please include relevant documentation to support the change. Our royalty team will refer the information to our Legal team for any change of name issues.

Contact the Pearson royalty department

For any of your support needs, please contact us at:
https://support.pearson.com/getsupport/s/royalties