The USCO offers a completely online service for registration of literary works. This method of application and registration offers a faster processing time and lower registration fee than alternative methods, and is available 24 hours a day. To register online, visit http://www.copyright.gov/eco/, and follow the link to the Electronic Copyright Office.
If you would rather print your application and return it through the postal system, you may do so. Access "Form CO" via http://www.copyright.gov/eco/, fill it out online, print it, and mail it along with a check or money order for $50, as well as a copy of your work being registered to the address on the form. Typically, this process takes significantly longer than applications processed online.
You can still opt for traditional paper registration of your poetry, but this method of registration is being phased out. If you prefer this route, you need to secure "Form TX" from the USCO by filling in the request at http://www.copyright.gov/forms/formrequest.html. The form will be mailed to you with instructions for completing your copyright registration. The fee for the paper method is $65.
You own the copyright to any original work you write, according to the Academy of American Poets (AAP), regardless of whether you officially register the work or not. Kim Addonizio and Dorianne Laux, award-winning poets and co-authors of "The Poet's Companion," hold that registration is unnecessary and recommend investing your money in a literary journal rather than a copyright fee. Another consideration, says AAP, is that publishers often copyright in your name upon acceptance of your work.
Even though you automatically own the copyright to your writing, AAP notes that if it would be difficult to win a copyright infringement case if your work is not registered.