For voice actors

Contracts for voice actors

A UK voice actor, agent or studio needs a signed agreement before the session: the job, the files, usage windows, exclusivity, fees, and who holds the performers' rights and the recording copyright. CDPA 1988 s.180 keeps those rights independent of copyright. s.191B needs a written, signed of the performer's property rights. Lex drafts that on one shared link.

Last updated 6 November 2026

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Lex drafts it in Plain English beside the legal wording. Share one link; both sides agree and sign.

Templates voice actors use most

Client workFreelancer agreementA freelancer agreement sets the brief, deliverables, rate, rights and payment terms between a freelancer and a client.Read →Client workServices agreement (MSA)A services agreement sets the standing terms for every project with a client, so each new job needs only a short statement of work.Read →PartnershipsInfluencer agreementAn influencer agreement sets the posts, platforms, dates, usage rights and payment for a brand campaign with a creator.Read →Client workStatement of workA statement of work sets the scope, deliverables, milestones and fees for one project under a wider services agreement.Read →Client workRetainer agreementA retainer agreement sets a monthly fee for a set amount of your time or availability, and what happens to unused hours.Read →NDAs & IPMutual NDAA mutual NDA lets two businesses share confidential information both ways before a deal, and says what each side can do with it.Read →HiringIndependent contractor agreementAn independent contractor agreement hires someone to do work as a business of their own, setting the work, pay, ownership and how the arrangement ends.Read →Client workMusic producer agreementA music producer agreement sets the producer’s fee, credits and any royalty share, and who owns the master and stems.Read →Client workVideography contractA videography contract covers the shoot day, deliverables, usage rights and payment, plus cancellation, rescheduling and releases.Read →

Which clauses decide a voice actor contract?

Five lines decide most voice-over deals: the job and the files, how long and where the client may use the performance, the fee plus unused booked sessions, any category exclusivity, and whether the paper is a or a buyout. Write them in a freelancer agreement or a services agreement before the session. Lex puts them on one paper the client signs from a link.

The clauses that usually decide a UK commercial voice-over booking. Assignment of a performer's property rights must be in writing, signed — CDPA 1988 s.191B. Copyright in the sound recording sits with the producer unless you otherwise agree it — CDPA 1988 ss.9(2)(aa) and 11.
ClauseWhat it doesTypical talent line
Scope and deliverablesWhat “done” looks like, in which format.One 30-second commercial; two accents; finished WAV, no raw session.
Usage and buyoutMedia, territory, term; licence or assignment.UK TV and VOD, 12 months; paid ads extra; no AI training.
Fees and unused sessionsWhen money is due, and what unused booked hours cost.Named fee; unused booked sessions charged as the line.
ExclusivityWhich category, which names, and for how long.No competing supermarket VO during the campaign plus 30 days.
Kill feeWhat a cancelled or unused booked session costs.Session cancelled inside 48 hours is charged.

What contract does a voice actor need?

Contracts.io has no voice-actor template. Start from a freelancer agreement or a services agreement. Those papers already have fee, usage, cancellation and IP slots. Repeat bookings can hang a statement of work under standing terms, or sit on a retainer. A podcast host-read or branded ad can sit next to an influencer agreement. A music-adjacent session can sit next to a music producer agreement. A filmed ADR day can sit next to a videography contract. Company-to-company contractor work can start from an independent contractor agreement. If you are sharing an unreleased script or product before the deal is signed, a mutual NDA sits next to it. What should a UK voice actor contract include? is the England and Wales deep-dive. Lex drafts from one sentence; the client signs from one link.

How should scope and deliverables be written?

Name the job, the length, the accents or languages, the files, and whether it is a studio session or a home-studio record. “Some VO” is not a list. “One 30-second UK TV commercial, two named accents, finished 24-bit WAV, no raw takes, remote session on the named date” is a list. Extra spots, a second language, pickups beyond the agreed rounds and a buyout into a new territory are a change of scope, quoted first. See What should a UK voice actor contract include?.

Who owns the performance, and should you licence or buy out?

Performers' rights sit with you unless you assign them. CDPA 1988 s.180 keeps those rights independent of copyright in the script or the recording. Section 191B says an assignment of the performer's property rights is not effective unless it is in writing, signed. Paying the fee does not move them. Copyright in the sound recording sits with the producer — s.9(2)(aa) and s.11 — unless you are that producer. Licence named uses on full payment; a buyout is a signed assignment of named rights, not a heading. See usage rights and credit and intellectual property assignment.

How should fees, unused sessions and exclusivity work?

Write the fee, whether VAT is extra, when invoices go out, and what unused booked sessions cost. There is no default UK right to keep a or charge a kill fee; both sides have to agree it. For a UK business client, late commercial payment carries statutory interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. An exclusivity clause names a category, named rivals and a window — not “any brand, forever”. See payment terms and Client cancelled: can you keep the deposit?.

How should approvals, revisions and sessions be written?

Write how many pickup or revision rounds they get, how direction is given, who attends the session, and what silence means. One packed set of notes is a round. A drip of Slack comments is not. A late script does not squeeze your session unless the paper says so. AI training and a synthetic voice that sounds like you are a separate use. Write yes or no. See revisions and acceptance and What should a UK voice actor contract include?.

How should personal data, contractor status and liability work?

Your own invoices and demo reel are typically data you control. UK GDPR Article 28 applies when a booking collects other people's data for the client. Write that in data protection. Typical studio, brand and agency bookings are B2B; do not paste consumer cooling-off onto a company brief. Cap liability at the fees. You cannot exclude death or personal injury caused by negligence — Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 s.2. If you book through a personal company into a studio, agency or brand, no IR35 label decides the tax. See limitation of liability and IR35 contract clauses checklist.

Frequently asked questions

What contract does a voice actor need?

A freelancer or services agreement covering the job and deliverables, usage or buyout, exclusivity, fees and unused booked sessions, who holds the performers' rights and the recording copyright, , and a . There is no voice-actor template; start from the freelancer agreement. The longer England and Wales page is What should a UK voice actor contract include?

Do I keep the performers' rights until I am paid?

Yes, unless you already assigned them in writing, signed. CDPA 1988 s.191B requires a signed written assignment of the performer's property rights. Paying an invoice does not move them. Copyright in the recording sits with the producer under ss.9(2)(aa) and 11 unless you are that producer. Write a licence or assignment on full payment.

Should a voice-over deal be a licence or a buyout?

Licence named uses unless they must own the rights. A buyout is an assignment of the performer's property rights: writing, signed, on full payment, for named media, territory and term. Paying a session fee is not a buyout. AI training and a synthetic voice are a separate use. Price them or exclude them.

How should exclusivity be written in a voice-over deal?

Name the category, the rival brands if you can, the media, and the window — during the campaign and a named period after. Price it. A clause that bans every voice-over in every category forever is the shape that fails in practice. Exclusivity is not an assignment of performers' rights.

Can I keep the fee if the client cancels a booked session?

Only if both sides agreed unused booked sessions and what is kept. There is no default UK kill-fee rule and no default right to keep a deposit. For a business client the charge must not be a penalty. Typical studio and brand bookings are B2B, so the consumer 14-day cooling-off does not apply.

Can the client sign without creating an account?

Yes. You share one link, the client reads the agreement in Plain English, agrees and signs. It is free for them.

Sources

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The legal wording governsLast reviewed 6 November 2026Pending lawyer review