How to Check Your SAMRO Registrations (Step-by-Step Guide)
- Anga Hackula
- Feb 8
- 2 min read
If you’re a South African musician, songwriter, or producer, one of the most important admin checks you can do is confirming that your music is properly registered. If your works aren’t registered correctly, you won’t get paid — even if your song is played on radio, TV, or live venues.
In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to check your own registrations on the SAMRO portal, step by step.
Why checking your SAMRO registrations matters
Registering your music with SAMRO ensures you can collect:
Performance royalties (radio, TV, live performances)
Broadcast royalties
Public performance income
But registration alone isn’t enough — you should regularly check that your works are listed correctly and marked as registered.
Step 1: Log in to the SAMRO portal
Go to:
You can also simply Google SAMRO portal — it’s usually the first result.
Sign in using your SAMRO login details
If you don’t have an account yet, you’ll need to set one up after becoming a registered SAMRO member
Note: Your portal layout may look slightly different depending on updates or whether you’re using a phone or desktop.
Step 2: Navigate to your music registrations
Once logged in:
Look to the left-hand menu (or open the menu on mobile)
Click My Music
Select Own Registrations
This section shows all the works you personally submitted to SAMRO.
Step 3: Understand what you’re seeing
You’ll see a list of songs you’ve registered. Don’t worry too much about all the columns — most of the time, you only need to answer one question:
Is my song registered or not?
Helpful fields include:
Registration number – confirms the work exists in the system
Registration date – useful if you know roughly when you submitted the song
Status – shows whether the registration is processed
Step 4: Use the search filters
To make things easier, use the search filters at the top:
Set a registration date range (for example, the last 3 months)
Leave Status as Select All
Click Search
This is especially useful if you register a lot of music and want to check recent submissions.
Step 5: Confirm your registrations
If your song appears in the results, it means:
✅ The work has been submitted ✅ It exists on the SAMRO system
If a song doesn’t appear:
It may still be processing
It may not have been submitted
The date range might be incorrect
Always double-check before assuming there’s a problem.
A quick recap
To check your SAMRO registrations:
Log into the SAMRO portal
Go to My Music → Own Registrations
Use the date filters to narrow results
Confirm that your works appear in the list
Simple, but essential.
Working with collaborators? Use split sheets
If you collaborate with other musicians, make sure you’re using split sheets before registering songs. Clear splits prevent disputes and registration delays.
I use professional split sheet templates that make registrations much smoother — especially when working with multiple writers or producers.
Final thoughts
Music admin isn’t exciting, but it protects your income. Make it a habit to check your SAMRO registrations regularly, especially after releasing new music or submitting multiple works.
If you’re serious about building a sustainable music career, this is one of those small actions that makes a big difference.
Until next time,
Skill
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