Statement on Universal Bibliographic Control

Abstract

This Professional Statement, approved by the IFLA Governing Board in July 2025, defines the key principles and shared responsibilities of Universal Bibliographic Control (UBC). UBC refers to the global coordination and access to bibliographic and authority metadata through the timely creation and sharing of essential user-oriented bibliographic information. Maintained by the IFLA Bibliography Section since 2012, the statement was revised by a working group sponsored by the Bibliography, Cataloguing, Subject Analysis and Access Sections, together with the Advisory Committee on Standards, and in consultation with the National Libraries Section. This Statement reaffirms the continuing importance and centrality of UBC in the broader metadata ecosystem.