PASVL · LOSDA
The public-source, permission-to-deploy licensing framework
Public Availability with Source-Code Visibility License (PASVL-1.0)
Letter of Software Deployment Approval (LOSDA-1.0)
Read the source. Ask to deploy. Get it in writing.
This repository contains the complete, official, international legal framework for software whose
source code is public forever but whose deployment is licensed individually.
It is not open source. It says so plainly, everywhere, on purpose.
What this is
Two instruments, designed to work together:
| Instrument | What it does | Grants |
|---|---|---|
| PASVL-1.0 — the license | Makes the source public and permanently visible | Read, study, audit, fork, cite, teach, contribute — free, worldwide, forever |
| LOSDA-1.0 — the permission | Authorizes a named party to deploy | Run, host, embed, distribute — scoped, term-limited, recorded, revocable only for cause |
The license is public and identical for everyone. The permission is individual and verifiable.
The registry is the memory that makes both enforceable in practice.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ EVERYONE │
│ ✅ Read ✅ Audit ✅ Fork ✅ Teach ✅ Cite │
│ ❌ Deploy without permission │
└───────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────┘
│ applies for a LOSDA
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ LICENSEE │
│ ✅ Deploy within scope ✅ Host ✅ Embed ✅ Distribute │
│ ❌ Exceed scope ❌ Sublicense ❌ Remove notices │
└───────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────┘
│ recorded in
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PUBLIC REGISTRY — anyone can verify the permission │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The 60-second summary
You can, without asking anyone
- Read every line of the source.
- Study it, learn from it, teach with it.
- Audit it for security, privacy, and correctness.
- Fork it, clone it, archive it.
- Quote it in papers, books, and reviews.
- Submit pull requests and improvements.
- Build it privately to see whether it works.
All of that is free, worldwide, perpetual, and irrevocable.
You cannot, without a Letter of Software Deployment Approval
- Run it in production.
- Offer it as a hosted service.
- Ship it in a product or a device.
- Use it to train or fine-tune a model.
- Sublicense it, resell it, or rebrand it.
- Call it "open source" — because it is not.
What a LOSDA gives you
A numbered, signed, publicly recorded permission that states:
who may deploy · what version · where · for what purpose · at what scale · for how long · under what conditions
And a verification URL that lets anyone — your customer, your auditor, your regulator — check
it in seconds.
Start here
| I am… | Start with |
|---|---|
| An author considering this license | docs/for-authors.md → docs/quickstart.md |
| A team that wants to deploy | docs/for-deployers.md → templates/LOSDA-REQUEST.md |
| A lawyer or auditor | LICENSE → legal/losda-specification.md → legal/risk-register.md |
| A journalist or skeptic | docs/why-this-exists.md → legal/platform-reality.md |
| An enterprise | docs/for-enterprise.md |
| A public body | docs/for-government.md |
| A teacher or researcher | docs/for-education.md |
| A contributor | CONTRIBUTING.md → docs/for-contributors.md |
| A translator | translations/ |
| Confused | docs/faq.md → docs/glossary.md |
The repository at a glance
PASVL_LOSDA/
├── LICENSE ← PASVL-1.0, the full binding license
├── NOTICE ← adoption notice for this repository
├── GOVERNANCE.md ← who decides what
├── CONTRIBUTING.md ← how to contribute
├── CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md ← how we treat each other
├── SECURITY.md ← vulnerability disclosure
├── TRADEMARK.md ← brand rules
├── CHANGELOG.md ← every change, dated
├── CITATION.cff ← how to cite this
│
├── legal/ ← the instruments and their operating rules
│ ├── losda-specification.md ← the permission instrument, in full
│ ├── plain-language.md ← the whole thing in human words
│ ├── enforcement-policy.md ← what happens when rules are broken
│ ├── hierarchy-and-interpretation.md
│ ├── platform-reality.md ← what a license can and cannot do on GitHub
│ ├── compatibility.md ← combining with other licenses
│ ├── jurisdiction-matrix.md ← 17 jurisdictions, honestly assessed
│ ├── ethics-policy.md ← prohibited uses
│ ├── sanctions-and-export.md
│ ├── privacy-policy.md
│ ├── anti-corruption.md
│ ├── risk-register.md ← 25 risks, with mitigations
│ └── non-software-works.md
│
├── governance/ ← the institutions
│ ├── CHARTER.md
│ ├── LICENSE-COUNCIL.md
│ ├── REGISTRY-POLICY.md
│ ├── APPEALS.md
│ ├── AMENDMENT-PROCESS.md
│ ├── ELECTIONS.md
│ ├── ETHICS-REVIEW-BOARD.md
│ ├── CONFLICT-OF-INTEREST.md
│ ├── REGISTRY-CUSTODIAN.md
│ ├── DISSOLUTION-AND-SUCCESSION.md
│ └── TRANSPARENCY-REPORT-TEMPLATE.md
│
├── docs/ ← practical guides for every audience
│ ├── quickstart.md
│ ├── for-authors.md · for-deployers.md · for-contributors.md
│ ├── for-enterprise.md · for-government.md · for-education.md
│ ├── deployment-scopes.md ← 40 worked examples
│ ├── losda-guide.md
│ ├── faq.md · glossary.md · why-this-exists.md
│ ├── checklist-deployer-compliance.md
│ ├── migration-guide.md · anti-patterns.md · roadmap.md
│ └── badge-usage.md · versioning.md · citation.md
│
├── templates/ ← every form you need
│ ├── LOSDA-TEMPLATE.md · LOSDA-REQUEST.md · LOSDA-AMENDMENT.md
│ ├── LOSDA-DENIAL.md · REVOCATION-NOTICE.md
│ ├── NOTICE-OF-NON-COMPLIANCE.md · APPEAL-FORM.md
│ ├── VIOLATION-REPORT.md · SECURITY-REPORT.md · TAKEDOWN-REQUEST.md
│ ├── DATA-PROCESSING-ADDENDUM.md
│ ├── CONTRIBUTOR-AUTHORIZATION.md
│ ├── ADOPTION-CHECKLIST.md · NOTICE-TEMPLATE · LICENSE-HEADER.txt
│
├── schemas/ ← machine-readable validation
│ ├── losda-v1.schema.json
│ └── registry-v1.schema.json
│
├── registry/ ← the public source of truth
│ ├── losda-registry.json
│ ├── issuers.json
│ ├── works.json
│ └── enforcement-register.json
│
├── examples/ ← complete worked examples
│ ├── losda-standard-commercial.md
│ ├── losda-academic.md
│ ├── losda-hosted-service.md
│ ├── losda-record.json
│ └── NOTICE-example
│
├── scripts/ ← validation and tooling
│ ├── validate_losda.py
│ ├── validate_registry.py
│ ├── new_losda.py
│ ├── hash_record.py
│ ├── check_license_headers.py
│ ├── check_docs.py ← prose consistency
│ ├── check_links.py ← links and anchors
│ └── check_refs.py ← section cross-references
│
├── rfcs/ ← how the framework changes
├── translations/ ← বাংলা and more
└── .github/ ← issue templates, PR template, CI
The rules, in one page
The license grants (Article 3)
| Right | Scope |
|---|---|
| Read and study | Any purpose, any person, forever |
| Audit and verify | Including security testing |
| Clone, fork, archive | With notices retained |
| Learn and teach | Including classroom execution |
| Cite and comment | With attribution |
| Propose changes | Contributions welcome |
| Build to verify | Private, non-production |
| Personal study copy | Not for deployment |
The license reserves (§5)
- Deployment, in every form.
- Hosted service provision.
- Distribution in executable form.
- Machine-learning use.
- Sublicensing and resale.
- Brand use beyond nominative reference.
The limited free-use envelope (Articles 6–9)
| Envelope | Limit |
|---|---|
| Evaluation Use | 30 private, non-production days per work per year (Mode S) |
| Teaching | Classroom only, not institutional infrastructure |
| Research | Controlled environment, non-commercial, no external service |
| Security research | Good faith, coordinated disclosure, 90 days |
| Emergency | 90 days, notify within 14 |
| Everything else | A LOSDA |
The LOSDA classes (§10.14)
| Class | For | Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Standard Commercial | A product or business use | Author's schedule |
| E | Enterprise / Portfolio | Groups of affiliates and works | Negotiated |
| I | Internal Use | Inside one organization | Often low or zero |
| H | Hosted Service / SaaS | Serving third parties online | Often usage-based |
| D | Distribution / OEM | Devices, binaries, installers | Often per unit |
| A | Academic / Non-Commercial | Universities and colleges | None |
| G | Government | Public service delivery | None |
| P | Public Interest | Disaster, health, accessibility | None, expedited |
| R | Research | Testbeds and studies | None |
| X | Evaluation Extension | Short-term trial | None or nominal |
| C | Continuity | Rescuing an essential service | None |
| M | Machine Learning / AI Data | Training, tuning, evaluation | Negotiated |
| O | Open Deployment | Standing public grant by the author | Per the author |
Enforcement, in order (§20.6)
0 friendly message → 1 formal notice + cure → 2 suspension → 3 revocation + registry →
4 platform action → 5 legal action
Every step is documented, proportionate, and appealable.
The ten principles
- Visibility is a right. Deployment is a permission.
- No implied licenses. Permission exists only in writing and in the registry.
- Cure before escalation. Most breaches are mistakes.
- Proportionality. The response matches the harm.
- No retroactive tightening. Rights already granted stay granted.
- Revocation needs cause, notice, a hearing, and a wind-down.
- Everything is appealable once.
- No discrimination in licensing on protected grounds.
- Free for the public good. Academia, government, research, and public interest pay nothing.
- Honesty. It is not open source. We will never pretend otherwise.
Honest positioning
| Claim | True? |
|---|---|
| The source is public and auditable | ✅ Yes, permanently |
| Anyone can read, fork, teach, and contribute | ✅ Yes, free |
| Deployment requires permission | ✅ Yes, in the framework |
| The license is enforceable everywhere, perfectly | ❌ No — jurisdiction-dependent, like every license |
| The license is open source | ❌ No — and it must not be described as such |
| The framework guarantees compliance | ❌ No — it provides clear rules, records, and remedies |
| Enforcement is easy | ❌ No — read legal/platform-reality.md |
If you need a license that allows anyone to run your software for any purpose, use MIT or
Apache-2.0. This framework is for authors who want visibility to be universal and deployment to
be deliberate.
Adopting the license
<!-- Put this in your README -->
> **License: PASVL-1.0 — source is public, deployment is licensed.**
>
> ✅ Read, study, audit, fork, teach, and contribute — free, forever.
> ❌ Deploy, host, embed, or train a model on it without a **Letter of Software Deployment
> Approval (LOSDA)**.
>
> [License](LICENSE) · [Request deployment approval](https://example.com/licensing)
Then follow templates/ADOPTION-CHECKLIST.md.
Never set your package manifest to a permissive identifier to silence a tool. Use
LicenseRef-PASVL-1.0 or SEE LICENSE IN LICENSE.
Getting permission
- Read docs/for-deployers.md and classify your use.
- Complete templates/LOSDA-REQUEST.md.
- Apply. Standard classes target 20 business days from a complete application.
- Receive a signed letter with a verification URL.
- Verify it in the registry. Deploy only when the registry says
active.
Contributing to the framework
The framework is meant to survive criticism. Bring it.
- Ideas and changes: rfcs/ using rfcs/0000-template.md
- Corrections: pull requests against the documents
- Translations: translations/
- Conduct: CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
- Security: SECURITY.md
Major amendments require a 45-day public comment period and a two-thirds vote of the License
Council. Rights already granted cannot be withdrawn.
Stewardship
The framework is stewarded by the Bangladesh Software Development Community (BSD C) — a
community organization, not a vendor. BSD C publishes the text, operates the registry, holds the
marks, and is bound by the Charter to act in the interests of the
framework as a whole.
- Governance: GOVERNANCE.md
- Appeals: governance/APPEALS.md
- Transparency: governance/TRANSPARENCY-REPORT-TEMPLATE.md
- Succession: governance/DISSOLUTION-AND-SUCCESSION.md
BSD C does not take a share of any author's licensing fees.
Status
| Item | Status |
|---|---|
| License version | 1.0 |
| LOSDA specification | 1.0 |
| In force from | 2026-01-01 |
| Registry | Open — initial issuer registered |
| Amendments | Open for RFC |
| Translations | English (authoritative), Bengali |
| OSI approved | No, and will not be submitted |
License of this repository
The legal texts in this repository (LICENSE, legal/, governance/, templates/) are
published under PASVL-1.0 itself, so that anyone may read, copy, translate, and adapt them.
The templates may be used, filled, and distributed freely by authors and licensees. Attribution
to the framework is required but a LOSDA is not required to use the documents — only to deploy
software licensed under it.
Documentation and badges are published under PASVL-1.0 as well. See NOTICE.
See the source. Ask to deploy. Get it in writing.
PASVL-1.0 · LOSDA-1.0 · A project of the Bangladesh Software Development Community
Not open source. Deliberately.
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