Registration of industrial designs in Ecuador – Every company that owns an industrial design and intends to expand its business in the Ecuador market should use the Ecuador intellectual property system. It is paramount for businesses to file an industrial design application in Ecuador for industrial designs, even if the launch of the respective product on the market in Ecuador has not yet commenced.
Requirements for Industrial Design Registration Application in Ecuador
An industrial design application in Ecuador requesting the right of priority must be filed within 6 months from the priority date.
The official language of the proceedings before the patent office is Spanish. Filing in a different language with a late submission of Spanish translation is not possible.
The following information and documents need to be provided in the application for registration of an industrial design in Ecuador:
name, address, and nationality of the applicant, business address;
request for design registration;
representation of a design;
proof of payment of the prescribed fee.
The applicant must sign an original Power of Attorney, have it notarized, and have it validated by an Apostille or Ecuadorian Consul. Following a request from the Ecuadorian Patent Office, the POA may be provided. The deadline is thirty days after the IPO notifies you that a document is missing. This term may be extended for an additional two months.
Within nine months after the priority date, a certified Spanish translation of the Priority Document must be provided.
Examination of an Industrial Design Application in Ecuador
Within fifteen working days of the Ecuadorian IPO accepting a design application, the formal requirements are examined. The Ecuadorian IPO does not conduct any substantive examinations until an opposition has been filed and is supported by already-existing rights or by the lack of novelty of the industrial design. Within thirty days after the publishing date, an opposition can be filed. Without limiting the aforementioned, if an industrial design’s lack of innovation is clear, the IP office must ex officio reject the application.
Validity period and renewal of industrial designs in Ecuador
Industrial design has a six-month grace period for novelty prior to the priority date. If the application was made public within this time, it doesn’t invalidate the design’s novelty in Ecuador.
In Ecuador, there is no official grant fee. The Ecuadorian industrial design patent has a ten-year validity period beginning on the filing date. In accordance with Ecuadorian law, there are no requirements for maintenance fees.
If no oppositions have been filed, the typical granting time doesn’t exceed 8 to 12 months from the filing date.
Represented by an industrial design registration attorney
An international applicant for an industrial design registration in Ecuador should perform an industrial design search in Ecuador through a law firm, or an industrial design attorney.
