Patent registration in Belarus. Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, and historically Byelorussia, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. Belarus is a developing country, ranking 53rd in the Human Development Index. It has been a member of the United Nations since its founding and has joined the CIS, the CSTO, the EAEU, the OSCE, and the Non-Aligned Movement. It has shown no aspirations of joining the European Union but nevertheless maintains a bilateral relationship with the bloc and also participates in two EU projects, the Eastern Partnership, and the Baku Initiative. Accordingly, many businesses want to enter this market and one of the most important preparations a business needs to take before expanding to this country is to learn the procedure of patent registration in Belarus.
Necessary documents for patent registration in Belarus
The necessary documents for patent registration in Belarus include:
- The request to grant a patent (patent application);
- Detailed information on the applicant(s) including the applicant’s and inventor’s names, addresses, citizenships, etc.;
- A description of the invention (even if it complies with formal requirements only).
- A filing number and date of a priority application or a PCT application;
- A signed and stamped power of attorney by the applicant(s);
- A copy of the amendments (if any);
- Priority documents (if any).
- Other required documents.
In Belarus, the novel grace period is 12 months from the disclosure date of the invention. Accordingly, if the applicant files a patent application within 12 months from the disclosure date, the patent application in Belarus will still be valid and the invention is still patentable.
The procedure of patent registration in Belarus
To obtain a patent in Belarus, the applicant needs to file their patent application to the Belarus Patent Office.
The patent application will then undergo a formal examination to check if it complies with the requirements.
If there are no errors in the formality of the application, the Belarus IP Office will notify the applicant.
Although the substantive examination is not required in Belarus, the applicant should, nonetheless, request the substantive examination within 3 years from the filing date of the patent application.
If the invention meets the conditions of patentability, a grant decision will be issued and the applicant should receive the patent after the payment of the registration fee and the first post grant annuities.
If the applicant fails to request the substantive examination within the stipulated time, it should be noted that the restoration of this term is not stipulated.
Note:
If all processes go smoothly, the entire procedure of patent registration in Belarus takes from 3 to 5 years.
Foreign applicants must be represented before the Office by a registered Belarus patent attorney.
Patent protection in Belarus may be also obtained via Eurasian patent.
Validity term and annuities
After successfully receiving the patent in Belarus, the patentee will have the protection of that patent for 20 years counting from the filing date of the patent application.
It is possible to apply for an extension of this term for additional 5 years if the patent is pharmaceutical patents and patents for agrochemicals. In case a patent is extended, the Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) will be issued.
As mentioned above, to officially own a patent in Belarus, the applicant needs to pay the fee for the grant of the patent within three months from the date of receipt of the decision to grant a patent.
The first post-grant annuities starting from the 3rd year until the year when the grant decision is issued must be paid within this term as well.
All subsequent annuities must be paid before the beginning of the next year of validity.
Late payment of annuities is possible within a 6 month grace period with a 50% surcharge.
You can find a list of Belarus IP firms here.