Patent registration in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan is a country in Central Asia with a land area of 2,724,900 square kilometers (1,052,100 sq mi). Kazakhstan is the most dominant nation in Central Asia economically, generating 60% of the region’s GDP, primarily through its oil and gas industry. It also has vast mineral resources and is officially a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage. 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 Kazakhstan.
Patent in Kazakhstan
In Kazakhstan, a patent is temporary ownership of an invention given by the Government to the patentee. During the patent’s term, the patentee will have the right to exclude third-party actions related to the protected subject such as manufacture, commercialization, use, and others.
To protect an invention through patenting means to prevent its unauthorized exploitation by competitors who were not involved in nor bore the invention’s research and development costs.
To be patentable in this country, an invention must meet the requirements of novelty, inventiveness, and industrial applicability.
However, the law of Kazakhstan does provide for a 6 months grace period. This means that if the subject of the patent application is disclosed publicly within 6 months from the filing date, the application will still be considered valid.
The disclosure might result from the applicant, inventor, or the person who received this information from the applicant or inventor directly or indirectly.
Necessary documents for patent registration in Kazakhstan
The necessary documents for patent registration in Kazakhstan 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;
- 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.
To claim priority, the applicant needs to submit the priority documents within 12 months from the date of priority. The term may be extended for 2 months from the lapsed term if they can prove that the failure to file the priority documents within the stipulated time is unintentional.
The patent application should be submitted in Russian or Kazakh language.
Although the applicant may submit the application in any other language, it must be included with a translation into Kazakh or Russian within two months from the filing of the patent application in Kazakhstan.
The procedure for patent registration in Kazakhstan
To obtain a patent in Kazakhstan, the applicant needs to file their patent application to the IP Office of Kazakhstan.
The patent application will undergo a formality examination to check if it complies with the regulations of the law.
Regarding substantive examination, the request for that examination must be sent by the applicant within 3 months from the issuance of the positive result of the formality examination.
The approximate duration of a substantive examination of an invention in Kazakhstan is about 2 years. If an invention meets the requirements of patentability, the grant decision will be issued.
After all the fees have been paid in full, the applicant will be granted the patent.
In Kazakhstan, a patent will be valid for 20 years from the filing date. For pharmaceutical patents and patents for agrochemicals, it is possible to apply for an extension of this term for additional 5 years. In case a patent is extended the Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) will be issued.
To maintain this validity, the patentee needs to pay annual maintenance fees yearly.
The annual fee for maintaining the patent validity is due beginning from the date of filing. The first annuities are paid simultaneously with the official fees for grant and publication or within 2 months from the publication of the patent.
You can see a list of Kazakhstan IP firms here.