Protocol on Eurasian Design Patents to Enter into Force in March 2021

Azerbaijan and Armenia deposited their instruments of ratification of the Protocol on the Protection of Industrial Designs to the Eurasian Patent Convention on December 9 and December 17, 2020, respectively, becoming the second and third countries to do so, after Kyrgyzstan deposited its instrument of ratification in October 2020.

Because the Protocol enters into force for the first three states that have ratified or acceded to it three months after the third state deposits its instrument of ratification, the Protocol will enter into force for Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan and Armenia on March 17, 2021. In all other member states, the Protocol will enter into force three months after the state’s accession or deposit of its instrument of ratification.

Russia recently ratified the Protocol by adopting a law on its ratification on November 23, 2020; the law entered into force on December 3, 2020.

The Protocol was adopted by EAPO member states on September 9, 2019, introducing the Eurasian system of protection for industrial design patents, along with the already existing regional protection for inventions. There are eight EAPO member states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Tajikistan has signed the Protocol, while Belarus and Turkmenistan have announced the implementation of domestic procedures necessary for their participation in the Protocol. The countries that have ratified the Protocol are Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan.

According to the Protocol, Eurasian design patent applications will be filed with the Eurasian Patent Office (EAPO) either directly or through the national patent office of an EAPO member state. All applicants will follow uniform examination requirements, use only the official language of the EAPO – Russian, and pay a uniform procedural fee. Once granted, Eurasian design patents will be valid for five years counting from the application filing date, and will be renewable for additional five-year periods up to four more times, so that the maximum term of protection does not exceed 25 years from the application filing date.

Prepared by: Anastasia Khioni and Tatyana Kulikova

For more information, please contact russia@petosevic.com.

Source: Eurasian Patent Organization website, Russian IPO website