LEGAL BASIS

• Patent Law of February 5, 1993.
• Patent and Utility Model Law of August 5, 1997.
• Patent, Utility Model and Industrial Designs Law of December 16, 2002, with amendments as of December 22, 2011.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention, as of April 14, 1993.
• The Patent Cooperation Treaty, as of April 14, 1993.
• Eurasian Patent Convention, as of August 12, 1995.

FILING REQUIREMENTS

• Power of Attorney (no legalization);
• Assignment of rights to patent, if the inventor is not the applicant;
• Specification and abstract (may be filed in Belarusian, Russian or any other language whereby a certified Belarusian or Russian translation should be filed within a two-month term);
• Drawings, if applicable;
• Priority document, if applicable (to be filed within three months from the filing date).

REMARKS

National Phase of PCT: under Chapter I: 31 months; under Chapter II: 31 months.
Validity: patent issued after formal and full examination - valid for 20 years from the filing date.
Annuities: are accumulated and due after the granting decision; starting with the 3rd year.
Opposition: is possible within six months after publication of the abstract in the Official Gazette.

LEGAL BASIS

• Law on Trademarks and Service Marks, with amendments as of January 5, 2016.
• Rules for the Recognition of Trademarks as well-known in the Republic of Belarus of August 9, 2002.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention, as of April 14, 1993.
• Madrid Agreement, as of December 25, 1991.
• Madrid Protocol, as of January 18, 2002.

FILING REQUIREMENTS

• Power of Attorney;
• The sign to be protected, and its description; 5 prints (8 x 8 cm) or 10 prints if colors claimed;
• List of goods and services, according to the International Classification;
• The priority document, if any (late filing during three months is possible).

REMARKS

Kinds of protection: individual and collective trademarks. Service Marks are registrable. Besides the original version, filing of the word mark applications in the Cyrillic alphabet is highly recommended.
Classification: International.
Obligation to use the registered mark: must be used; if not used within any three-year period after the registration (or last use) date, the mark can be cancelled upon request of an interested party; nominal use (advertising, publications) is accepted in absence of actual use.
Duration - renewals: 10-year period after the filing date, renewable for further periods of 10 years.

LEGAL BASIS

• Industrial Models Law of February 5, 1993.
• Patent, Utility Model and Industrial Designs Law of December 16, 2002, with amendments as of December 22, 2011.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention, as of April 14, 1993.

FILING REQUIREMENTS

• Power of Attorney;
• The model itself or, when not appropriate, photographs or drawings thereof (7 copies);
• Designation of the model, with indication of its characteristics;
• Specification of the model, if necessary;
• Priority document, if any (can be filed within three months after filing).

REMARKS

Duration – renewals: after formal examination: 10 years. Renewable for an additional period of 5 years.
Opposition: is possible within six months after the publication in the Official Gazette.

LEGAL BASIS

• There is no specific legislation although some regulations on the organization and management of country code top-level domain names do exist.

FILING

• ccTLD: .by
• Applicant: national and foreign individuals and legal entities.
• Local presence: not required.

REMARKS

Duration – renewals: one year, renewable yearly.
Uniform dispute resolution procedure: none.