BELGIUM

• INTERNATIONAL TREATIES TO WHICH BELGIUM IS SIGNATORY

  • International Treaties to which Belgium is signatory.

    • Paris Convention for the protection of industrial property
    • Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights TRIPS.
    • Patent Co-operation Treaty “PCT”.
    • European Patent Commission.
    • Budapest Treaty On The International Recognition of the Deposit of Micro Organisms For The Purposes of Patent Procedure.
• PATENT LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM

  • IP LAW IN BELGIUM

    • Belgium follows a civil law system modelled after French Law.
    • Patents in Belgium are governed by: Patents Law 1997.

    Patents in Belgium may be granted by:

    – Belgian Industrial Property Organisation

    – European Patent office at Munich

• BASICS REGARDING PATENTABILITY OF INVENTIONS IN BELGIUM

  • Inventions may relate to products, processes or industrial applications. Patents are therefore granted to inventions that:

    • Are New or Novel
    • Involve an inventive step
    • Comprise of a process or an Industrial application of the invention.

    For an Invention to be patentable, it should contain the following:

    (i).Novelty: An invention is considered new or novel if it is not included in the state of the art. State of the art consists of all the information available and accessible to the public prior to the date of the patent application.

    (ii). Inventive Step: An invention is said to contain an inventive step if for a man skilled in the art it does not yield results in an obvious way from the state of the art.

    (iii). Industrial Application: of the invention would be when the object of the invention may be produced, manufactured or used in any kind of industry including agriculture

• INVENTIONS NOT PATENTABLE IN BELGIUM

  • Inventions pertaining to the following:

    • Discoveries, Scientific Theories & Mathematical methods.
    • Aesthetic creations.
    • Schemes, Rules, Methods for performing mental acts, playing games, doing business as well as Presentation of Information.
    • Programmes for Computers.
    • Inventions contrary to public order & morals.
    • Methods of treatment on humans and animals.
    • Plant or Animal varieties or Bio processes for the production of plants or animals.
    • Simple discoveries of an element of the human body such as a genetic sequence.
    • However, micro biological inventions or parts of the human body isolated, produced by a technical process or site of the human body are exempt.

    PartityPatents Law Firms through its associates in Belgium is at hand to help you with patent registration and prosecution.

• FILING REQUIREMENTS OF PATENTS IN BELGIUM

  • (i). Application to be filed in Greek or translation provided accordingly.

    (ii). Nationality of the applicant.

    (iii). Name & Address of the applicant.

    (iv). Description of the invention.

    (v). Claims

    (vi). Abstract

    (vii). Drawings

    (viii). Title of the invention , Prior state of the art, & the Technical area of the invention.

    (ix) A Request for grant of patent

• EXAMINATION OF THE PATENT APPLICATION IN BELGIUM
  • • Once the patent application is filed, the application is scrutinised for defence & atomic energy aspects.
    • Examination is conducted for formality & substantive requirements of the patent application.
    • Further, if the applicant so desires, patents shall be granted without prior examination of the patentability of the inventions. It is pertinent to note that, this kind of examination will neither guarantee the value of the inventions applied for, nor the exactness or accuracy of their description. Such patents are therefore, granted at the applicant’s risk.
    • Belgian patents are not reviewed for conditions of patentability as the European patent office searched for prior art.
    • However, search report by the EPO does not have any bearing on the issuance of the patent search report and is accompanied with a written opinion meant for the applicant’s information only.

    Post Patent grant by the European Patent Office (EPO), Patent needs to be validated in the member country as designated on the Patent application.

    Patent Validation comprises of certain formalities and requirements per national laws of the designated country.

    Parity Patent Attorneys and Associate Law Firms in Belgium are at hand to help and assist you with Patent Validation.

• RIGHTS OF THE PATENTEE IN BELGIUM

  • TERM AND KINDS OF PATENTS GRANTED IN BELGIUM:

    Patents with a term of 20 yrs.

    Short patents with a term of 6 yrs.

    • Patents confer on holders and successors exclusive rights to work the invention.
    • Patentee may authorise such uses of the patent through a contractual agreement with interested parties so as to import, rent out, deliver or sell the product patent.
    • Patentee may authorise the working of the patent either by a manufacturer or by an importer.
    • Patentee may even assign or licence the patent.
    •  Patentee is entitled to take legal action against infringers.
• COMPULSORY LICENCES OF PATENTS IN BELGIUM

  • Compulsory Licenses may be granted after a period of 4 yrs. from the date of filing of the patent application or 3 yrs. from the date of grant of the patent, which ever period expires last.

    Compulsory licenses may be provided for, when neither the patentee nor successors barring legitimate reasons:

    1. Has begun work or has made real and effective preparations for working the invention that is the subject matter of the patent on the territory of Belgium.
    2. Has worked the invention that is the subject matter of the patent in a manner sufficient to satisfy the needs of the Belgian market.
    3.  The applicant for the compulsory license has not been able to obtain a license from the patentee when the applicant is in a position to work the invention in an effective and serious manner.
    4. In the instance of dependent patents, wherein patentee concerning an improvement of an invention already patented on behalf of another person may not work that invention without the consent of the patentee of the earlier patent.
    5. When instances relating to public health problems, national security and defence, unforeseen circumstances, arise.
    6. When patentee breaches competition law.

    ParityPatents along with specialised Patent Lawyers and Patent Attorneys in Belgium, can assist you comprehensively with Compulsory Licence matters.

• PATENTS Cost of Registration in BELGIUM