With the entry into force on August 1, 2023 of the Decree No. 11.627/2013, which enacts the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement regarding the International Registration of Industrial Designs, Brazil becomes formally a party to the Hague Agreement and begins to accept new International Industrial Designs applications.
With this, Brazil joins the 96 member countries of the Hague Agreement, simplifying and reducing costs for the processing of Industrial Designs, both for national companies and for foreign companies that aim to protect their rights within the Brazilian PTO.
According to the Brazilian PTO ordinance on the processing of these international applications, the PTO will have a maximum period of 6 (six) months to declare the granting or refusal of the Industrial Design, which will be valid for a maximum period of 25 years from the date of the international filing. Additionally, any act that must be carried out by a foreign applicant must be carried out through a duly qualified representative domiciled in Brazil.
During the examination, the Brazilian PTO may refuse the international registration based on:
I – the drawings contained in the international registration do not clearly and sufficiently represent the industrial design and its variations, if any, in order to enable its reproduction by a person skilled in the art;
II – the international registration includes more than one object; or
III – the industrial design object of the international registration does not correspond to the other provisions set forth in the Brazilian Industrial Property Law.
