Industrial Design in Bulgaria
How to protect
Industrial Design in Bulgaria?
The procedure for the protection of Industrial Design in Bulgaria is short and simple. It ends with a Certificate for registration of the industrial design. The industrial design is of a registration system in Bulgaria, which leads to the repeated shortening of the term in which the decision for registration is granted and the registration certificate is issued. To obtain a certificate for registration of an industrial design in our country, it is necessary to file an application for registration of industrial design in the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria. The industrial design shall be new and original according to the requirements of Bulgarian law. These requirements are not checked during the procedure. They remain a ground for invalidation of the registration of the registered industrial design. The exclusive rights of registered industrial design in Bulgaria cover only the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria.
The validity of the industrial design registration certificate in Bulgaria is 10 years, but this period can be prolonged to 15, 20, or a maximum of 25 years.
It is good to conduct a preliminary search of the industrial design for which an application shall be filed. It provides information on already registered designs and on the possible risk of the design registration being invalidated. The industrial design registration certificate gives the holder the monopoly (exclusive) right. This permits the holder: to use the design, to prohibit third parties from using it without his consent, and the right to dispose of it.
PROCEDURE IN THE BULGARIAN PATNT OFFICE
What is the procedure for registration of
Industrial design in Bulgaria?
The procedure for registration of industrial design in Bulgaria begins with an application with the Bulgarian Patent Office. A duly completed application form for registration must be filed. It must contain data for the applicant and the author of the design. The names of industrial property representative (IPR), if any, shall be presented too. Declaration of priority (if claimed) and a priority certificate are required too. Request to postpone the publication of the registered design may be submitted, if required. One or more graphic or photographic images of the industrial design must be attached to the application form. They will determine the scope of protection upon registration. The relevant fees must also be paid.
1. Filing of application
The application shall be filed in person or through a representative, by mail, by fax, or electronically. The filing date of the application shall be deemed to be the date on which the following were received by the Patent Office: the application for registration; the name and address of the applicant and one or more graphic or photographic images which clearly and completely reveal the design for which protection is sought.
2. Formal examination
For each application for industrial design in Bulgaria, it is checked whether the requirements for establishing a filing date have been met. For each application with a set filing date, it is checked whether a document for payment of fees for application, examination, and postponement of the publication of the registration (when a postponement is requested) is attached. A formal examination shall be performed within two months from the payment of the fees. It checks whether the requirements for the content of the application, for the number of images, are met, then if the application is for multiple designs, whether it meets the requirements for an application for multiple designs. Where deficiencies are identified, the applicant shall be given a period of two months to remedy them.
3. Registration procedure
Within two months after the formal examination of the industrial design in Bulgaria, an extensive examination shall be carried to check whether:
∴ the images are representing the visible appearance of a product or part of it;
∴ the industrial design has features that are determined only by the technical function of the product.
4. Registration of industrial design and publication
When it is established that the requested design can be registered, a notification shall be sent to the applicant. It provides him with a one-month term for payment of fees for registration, issuance of a registration certificate, and publication. Up to one month after the expiration of this period, the fees may be paid in double amount. When the fees are paid, a decision to register the design is grant. The registration certificate is also issued within one month. If the fees are not paid, the application is considered withdrawn. The decisions for registration of an industrial design in Bulgaria are taken by a state examiner in the Bulgarian Patent Office.
