Industrial Property aims to protect aesthetic creations (design), inventions and signs used to distinguish products and companies on the market. In this regard, the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) is the Ministry of Justice organisation that protects industrial property registered in Portugal and promotes it abroad.
In relation to signs, while a trademark is used in commerce to differentiate products or services of a company, a logo is used to distinguish the commercial entity that provides the services or markets the products.
Furthermore, rewards are signs given as a prize or preference for a product or service, while designation of origin and geographical indication are signs characterised, particularly, by the name of a region, a specific place or a country.
Any interested party wishing to distinguish their products or services on the market with a sign, as well as any organisation wishing to mark their activity, can register their trademark or any other type of sign with the INPI. Registration is not mandatory, but it is the only legal way to protect signs, giving the owner the exclusive rights on their usage.
The cost of registering a trademark, logo, reward, designation of origin or geographical indication differs depending on whether it is done online or on paper, and is €139.56 or €279.12, respectively.
The associated costs may also vary if the trademark has more than one class or associated procedure. For each additional class and for the division of the application or registration of the trademark, there is an additional €35.38 or €70.76 (depending on whether the application is made online or on paper).
Additionally, registration is not automatic and takes four months in average. If the application is rejected, the interested party has two months to appeal the decision at the Intellectual Property Court or the Arbitration Centre for Industrial Property, Domain Names, Firms and Designations.
The registration of trademarks and logos is valid for a period of 10 years from the date of the application’s submission. Renewal must be made within the last 6 months of validity, at the same cost as the initial application, depending on whether it is made online or on paper.
If the renewal is not made within this period, it can still be made within 6 months of the date on which the validity expired, subject to payment of an additional fee for the delay. Rewards, designations of origin and geographical indications do not require renewal.
On the other hand, applying for design protection makes it possible to protect the characteristics that define the respective product’s appearance, since a protected design cannot be used without its owner’s authorisation. This type of registration takes a minimum of 3 months to be granted and is valid for a maximum of 25 years.
The costs of the application vary depending on the number of products and the associated procedures, with online applications also benefiting from a 50% reduction in the applicable fees.
To protect an invention, the interested party can apply for a patent or utility model, giving the holder the exclusive right to produce, use and commercialise an invention. The counterpart to this process is the public disclosure of the invention.
Patents are valid for a period of 20 years and utility models for a maximum of 10 years, both from the date of application.
The cost of a patent application also varies depending on whether it is filed online or on paper and it is €117.93 or €235.86, respectively (other fees may also apply, depending on the associated procedures). Additionally, patents have maintenance costs from the 5th year of validity onwards, reaching a maximum of €814.04 in the 20th year.
Utility model applications cost €206.37 if filed online and €412.74 if filed on paper, with additional fees depending on the associated procedures and maintenance costs of up to €58.97.