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Filing a patent
A patent is protected only in the country where it has been granted. In the absence of such protection, an invention can be copied, used, imported or marketed by anyone. The following three types of filings are available.
National patent
A national patent is registered and protected by the competent National Office only in the country where it has been filed.
In Italy, the filing of a patent is supervised by the Italian Patent and Trademark Office (UIBM).
It is possible to file the following application at the UIBM :
- Patent for invention: an invention is a technical solution to a technical problem that has not yet been resolved. It can be a new processing method/industrial process, a tool or a mechanical device, which represents an innovation compared to the state-of-the-art;
- Patent for utility model: a utility model is a new version of an existing industrial product that makes it easier to use the product itself. Such type of protection is provided only in Italy and few other countries (Germany, Austria, Spain, Japan, Portugal, China);
WIPO: list of countries that provide utility model protection - Plant Variety Patent: this grants the exclusive exploitation of a named plant variety, which must be new, distinct, stable and uniform.
The difference between patent for invention and patent for utility model is not always clear. While a patent application is still under preliminary control, the UIBM can accept it as a request for utility model protection; in this case, the applicant has to fix the submitted application. The date of the filing of the utility model remains the same as the original one. If the applicant has doubts about which type of patent should be requested, it is possible to submit an Invention Patent application and a Utility Model application in the same form. After that, the UIBM will assume responsibility for choosing the right type of patent.
European Patent
European Patents are granted by the EPO (European Patent Office), and provide protection in one or more Member States through the submission of a single application. Furthermore, it is possible to request the same protection in other countries that are not Member States, but agree to extend the protection to their territories (e.g., Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro).
Within three months from the issue of the European Patent, the holder has to initiate the procedure for the national validation. In particular, he/she has to prepare the translation of the European Patent already granted, which will be submitted to the competent national offices responsible for validation. Such validated European Patent will give the applicant the same protection as a National Patent in the chosen Member States.
In accordance with the London Agreement, entered into force on May 1st,2008, some countries no longer require the translation of European Patents. For further information, please refer to the London Agreement on the EPO website. Italy has not yet joined the Agreement . In order to validate a European Patent in Italy, the holder has to fill out and submit the appropriate forms to any Chamber of Commerce, with translation of the text, claims and drawings attached.
International Patent
International Patents are granted by the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization), and provide protection of a Patent for Invention/Utility Model in one or more Contracting States of the PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) List of the Contracting States.
The PCT allows filers to obtain protection by submitting a single international application for one or more listed countries, rather than various national applications. Unlike the issue of a European Patent, which implies a centralized procedure, the issue of an International Patent is not centralized. Therefore, patents are granted by single countries or by authorized regional organizations (EPO, EAPO, OAPI, ARIPO) at a later time.
Priority
Within 12 months from the filing date in one of the Member States of the Paris Convention, the holder can file the same application in one or more other Member States of the Convention. Please note that once the application for the patent has been made public and the 12 month priority period is over, it is not possible to extend the patent outside the national borders.