Designs and Models

– Patent, Utility Model and Industrial Designs Law of December 16, 2002, with amendments as of December 22, 2011.

Membership in International Conventions

– Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), as of April 26, 1970.
– The Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (Apostille), as of May 31, 1992.
– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Stockholm Act, as of April 14, 1993.
– Locarno Agreement Establishing an International Classification for Industrial Designs, as of December 31, 1997.
– Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union, Section XXIII, as of October 9, 2013, effective from January 1, 2015.
– Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs, Geneva Act, as of July 19, 2021.
– Protocol on the Protection of Industrial Designs to the Eurasian Patent Convention, as of April 19, 2022.

Filing

Applicant: individuals or legal entities.

Foreigners: must elect a local representative.

Conditions for protection: industrial designs and models which are new, original and industrially applicable.

Novelty: if it was not known anywhere in the world before the priority date nor from earlier Belarusian applications.

Not registrable: decisions relating only to the appearance of the product and aimed at satisfying aesthetic needs; decisions that are contrary to the public interest, the principles of humanity and morality; or represent symbols, attributes or information products recognized as extremist materials on the basis of a court decision that has entered into legal force.

Priorities: according to the Paris Convention, can be claimed until two months after filing. 

Multiple applications: available.

Territory covered: the Republic of Belarus.

Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):
1. Power of attorney, simply signed;
2. The model itself or, when not appropriate, photographs or drawings thereof (7 copies);
3. Designation of the model, with indication of its characteristics;
4. Specification of the model, if necessary;
5. Priority document, if any (can be filed until three months after filing).

For a change of name or address:
1. A copy of the extract from the Trade Register or any other official document showing the change of name/address;
2. An original power of attorney in the new name/address, simply signed.

Electronic filing: available.

Examination Procedure

Examination: checking of formal requirements and unity of design within three months from the filing date.

Amendments and corrections: additional material extending or changing the subject matter are not accepted.

Publication: three months after the registration, in the Official Gazette of the Patent Office.

Granting and Protection

License rights, opposition, invalidation: regulated in a similar manner as for “patents“.

Duration: ten years from the filing date.

Renewal: additional five years.

Annuities: are due each year, starting from the first year, payable simultaneously with the payment of the granting fee within two months from the date of the decision of grant. Grace period: six months, with a 50% fine.