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Overview of Industrial Property Law

In 2008, a new "Patents, Industrial Designs and Trademarks Registration Act" was enacted, which provides protection to inventions, utility models, industrial designs, and trademarks, just as in Japan. Masu. These applications are filed with the Industrial Property Office. The National Deeds and Property Registration Organization, which is the upper organization, has jurisdiction over industrial property rights on behalf of the country.

Laws related to copyright include the 1970 Act for Protection of Authors, Composers and Artists Rights and the 1973 Act for Protection of Authors, Composers and Artists Rights. There are two laws: the Translation and Reproduction of Books, Periodical and Phonograms Act. Furthermore, a new copyright law is scheduled to be enacted and enforced in 2016. Regarding copyright, the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance is the registration authority.

There are many cases where counterfeit products with the same or similar trademarks are ordered from foreign countries (mainly China) and imported via free trade zones (FTZs).

Civil and criminal remedies (penalties, fines, compensation) are available for counterfeit acts that infringe on industrial property rights.

In particular, when it comes to copying computer software, there is a way to appeal to the Ministry of Science and Technology.

As a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, it is possible to file an application claiming priority under the Paris Convention based on a patent application filed in a foreign country.

Additionally, as we have ratified the Madrid Agreement and its Protocol, we are able to file international trademark registration applications.

Since Iran is not a member of the WTO, the TRIPS Agreement does not apply to it. It is also not a member of the Trademark Law Treaty.
*The Nice Agreement entered into force in Iran on July 2018, 7.
*The Locarno Agreement came into effect in Iran on July 2018, 7.

Additionally, although it is not a party to the Berne Convention (copyright) and the Rome Convention (performers' rights), it is said that procedures to join these conventions are underway in preparation for the enactment and enforcement of the new copyright law. There is information on.

Patents/utility models

The term of a patent right is 20 years from the filing date, similar to Japan.

In order to maintain patent applications and patent rights effectively, it is necessary to pay an annuity stipulated in the Implementing Regulations. Late payment by paying a premium fee is permitted in the same manner and period as in Japan, but after that period, the patent application will be withdrawn and the patent right will be deemed to have been abandoned.

If the applicant is a foreign national, a legal representative domiciled or resident in Iran must carry out the above maintenance procedures.

It is necessary to meet the following patent requirements.

The following items are not patentable:

Similar to Japan, the following documents must be submitted for application:

When a foreigner files an application in Iran, it is considered normal to file an application that claims priority under the Paris Convention based on the application filed in the foreign country, but in this case, the competent office of the country where the basic application was filed. You must submit a certified copy of the application (in Japan, the Patent Office).

There is no system for publishing applications in Iran. On the contrary, disclosure of patent applications is strictly prohibited, and the contents of the invention will not be published in official gazettes etc. before registration.

Patent applications are examined by the Patent Division of the Industrial Property Authority of Iran, and if the reasons for refusal do not apply, a patent right will be issued in about two months.

So-called "import patents" were abolished in a new law enacted in 2008.

If your patent application is rejected, you can file an appeal with the Intellectual Property Department. A decision on this will be made in approximately two to three months.

Interested parties can apply to the court for invalidation of patent rights.

industrial design

As this system was first introduced in the new law enacted in 2008, there is currently little information on the implementation rules, and specific details such as registration procedures are not yet clear.

The term of a design is five years from the filing date, and can be extended twice for five years thereafter.

Only formality examination and basic requirements examination will be conducted; substantive examination will not be conducted.

商標

The following types of trademarks are recognized:

Please note that smells and sounds are not subject to registration as trademarks.
Trade names (trade names: "names or appellations that identify or identify a natural or legal person") and slogans are recognized as trademark protection.
Additionally, there is no defensive mark system.

*For broader protection of trademarks in Iran, registration and protection of trademarks in Persian/Persian transliteration is always recommended.

Due to the revised law, submission of Iranian consularly certified commercial register, etc. is now required for applications and oppositions. Until now, consular certification was not strictly enforced, but with this law amendment, it is now necessary to submit a commercial register, etc. that has received Iranian consular certification within 60 days of filing an application or filing an opposition. However, a copy must be submitted at the time of application). Additionally, this deadline can be extended by two months.

The term of trademark is the same as in Japan.10 years from the filing dateIt can be extended for another 10 years with renewal registration. However, there is no system for paying pensions in installments.

As in Japan, late payment with a surcharge is permitted.

Registration requirements and grounds for non-registration are stipulated almost the same as Article 3, Paragraph 1 and Article 4, Paragraph 1 of the Japanese Trademark Law. In other words, the product must have the ability to distinguish between its own and other products, must not cause confusion of origin, and must not violate public order and morals or Islamic law. Specifically, the following trademarks are not allowed to be registered.

*Belongs to category 33Applications for trademark registration specifying the product "alcoholic beverages" are strictly prohibited as it violates Islamic law.. In addition, since beer is considered an alcoholic beverage, when filing an application specifying Category 32 products that include beer (for example, mineral water),It is necessary to submit an affidavit stating that you are not involved in beer production..

*The Nice Agreement entered into force in Iran on July 2018, 7.

For trademark registration applications by foreigners, it is necessary to submit a power of attorney from the applicant to an Iranian legal expert, certified by the Iranian consulate in the applicant's home country.

Due to the pre-registration opposition system (abolished in Japan), it takes three months from application to issuance of the registration certificate.

There are no regulations regarding trademark registration applications claiming priority under the Paris Convention.

No other application divisions or changes are permitted.

From March 2021, 3, the Islamic Republic of Iran joined the Madrid e-Filing community, and international applications can now be filed online from the IPC website (see WIPO homepage).

You can file a petition with the court to invalidate your registration because it does not meet the registration requirements.

Petitions for cancellation of non-use, similar to those in Japan, are accepted (including so-called "prohibition of last-minute use" and "justifiable defense of non-use").

Copyright

Author refers to a writer, composer, or artist.

A copyrighted work is a work of originality or artistry (regardless of the means used) that is based on the knowledge of the author.

Rights held by the author

Protection target

Materials about Iran

• WIPO’s Iranian Industrial Property Authority introduction page (English)
  http://www.wipo.int/directory/en/contact.jsp?country_id=82&type=ADMIN_IP

• *Joined the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
  Iran became the 148th party to the PCT.
  International applications filed after October 2013, 10 automatically include a designation of Iran. In addition, requests for preliminary examination for international applications filed after October 4, 2013 will automatically include the Iranian election. Additionally, Iranian nationals and residents can also file international applications under the PCT.
  (See PCT NEWSLETTER July 2013 issue)

• *About the patent information database (updated April 11, 2016)
  Until recently, there was no online database in Iran.
  Only the Iranian Official Journal publishes patent information, but it also includes information other than patent information, such as company registration, trademark registration, and wills, making it difficult to accurately extract patent information. Furthermore, there is a lack of information such as the publication is only in Persian and IPC is not included. Although the Iranian Patent Office has an Iranian patent search database, it cannot be used by anyone other than examiners.

• *About the patent search website (updated October 5, 2016)
  The Iranian Patent Office has started offering a publicly accessible patent search website in a trial version.
  "important point"
  ・Persian interface only, no English version.
  ・Although a link to the full text specification is also provided, this link is not enabled for most patents.
  ・Includes limited patent information. (Contains only patent information for the most recent two years)
  *Reference was made to Information Science and Technology Vol. 66, No. 1.

• *About employee inventions (updated December 5, 2016)
  The Iranian Patent Office has started offering a publicly accessible patent search website in a trial version.
  "important point"
  ・Persian interface only, no English version.
  ・Although a link to the full text specification is also provided, this link is not enabled for most patents.
  ・Includes limited patent information. (Contains only patent information for the most recent two years)
  *Reference was made to Information Science and Technology Vol. 66, No. 1.

• *About patent application status (updated March 15, 2017)
  The number of Iranian patent applications (WIPO IP Statistics Data Center) is as follows.
  The number of applications filed by domestic applicants has been rapidly increasing since around 2006.
  

• *Countries with which Iran has prohibited transactions (updated July 1, 2017)
  Any commercial transactions with Israel are prohibited (Article 9 of the Export and Import Control Law Enforcement Regulations). This does not apply directly or indirectly, and applies not only when raw materials and parts are imported from Israel to Iran, but also when parts from Japan are imported into Iran via Israel. Furthermore, the same applies even if the owner of the company that manufactured the product imported into Iran is Israeli.

• *Can foreign copyrighted works be protected under the law? (Updated on September 27, 2017)
  Iran is not a party to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. Therefore, foreign copyrights are not protected in Iran. However, artistic, literary and technical works created by foreigners in the Islamic Republic of Iran are protected by the domestic law governing copyright. At that time, Article 22 of the Law for the Protection of Rights of Authors, Composers, and Artists states, ``If the work is first printed, distributed, or performed in Iran, and has not previously been printed, distributed, or performed in any other country, The economic rights of the author are protected by this law, provided that the work is original and created for the first time in Iran.
  It should be noted that literary and artistic works are subject to copyright protection as soon as they are created, and that protection does not depend on whether or not they are registered.
  It should be noted that although the registration of literary and artistic works is voluntary, a certificate of registration is considered an official document and is required by courts and public institutions.
  Copyright used to last for 30 years after the death of the author or composer, but with the amendment of Article 12 of the Act on the Protection of Rights of Authors, Composers, and Artists in 2010, this period was extended to 50 years. Extended. However, the term of copyright for film works, photographs, and works belonging to corporations is 30 years. It should also be noted that although copyright is transferable, the author's moral rights cannot be transferred.

  Japan External Trade Organization
  From “Survey on the system and operational status of anti-counterfeit products in Iran”

• *Notes regarding priority restoration procedures (PCT) (Updated May 1, 2018)
  If an application is filed after the international application deadline for claiming priority has passed, priority restoration procedures can be carried out under certain conditions. For Iran to be reinstated, it must have exercised "due diligence" regarding the expiration of the deadline. If approved by the Iranian receiving authority, priority will be restored.
  Note that the "due care" standard is met only if the applicant has taken all the steps that a reasonably prudent applicant would have taken.
  It is generally not sufficient to prove that the applicant has taken all precautions to comply with the deadlines for filing the international application. Rather, the applicant must show that it has exercised all ``due diligence'' with respect to the particular application at issue. Therefore, it seems that it is not easy to meet the standards.

  Quoted from PCT Receiving Office Guidelines (166J-166M)

• *Joined the Nice Agreement and the Locarno Agreement (updated October 17, 2018)
  On April 12, 2018, Iran became a party to the Nice Agreement on the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Registration of Marks. Also, on the same day, the "Locarno Agreement establishing the classification of industrial designs" was ratified. The effective date for both agreements in Iran is July 12, 2018.

• *About trade secrets (updated December 28, 2018)
  Although there is no provision for trade secrets in the Patent, Industrial Design, and Trademark Law, there are provisions regarding the protection of trade secrets in Chapter 2003 of the Electronic Commerce Law of 2. Article 64 of the same law stipulates that in order to protect lawful and fair competition in electronic transactions, the illegal acquisition and disclosure of trade secrets to third parties is considered a criminal act. Trade secrets protected here include trade secrets in electronic media, including "information, methods, patterns, software programs, means and methods, techniques and procedures, non-public documents, business and transaction methods and procedures." , strategies, plans, financial information, customer lists, business projects, etc., that have property value and that are not publicly available and that reasonable efforts have been made to protect them.” (Article 65 of the same law).
  Illegal acquisition and disclosure of trade secrets by electronic means to third parties in order to harm a business, industrial, economic or service enterprise through competition, profiteering or violation of employment contracts prohibiting disclosure of trade secrets. Those who do so will be sentenced to 6 months to 2.5 years in prison or a fine of 5,000 million rials (approximately 20 yen) (Article 75 of the same law).

  Quoted from “Survey on Iranian Business-Related Laws”

• *About remedies for infringement (updated September 11, 2019)
  Civil and criminal remedies are available for acts of intellectual property infringement. Temporary measures are also possible. Civil cases are handled by the Special Chamber of the Civil Court in Tehran. Criminal cases are heard at the Tehran Prosecutor's Office.
  Furthermore, there are nine judges specializing in intellectual property in Iran. Of these, six are in civil courts and three are in criminal courts.
  Although the influx of products from abroad is limited due to economic sanctions, and similar intellectual property issues have not surfaced, many products that infringe on intellectual property are distributed in Iran. Infringing products are expected to increase as trade with overseas expands. Therefore, effective and efficient enforcement mechanisms are required, including legal development, functional enhancement of intellectual property centers, and collaborative education and awareness with customs and police, but none of these can be said to be sufficient. .
  As mentioned above, violations in Iran are generally dealt with through the judiciary, similar to developed countries such as Japan and the United States. However, judicial resolution takes time (about a year), the judicial system is unclear, and from the perspective of eliminating infringing products that are already flooding the market, this is not an efficient and effective response. Good and difficult.

  Quoted from “Survey on Iranian Business-Related Laws”

• *About utility models (updated November 28, 2019)
  There are no provisions regarding the utility model system in Iran's Patent, Industrial Design, and Trademark Law. However, just because there are no regulations does not mean that there is no protection. Even if an idea or invention falls under a utility model, a patent may be granted if a regular patent application is filed. In other words, although this depends on the content of the substantive examination, there is a concern that in some cases even inventions that are not patentable, such as utility models, may be registered as patents in Iran.

  Quoted from “Survey on Iranian Business-Related Laws”

• *Number of applications and registrations by year (updated September 11, 2020)

(Source): WIPO IP Statistics

• *Japan-Iran Investment Agreement (updated January 12, 2021)
  Until now, Japanese investments in Iran have been protected by Iranian domestic law. However, in order to receive protection, it is necessary to obtain an investment license approved and issued by the Iranian government, and requirements include ``contributing to increasing employment opportunities in Iran'' and ``not hindering production through domestic investment.'' was. The investment agreement allows Japanese investors to receive investment protection without having to obtain an investment license.

  A distinctive feature of the Japan-Iran Investment Agreement is that it includes an ``intellectual property protection'' clause.
  Since Iran is not a member of the WTO and is not a member of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), which is part of the WTO Agreement, any legal action must be taken in Iran. Must have intellectual property rights.
  With the creation of a framework for intellectual property protection under this agreement, we can expect progress in intellectual property protection in Iran.
  Additionally, the ``Dispute Settlement'' clause allows for international arbitration procedures to be used in the event of a dispute. Although filing for international arbitration can be difficult in terms of time and cost, it can be useful not only in the intellectual property field but also when disputes arise, such as breach of contract.

  Quoted from “JETRO Business Brief”

• *Number of recent international applications (PCT applications) (updated September 22, 2021)
  2017…88 cases
  2018…176 cases
  2019…225 items
  2020…269 items
  From the Patent Administration Annual Report 2021 Edition

• *About utility models (updated September 26, 2022)
  There are no provisions regarding the utility model system in Iran's Patent, Industrial Design, and Trademark Law.
  However, just because there are no regulations does not mean that there is no protection.
  Even if an idea or invention falls under a utility model, a patent may be granted if a regular patent application is filed.
  In other words, although this depends on the content of the substantive examination, there is a concern that in some cases even inventions that are not patentable, such as utility models, may be registered as patents in Iran.
  (The content of substantive examination of patents, etc. in Iran is unknown)
  Quoted from “Survey on Iranian Business-Related Laws 27”