The regulations implementing the new Law on Patents, Utility Models, Integrated Circuits and Layouts (Law no. 18 of 2012) have recently been drafted. For your information, the most important features of these regulations are as follows:
| Previous Regulations | New Regulations |
| Examination is possible as to form and novelty. | Examination is possible as to novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. |
| Decisions to grant a patent are published in the Official Gazette. Oppositions to any granted patent may be filed before the Court. | Patent applications accepted by the Registrar are published in the Official Gazette. Oppositions may be filed within 6 months from publication date. |
| Working a patent is not compulsory. If the patent is not being fully exploited by the patentee within 2 years from the date of grant, nominal working published in a local newspaper is an acceptable alternative. | A patent has to be worked. If the patent is not being fully exploited by the patentee within 4 years from the date of filing or 3 years from the date of grant, the patent will be subject to compulsory licensing under the provisions of the law. |
| The term of protection is 15 years from filing date. | The term of protection is 20 years from filing date. |
It is worth noting also that a new list of official fees has also been introduced. The list includes fees for filing, examination, oppositions, annuities and other services related to patents, utility models and layout designs. The new regulations also introduce a Data Exclusivity period, new provisions on Utility Models (which were not available under the previous law) and new Border Measures. Regarding Data Exclusivity, no other company may seek regulatory approval in Syria of an equivalent product based on data submitted by an originator company (without the latter’s approval) for five years from marketing approval of the originator product. During the period of exclusivity, regulators cannot use (rely on) the originator’s data to approve a generic product.
Should you have any questions, or require any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@sabaip.com