Estonia has been a member of WIPO since February 5, 1994, as well as the Paris Convention and the Patent Cooperation Treaty since August 24, 1994. Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for Patent Procedure has been in effect since September 14, 1996. Since July 1, 2002, Estonia has been a full member of the European Patent Organization.
An Estonian patent attorney must represent any overseas applicant. The matching power of attorney must be submitted on the date the application is filed or within two months of that date, signed and stating the identity and authority of the signatory.
Filing requirements
Patent applications filed in Estonia must be submitted in Estonian. The abstract and inventive title in the patent application must be presented in both Estonian and English. The Estonian translation must be submitted within two months of the patent application’s filing date if submitted in any other foreign language.
To obtain a filing date, it is necessary to provide the Estonian Patent Office with the following:
- a request to grant a patent;
- applicant(s) and inventor(s) details;
- the title of the invention, description of the invention, patent claims, drawings (if any), abstract of the invention;
- proof of payment of the corresponding fees.
A certified copy of the priority document must be submitted within sixteen months after the earliest priority date.
Although the Power of Attorney is not necessary, the Patent Office may do so at any point during the prosecution. A power of attorney does not need to be legalized or notarized.
When applying in Estonia, if the applicant is not an inventor, they may also include the Assignment Deed, which attests to their legal right to file for a patent.
Novelty grace period
If a party having the right to file for a patent discloses information regarding the invention or if a third party makes a disclosure in bad faith, an Estonian application may be submitted within a year of the disclosure. The supporting documentation for the innovation exhibit must be submitted with the application.
Validity term
Within three months of the day a decision is issued, the formal fee for the award and publishing of the patent description must be paid. In Estonia, a patent validates for 20 years following the filing date. For pending applications, annual fees are payable beginning the first year after filing. The formal fees for the first and second-year validity should be paid simultaneously as the third-year annuities. The final day of the month in which the anniversary of the filing date falls is the due date. Annuity payments may not be made earlier than six months before the due date. Annual fees may be paid within a six-month grace period on condition of payment of a surcharge.
Utility model
In Estonia, utility models can also be used to protect inventions. Applications for utility models are only subject to formal scrutiny. Biotechnology-related inventions are not eligible for utility model protection in Estonia. In Estonia, a utility model is valid for ten years following the filing date. In Estonia, utility model registration typically takes two years.
Also contact us for Trademark registration in Estonia.