By giving patent holders an advantage over their rivals in the market for goods and technologies, patents offer legal protection for inventions.
By submitting national, EU, or PCT applications or participating in the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), legitimate patents may be secured in Hungary, provided that the applications comply with all legal criteria. In addition to filing applications with foreign national intellectual property offices, member states of the European Patent Convention (EPC) may also commence the acquisition of overseas rights by filing a patent application with the European Patent Office (EPO). Applications may be filed directly or in the frame of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), and absolute protection is granted as the result of the respective examination procedure carried out by the competent authority.
Filing requirements
The official language of proceedings before the HIPO is Hungarian. It is possible to apply in a language other than English, but if you do, the Hungarian translation must be submitted within four months of the application’s submission date. The Hungarian translation must be submitted within 12 months of the patent application’s filing date or 16 months after the priority date if submitted in English.
To obtain the date of filing, it is necessary to provide the Hungarian Patent Office with the following:
- Request to grant a patent in Hungarian;
- Applicant’s details and contact information in Hungarian;
- Description or document that can be regarded as a description, even though it does not comply with other requirements, or instead a reference to an earlier application;
- Details of a priority application.
A certified copy of the priority document must be submitted within sixteen months after the earliest priority date. This period cannot be prolonged. However, there is no requirement for its translation.
Within the time frame specified by the Hungarian Patent Office, a simple signed original Power of Attorney must be filed. There is no need for legalization or notarization.
The Assignment Deed and the Declaration of Assignment must be submitted within the time frame specified by the Hungarian Patent Office if the applicant is not the inventor.
Novelty grace period
The novelty grace period in Hungary would constitute 6 months before the filing date if the disclosure occurred:
- Due to an abuse of the rights of the applicant or his predecessors in the title;
- Due to the fact that the applicant or his predecessors in title have displayed the invention at an exhibition officially recognized by the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office.
Validity term
Hungary grants 20 years of patent protection following the application’s filing date. All subsequent annual payments must be paid in full before the due date; the first annual maintenance charge is due on the filing date. The anniversary of the filing date is when annuities are due.
Utility model
Any solution that deals with the design, manufacture, or assembly of an article, or the arrangement of its components, may be registered in Hungary as a utility model if it is novel, useful to industry, and creative. In Hungary, utility models must pass formal and substantive inspections, but they are not tested for innovation or inventiveness. Furthermore, a utility model remains protected for ten years from the filing date in Hungary.
Also, get in touch with us for Trademark registration in Hungary.