The Industrial & Commercial Property Protection Act 1927, which codified the bill for intellectual property law, was passed in 1926, the same year the Irish Patents Office was founded. However, the 1926 Patent Act was soon recognized as needing updating, and the Oireachtas subsequently established a new Patent Act in 1964. This Act introduced the idea of “Universal Novelty,” under which the innovation was no longer required to be “not known inside the State” but rather to be “not known to the world.” Additional changes to the Patent Act were made in 1992 and 1998 in response to changing circumstances.
Filing requirements
Irish or English are Ireland’s two recognized official languages for patent registration. Within the 2 months specified by the Patent Office, it is feasible to file an application in a foreign language and submit the translation into English with a statement that the translation is accurate. The applicant may request an extension of this term for a maximum of one month.
To obtain the date of filing, a patent application in Ireland should contain the following:
- Request to grant a patent;
- Applicant/s details;
- Description, even if it does not comply with the formal requirements;
- Drawings (when necessary);
- Details of priority claim (if applicable);
- Payment of the filing fee.
Within 16 months after the earliest priority date, a certified copy of the Priority Document must be presented if priority is being claimed. The term may be extended if the applicant requests it and pays the required money. A translation must be produced within 21 months of the earliest priority date if the priority document is not in English.
A Power of Attorney that has only been signed once must be filed either at the time of filing or within the Controller’s specified window. A power of attorney does not need to be legalized or notarized.
If the applicant is not the inventor, the Declaration of Inventorship (Assignment Deed) should be provided within sixteen months of filing a patent application in Ireland or from the date of priority. Legalization or notarization is not required.
Novelty grace period
In Ireland, the novelty grace period constitutes 6 months before the Irish filing date or before the priority date if the disclosure was made:
- By a breach of confidence or agreement in relation to the invention;
- Unlawful obtainment of relevant information;
- By displaying the invention by the applicant or his legal predecessor at an official or officially recognized international exhibition.
Validity term
Patents in Ireland are valid for a maximum of 20 years from the filing date. The official fees for the patent’s award and publication must be paid within four months of the day the Notice of Allowance was published. If the patent is granted, annual maintenance fees for Irish patents start after the third year and are due on or before the last day of the month, the filing date occurred. A surcharge must be paid, and annual fees may be paid up to four months before the due date or within a grace period of six months. It is permissible to pay the annuities in an accumulated way within three months of the grant if the patent was granted more than two years after the filing date. If the request for an extension of time was submitted, there is a grace period of six months.
Utility model
Utility model protection is not available in Ireland. However, short-term patents comparable to utility model protection are also available with a ten-year protection period starting from the filing date. The Short-term Patent Application must be new, have industrial applicability, and cannot have more than five claims. In addition, the innovation meets the standard non-obviousness criteria if it “does not lack an inventive step.” Applicants are not required to provide uniqueness proof or a search report. The filing charge is half of the full-term patent fee.
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