With the New Turkish Industrial Property (IP) Law No.6769 which has entered into force on 10 January 2017, the Turkish Patent legislation has become more similar with the European and other developed countries patent legislation.
Main notable changes can be briefly described as follows;
Patent-without substantive examination system which provided protection of 7 years has been abolished,
Utility model applications are subject to novelty search and applicants can file amendments during the registration proceedings; no substantial examination,
Third parties are allowed to file oppositions within the 6-month period after a patent has been granted (post-grant opposition system),
The due date of annuity payments has been changed as the third anniversary of the application date, while it may also be paid with fine within six months following the due date. Further processing is available in the case of non-payment in the grace period; it is 2 months as of the notification date of the TPTO,
Obligation to submit evidence of use to the TPTO removed while “use requirement” remained in force in case a third party demands a compulsory license,
The TPTO has recently been accepted as an international search and examination Authority by WIPO,
Only civil proceedings are available for patents & utility models.
National Patent Applications in Turkey
Upon submission of the required documents, a patent application is filed in Turkey and officially recorded by the TPTO asto filing date. It takes about one or two years from filing to registration and the following stages are carried out:
• Formal examination (1 to 3 months);
• The report on the State of the Art (should be requested within 12 months from the filing/priority date);
• Publication of the application (18 months from the filing/priority date);
• Substantive examination and further prosecution (three examination at most); And
• Grant or rejection.
The term of patent granted with substantive examination shall be a non-extendible period of 20 years from the date of filing the application.
The Turkish Patent and Trademark Office conducts novelty searches ( State of the Art) and substantive examinations on patents falling under almost all International Patent Classifications.
Priority term is 12 months from the priority date and the priority claim should be at the time of filing or within 2 months as of the filing date of the patent. Priority document should be filed within 3 months from the Turkish filing date (non-extendible).
Regarding payment of the annuities, the due date is the application day and month of every year. First annuity is paid on the 3rd anniversary of the application date of the patent.
Utility Model Applications in Turkey
After submission of all required documents and information, the utility model application is filed to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TPTO). Utility model applications are being examined formally by the officers at the TPTO. Following the formal examination, the report on the State of the Art is requested within 2 months as of the completion of formal examination.
Upon receipt of the search report, applicant may opt to file reply or amendments on the claims or to withdraw the application. If the TPTO is convinced that the application fulfills the patentability requirements, upon completion of the publication term, the patent will be granted for 10 years. Search stage is performed by the TPTO. The holder is not obliged to request examination.
Processes and chemical inventions can not be protected by utility models. The term for obtaining the Utility Model certificate is relatively short and typically takes around 12 months.
Priority term is 12 months from the priority date and the priority claim should be at the time of filing or within 2 months as of the filing date of the utility model. Priority document should be filed within 3 months from the Turkish filing date (non-extendible).
Regarding payment of the annuities, the due date is the application day and month of every year. First annuity is paid on the 3rd anniversary of the application date of the utility model.
