Kazakhstan and Belarus amend intellectual property fees
The National Institute of Intellectual Property of Kazakhstan (NIIP) and the National Center of Intellectual Property of Belarus (NCIP) have amended several fees in relation to intellectual property. The respective changes entered into effect as of January 1, 2021, and span decreases in fees regarding patents, utility models and industrial designs in Belarus, as well as increases in certain official fees in Kazakhstan.
Belarus
Patents
The majority of patent fees in Belarus have decreased by 30%, with the cost of filing a patent application now constituting 71.05 BYN, down from 101.5 BYN, whilst the examination fee has been reduced from 493 BYN to 345.1 BYN. Similarly, the fee for the examination of each additional invention after the first in a group of inventions will now cost 203 BYN, also declining from the previous 290 BYN. The same percentage decrease is applicable to grant and annuity fees, with the grant of a patent now costing 142.1 BYN as opposed to 203 BYN, and all annuity fees from years three to twenty five dropping respectively. As such, the 3rd and 4th years have reduced to 71.05 BYN from 101.5 BYN, and the 21st to 25th years to 466.9 BYN from 667 BYN.
Utility models
The alterations to utility model fees also constitute approximately 30% across the board, with the fee for the filing and examination of one utility model containing up to 10 claims now costing 142.1 BYN, deflating from 203 BYN, whilst each additional utility model has been reduced from 101.5 BYN to 71.05 BYN. Grant and annuity fees have also fallen, with the cost of granting now constituting 142.1 BYN, a reduction from 203 BYN, annuity fees for the 1st to the 3rd year respectively dropping from 87 BYN to 60.9 BYN, and the 7th to the 10th year from 203 BYN to 142.1 BYN.
Industrial designs
Industrial design fees have also fallen by 30%, and as such the fee for the filing and examination of one variant of a design containing up to seven views of the design in an application has decreased to 142.1 BYN from 203 BYN. The fee for each additional view over seven has deflated from 29 BYN to 20.3 BYN. Furthermore, the fee for each additional variant of an industrial design in a multiple-design application has dropped by the same percentage to 71.05 BYN from 101.5 BYN. Similarly to patents and utility models, the grant and renewal fees have also decreased by the same percentage, with the grant fee now comprising 142.1 BYN, falling from the previous cost of 203 BYN. Furthermore, renewal fees for the 1st to the 3rd years are now 60.9 BYN down from 87 BYN, whilst the fee for the 12th to the 15th years will now comprise 203 BYN, deflating from 290 BYN.
Kazakhstan
Official IP fees for electronic filings in Kazakhstan have experienced a 15% increase across the board, as the NIIP confirmed the abolition of the discount for use of the electronic application system. As such, all fees which were previously reduced by 15% due to the electronic system discount have been inflated to the original cost.
Moreover, certain fees in relation to trademarks in Kazakhstan have increased, with the fee for the renewal of a trademark rising by just over 2.5 times from 27,200.32 KZT to 97,144.32 KZT, and the fee for the renewal of each additional class after 3 rising by 22%, from 13,929.31 KZT to 16,993.76 KZT. In order to assist small and medium-sized businesses, a 50% discount on these fees is available to SME's between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021, and a 25% discount between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022. The discount will not be applicable after the end of 2022.
The alterations of fees in Belarus and Kazakhstan are among several other adjustments to intellectual property costs seen across the world in early 2021. The decrease in patent, utility model and industrial design fees in Belarus is likely to encourage a heightened interest in filing for these IP types in the jurisdiction, whilst the rise in trademark fees in Kazakhstan may allow for an increase in efficiency by the IP office for the processing of applications. Furthermore, the discounts of certain trademark fees for SME's in Kazakhstan are likely to also encourage further filings in the country.