INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN MOLDOVA
Opposition Term |
03 Months |
Registration Term |
10 Years |
First Renewal Term |
10 Years |
Subsequent Renewal Term |
10 Years |
Law on the protection of trademarks No. 38-XVI (adopted on February 29, 2008, applicable from September 6, 2008) - is the primary law governing the mechanism of trademark registration and protection in Moldova.
The trademark applications must be filed with the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI).
In Moldova, trademark registration is mandatory to be granted rights over a trademark, as it is a ‘first-to-file’ jurisdiction. Only in some exceptional cases can an unregistered trademark be protected.
Moldova follows the 11th edition of Nice Classification. Multi-class trademark applications are acceptable.
The opposition against a trademark may be filed within three (03) months from the publication of the application.
The trademark registration in Moldova is valid for ten (10) years from the date of filing. Registration may be extended by ten (10) consecutive years an unlimited number of times. A trademark may be renewed within six (06) months before the expiration of the last registration term.
There is a grace period of six (06) months after the expiration is provided on condition of payment of a surcharge. It is possible to reinstate a lapsed trademark within one (01) year after grace period expiry if an extra fee is paid and documents proving the force majeure circumstances, which led to missing the deadline, are provided.
Registered trademarks Moldova may be cancelled on the basis of non-use within a continuous period of five (05) years in case the corresponded request is filed to the court by the interested person.
Moldova is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.
Law on the protection of inventions No.50-XVI (adopted on March 7, 2008, applicable from October 4, 2008) deals with the mechanism of patent protection in Moldova.
The State Agency on Intellectual Property is the national office in the intellectual property protection field and is the sole authority that provides for the legal protection of inventions in the territory of the Republic of Moldova under this Law.
In Moldova, an invention that satisfies the conditions of originality, novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability, subjects to patentability. Process patent and product patent are the two types of patents that can be protected.
The types of patent applications that can be filed include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.
Opposition may be filed within six (06) months after the publication of the official notification of grant.
The term of patent protection is twenty (20) years as from the date of filing of the patent application.
The term of a short-term patent for invention is six (06) years as from the date of filing of the short-term patent application. The patent owner may file with the AGEPI an application for the extension of the time limit for a period not exceeding four (04) years, provided that the patent owner requests the AGEPI to carry out a search for the state of the art and draw up a search report accompanied by an opinion on patentability relating to the invention, which forms the subject-matter of the respective patent on payment of the prescribed fee, but not earlier than one (01) year and not later than six (06) months before the expiration of the term of the short-term patent. The annuities are accumulated and due after the grant of the patent; subsequent annuities are payable prior to the anniversary of the filing date.
Law No.161 of 12 July 2007 on the Protection of Industrial Designs (Official Gazette of the Republic of Moldova, 2007, No.136-140, Article 577)) governs and deals with the mechanism of registration of industrial designs in Moldova.
The State Agency on Intellectual Property is the national office in the intellectual property protection field and is the sole authority that provides for the legal protection of inventions on the territory of the Republic of Moldova under the law on industrial design protection.
The types of industrial design applications that can be filed in Moldova include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.
Utility model protection isn't provided under industrial design protection in the nation.
The official fees for granting must be paid within three (03) months from the date of receipt of the notice of allowance. A registered industrial design is protected for five (05) years counting from the filing date of the application. The validity of a registration certificate may be extended four (04) times each time for five (05) years up to a maximum validity term of twenty-five (25) years starting from the filing date of the application.
The grace period to renew an industrial design after the date of expiry is six (06) months.
Moldova is a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.
Law of Republic of Moldova on Copyright and Related Rights No.293-XIII of 23rd of November 1994 is the basic legislation governing copyright protection in Moldova.
State registration of literary, art, and scientific works is being performed by State Agency for Intellectual Property (abridged AGEPI).
The exclusive economic rights and the right to remuneration provided for by the copyright law in relation to the works, except for similar rights stipulated in relation to the works of applied art, shall be protected throughout the lifetime of the author and for seventy (70) years after his death.
The term of protection of a musical composition with words shall expire seventy (70) years after the death of the last person to survive among the author of the lyrics and the composer of the musical composition (whether or not these persons are designated as co-authors), provided that both contributions were specifically created for the respective musical composition with words.
The performer's right to authorship, the right to be named, and the right to respect for the integrity of his performance shall be protected without limitation in time.