INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN ARGENTINA

The Trade Mark Law No. 22.362 (as amended by Law No. 27.444) - is the primary law governing the mechanism of trademark registration and protection in Argentina.
For getting a trademark registered in Argentina, an application has to be filed with the Trademark Office (TMO), a department within the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), which administers the entire trademark registration process.
It follows a 'first to file' system.
Argentina follows the 11th edition of Nice Classification. Multi-class trademark applications are not acceptable.
The third parties can file opposition actions against a trademark application within thirty (30) days following its publication date in the official gazette.
In Argentina, registered trademarks have a validity of ten (10) years from the date of registration, which can be further renewed indefinitely for successive periods of ten (10) years each.
The grace period to renew a trademark after the date of expiry is six (06) months.
The term for cancellation of a registered trademark based on non-use is five (05) years from the date of registration.

Argentina is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.
The Patent Law (24.481), as further amended by Laws 24.572, 25.859, and 27.444 and the Patent Law Ruling Decree 260/96, as further amended by Decree 403/19 - deal with the mechanism of patent protection in Argentina.
For seeking patent protection in Argentina, an application has to be filed with the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), which administers the entire patent grant process.
In Argentina, an invention that satisfies the conditions of 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, Convention Application, Divisional Application, and Patent of Addition.
In Argentina, an opposition against a patent application can't be raised at the post-grant stage; however, they can be raised within sixty (60) calendar days following the publication of a patent application.
The patent of invention lasts for twenty (20) years in Argentina. The first annuity will be due in the 3rd year, and the last annuity will be due in the 20th year. The payment of annuities can be made any time before the due date.

Decree No 6,673/63, ratified by Law No 16,478, governs and deals with the mechanism of registration of industrial designs in Argentina.
The types of industrial design applications that can be filed in Argentina include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.
Utility model protection isn't provided under industrial design protection in the nation.
Opposition against an industrial design application can't be raised in Argentina.
The total duration of industrial design registration in Argentina is fifteen (15) years from the date of application. The initial registration term is five (05) years, which is further extendible for two (02) terms of five (05) years each upon payment of the renewal fee.
The time frame for payment of the renewal fee before the due date is six (06) months.
There is a grace period of six (06) months after the due date to renew a registered industrial design.

Argentina is a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.
The basic copyright law of Argentina is Law No. 11.723 of 28th September 1933 on Legal Intellectual Property Regime (Copyright Law, as last amended by Law No. 26.570 of 25th November 2009).
The Dirección Nacional del Derecho de Autor (DNDA) is the governmental body in charge of copyright protection in Argentina.
As a general rule, the copyright law in Argentina grants rights to the author for life and any heirs and successors for seventy (70) years beginning from 1st January following the author's death. If the copyright owner is a legal entity, the law grants rights for fifty (50) years from the date of the work's first publication.
In cases of copyright infringement, copyright owners in Argentina can file a civil suit to stop the infringement and obtain compensation for the damages suffered as a result of the infringement.