Basic Guide for Patents
Understand
Owning the patent of a product means having the right to manufacture, sell, or allowing other people to manufacture or sell this product in your behalf while paying for it.
So, if you invented a product or a process, you can apply for its patent with the National Institute of Industrial Property – INPI. There are two types of patent:
- Invention Patent (PI) – for new technologies, whether associated with a product or a process, such as a new engine for a vehicle or a new process to manufacture medicines;
- Utility Model Patent (MU) – for new forms in objects with practical use, such as utensils and tools, that present enhancements in their use or manufacture.
Is it your first time here? Acess:
Tutorial videos on how to apply for your patent
See also:
Search
Before applying for your patent, check whether no one has developed a product similar to your invention or utility model.
Searching databases will help you decide whether applying for your patent is worth it or not.
INPI may only provide the patent if no one has invented a product or process identical to yours before.
See also:
Initiate application
If, after searching, you believe your invention or utility model really is different than any other existing, then it is time to start writing your application!
The patent application is composed of the following documents:
- Specification;
- Claims;
- Abstract;
- Drawings (if any); and
- Sequence listing (only for applications in the biotechnology field).
Pay the GRU
INPI offers discounts for:
- Individuals;
- Micro-enterprises;
- Individual microentrepreneurs;
- Small-sized companies;
- Cooperatives;
- Education and research institutions;
- Nonprofit entities; and
- Public agencies.
In order to pay fees, the following are required:
- Registering at e-INPI;
- Issuing and paying the Federal Government Payment Form (GRU) by using the code 200 (keep the number of the GRU generated, because it will be required for the next step); and
- Fill out the online form at e-Patents system.
Check the User Guide – Electronic Petitioning for more information.
Follow-up
Your application will go through different steps, which can be summarized as follows:
* Technical examination: when INPI assesses if the invention or utility model meets the requirements of novelty, inventive step, and industrial application. For more information, please access My First Patent.
New documents may be required in each step. Learn more about the processing of your application at Follow-up of a Patent Application. See also the detailed flowchart of a patent application.
Remember: you are the sole responsible for following up the progress of the application. In order not to miss the deadlines, please follow these steps:
- Check out Industrial Property Journal (RPI), published every Tuesday;
- Register the number of your application on My Applications, which is a system that sends an email notice when your application goes to another step. You will be able to register it when you are logged in the Buscaweb system. But beware: this is an additional service provided by INPI and does not replace the consultation to the RPI.
You may have doubts throughout the progress of the application. Please Contact Us or come in person to INPI’s headquarters, in Rio de Janeiro, State of Rio de Janeiro, or in any of our regional facilities to be served. See the addresses here.
You may also request a copy or access any information that has already been published at technological information.
My first patent also helps you with that! Download the Process Flow Checklist.
See how to apply for your patent in other countries.
Application in progress
It is possible to speed up the examination of your application in some cases. Check if you fit the profile for a priority examination.
After applying for your patent, your application is kept confidential for up to 18 months. You have up to 36 months to request INPI to examine the application (by using code 203 for PI or code 204 for MU). These terms are counted as of the day you applied for the patent, i.e., the date of filing of your application.
You can also request INPI to provide a preliminary opinion (by using code 276) regarding your application, assessing whether it has chances to become a patent, even before the official examination. See more details in the Patent Applicant Guide.
Also, remember you have to pay the annual fees for the application following the 24th month after the date of application. If your patent is granted, you shall also continue to pay the annual fees until the end of the effectiveness of the patent. The application or the patent may be dismissed due to lack of payment of an annual fee.
Patent effectiveness
If your patent is granted by INPI, it shall be valid in Brazil for 20 year if it is an Invention Patent (PI), or 15 years, if it is a Utility Model (MU).