(1) Laws and regulations on intellectual property protection
Before 2005, Pakistan was flooded with pirated and infringing products, and it was one of the major exporters of pirated products in the world. In 2005, the Government of Pakistan established the Intellectual Property Organization (PIPRO), which was led by the Prime Minister himself. The Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan (WIPO) has strengthened legislation and law enforcement, and greatly improved the protection of intellectual property rights. Pakistan's intellectual property legislation system includes trademark law, patent law, design law, copyright law and the relevant implementation rules of the above laws. For specific laws and regulations, please visit the website of the Pakistani Intellectual Property Organization: www.ipo.gov.pk.
Trademark Law 200 1 stipulates that the period of validity of trademark registration is 10 years, counting from the date of application. It can be extended 10 years after expiration. If a registered trademark is not used for five consecutive years, it will be revoked.
According to the Patent Law of 2000, the protection period of patent right is 20 years, counting from the date of application.
The design law 2000 stipulates that the validity period of design registration is 10 years, counting from the date of application. Upon expiration, the insurance can be renewed for 10 years, and then for 10 years.
Copyright Law 1962 stipulates that the scope of protection includes written works, music, drama, folk art, fine arts, architectural works, sculpture works, photographic works, film works, graphic works, model works and computer software. The copyright protection period is usually 50 years before and after the author's death.
(2) Relevant penalties for intellectual property infringement
Whoever illegally uses a registered trademark or provides forged documents and materials for registration shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three months but not more than two years, and shall also or solely be fined not less than 50,000 rupees; Whoever illegally uses a registered trademark for the second time shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than six months but not more than three years, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than 654.38 million rupees; Whoever impersonates an unregistered trademark as a registered trademark shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than 1 month and not more than 1 year, and shall also or only be fined 20,000 rupees.
Those who provide forged documents for patent registration, or patents involving military secrets, or apply for patents abroad without the permission of the domestic government, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years and shall also or only be fined not more than 20,000 rupees; If the report is untrue, a fine of not more than 5,000 rupees shall be imposed; For unregistered patent agents, a fine of Rs. 25,000 will be imposed for the first time and Rs. 65,438+10,000 will be imposed for each subsequent time; Those who pass off non-patented products as patented products will be fined up to 5,000 rupees.
Where a designer illegally uses a registered design or provides forged documents and materials for registration, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years and shall also or solely be fined not more than 20,000 rupees; A fine of rupees. Whoever impersonates an unregistered design as a registered design will be fined 1000.
Whoever uses a work by means of adaptation or translation without the permission of the copyright owner, or produces or sells pirated audio-visual products, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years and shall also or only be fined 65,438+10,000 rupees; Those who provide false copyright registration materials, or produce or sell works with fake signatures of others, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years, and shall also or only be fined 65,438+10,000 rupees.
(3) Application procedures
1. patent application
The Patent Office of Pakistan Intellectual Property Organization (PIPRO) is the competent department for accepting patent applications in Pakistan.
The application documents required to register a Pakistani patent mainly include: application, power of attorney (if applied through an agent), patent specification and payment of patent application fee.
The application procedures include: 1. Submit an application; 2. Review and approval; 3. If it fails to pass the examination, the applicant will be required to supplement or modify the materials; If it passes the examination, a notice of acceptance will be published in the official gazette; 4. Issue certificates.
2. Registered trademarks
Application documents required to register a trademark in Pakistan: trademark application, trademark pattern, power of attorney (if applied through an agent), trademark registration application fee (65,438+0,000 rupees, free of cash).
To apply for a domestic trademark in Pakistan, you should go to the Trademark Registry of Pakistan Intellectual Property Organization, which is located in Karachi and has a representative office in Lahore. Foreign enterprises that are not registered in Pakistan must apply through local trademark registration agents.
To apply for international trademark protection, you can apply to the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva, Switzerland through the Pakistan Trademark Registration Office.