• The Regulation governing Law 24/2015, of 24 July, on Patents has been approved
• Maximum resolution deadlines for procedures regulated by Law 24/2015, of 24 July, on Patents
• The new Patent Law and entrepreneurs
• 5th Regional Seminar on Trademarks and Industrial Designs as Innovation Factors and Enterprise Assets: Innovating Through Handicrafts
• The SPTO in Figures 2016

The Regulation governing Law 24/2015, of 24 July, on Patents has been approved

On 31 March, the Council of Ministers gave their approval to Royal Decree 316/2017, of 31 March, which approves the Regulation governing Law 24/2015, of 24 July, on Patents. These Regulations, which came into force on 1 April alongside the Law, are intended to establish a quick and effective procedure for granting patents in Spain.

Filing requirements

In terms of the granting procedure, the Regulation state that patent applications must be filed with the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (SPTO) and must contain the description of the invention, the claims defining the object for which the patent is being sought, and the summary of the invention. There are now fewer requirements for obtaining a submission date, which means the application has been admitted for processing in the case of both patents and utility models.

Granting procedure

The previous sequential structure of the patent granting procedure, which was based on successfully passing various stages, has been abolished, with applications now going straight to the prior art search phase. This means that deadlines have been shortened and adjusted, in order to provide applicants with relevant information enabling them to decide on their business strategy when seeking patents abroad.

Post-grant opposition procedure

The Regulation sets out the new post-granting opposition procedure and the procedures for patent revocation and limitation, a novel and previously unknown regulation in the Spanish patent granting procedure.

Regulation for SPCs

For the first time a regulation governs the procedure for granting Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) for pharmaceutical and plant protection products, an extremely important development for the pharmaceutical industry. The new regulation enables an extension to be made to the normal period of 20 years during which the patent protection is in force.

It also establishes the regime for applying international agreements such as the European Patent Convention (EPC) and the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Discounts for universities and reductions for entrepreneurs and SMEs

The Regulation sets out some aspects of the law on the subject of Fees, such as a fee discount for State Universities and a 50% reduction on application fees for entrepreneurs filing as individuals and for SMEs, which will benefit the Spanish innovation sector.

Utility Models

In terms of utility models, the new Regulation describes the various steps in the granting procedure and practical issues referring to the mandatory report for taking legal action as set out in article 148.3 of the Law.