INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

Applicant: Any person, natural or legal; foreigners have to be represented by an authorized attorney.

Priorities: according to the Paris Convention, six months; to be claimed at filing.

Exceptions to protection: if the industrial design: (a) is not new and original; (b) is determined exclusively by the technical function of the article; (c) contains official signs and symbols; (d) is against public order or morality.

Novelty: worldwide.

Novelty grace period: six months.

Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):

• A document regarding identity/registration of the company (full name, address, the company registration number, field of activity, and legal form of the applicant(s) must be mentioned in the said document). This document must be legalized up to the Iranian Consulate.
• Power of attorney duly notarized and legalized up to the Iranian Consulate.
• Details of the design together with 5 drawings, photographs or other adequate graphic representation of the article embodying the Industrial Design and an indication of the kind of products for which the Industrial Design is to be used. Where the Industrial Design is three-dimensional, the Industrial Property Office may request a real specimen or a Marquette of the same along with the application.
• The relevant class (according to the International classification).
• A certified copy of application or registration is required, if priority rights are to be claimed (in case the priority document is presented, the same will be translated here).
• The priority documents must be presented at the time of filing or latest 15 days after the said filing date. However the date and number of the priority document must be mentioned in the application.

EXAMINATION

Amendment of application: possible before registration. Examination: as to formal requirements and novelty; the design must not be contrary to public order, morality or Islamic rules.

REGISTRATION, PROTECTION

Beginning of protection: from the date of application for registration. Duration and renewal: five years. This period may be renewed for two further consecutive periods of five years. A grace period of six months is allowed for late renewals with fine. Change of name, license, assignment, and change of address: possible; must be registered. Documents must be legalized up to the Iranian Consulate. The attestation of change of address is to be notarized only. Rights of protection – infringement: the registered owner of design may institute court proceeding against any person who performs any act for exploitation of the design, without his consent, or performs acts which make it likely that further infringement will occur.