Intellectual Property Rights

Intellectual property rights in Luxembourg are
covered by the following regulations:

  • the Patent Law of 20 July 2000, subsequently amended several times to rectify inconsistencies with international law, in particular EU law;
  • the Luxembourg patent (20 years maximum duration from submission date) which is for patent registration only, with no patentability check of the invention, allowing for greater speed and simplicity in registering;
  • Uniform Benelux Law regulates trademarks;
  • copyright, related rights and databases are covered by the law of 18 April 2001;
  • EPO rules apply for biotechnological inventions.
  

The Department for Intellectual Property Rights at The Ministry of Economy and Trade have created a number of measures to encourage companies (especially SMEs) to register patents;

  • The short-term patent - this six-year patent can be obtained without submission of a research report. It differs from the normal patent by length of protection cover and cost, however the normal twenty-year patent gives a higher level of security.
  • Online registraton of patents and copyright - to speed up the registration process

An EU project entitled "Linking Innovation and Intellectual Property (LIIP), which is partly financed under FP5, is coordinated by the Technology Watch Tower at CPR Henri Tudor and Luxinnovation. The EU project aims to highlight the importance of intellectual property for innovative companies.

Luxinnovation holds regular training seminars on intellectual property, for more information please click here