Utility Models
Legal Basis
Same as for “Patents of Invention“.
Membership in International Conventions
Same as for “Patents of Invention“.
Protection
Definition: utility models consist in the external modification of a known current gadget, tool or instrument, obtaining a better or new industrial application of it.
Duration: ten years as of the filing date, non-renewable, subject to annual taxes payable before the anniversary of filing.
Application of patent laws: rules about novelty, yearly maintenance taxes and co-property relative to patents are applicable to utility models.