General information

Valid Nice Classification – NCL 11-2017

Registration – about 10 months from the application filing date.

Confirmation document – Certificate.

Procedures feature – from the application filing date it is necessary to regularly monitor trademark applications to check whether any of them conflict with your trademark.

Procedure

Step	Term	Official notification
Application Filing	1 day	Notification with entry number, applicant name, and filing date and time
Formal Examination	within 2 months after filing fees payment	Formal examination request Response to formal examination request – 2 months from date of reception
Examination for Absolute Ground for Refusal	within 3 months after formal examination	Provisional refusal (if any) Response to provisional refusal – 2 months from date of reception
Publication	within 1 moth after examination for absolute ground for refusal	Notification on publication
Opposition period	within 3 months from publication date
Registration	within 1 moth after opposition period	Invitation for payment registration and publication fees
Publication	within 1-3 months	Certificate and publication

 

Requirements

1. Applicant information – full name / title and registered office / registration address.
2. Trademark images and/or verbal elements, etc.
3. Priority document must be submitted within 3 months from the application filing date.
4. Translation of the priority document into Bulgarian (we prepare by ourselves) must be submitted within 3 months from the application filing date.
5. Power of Attorney (scanned copy without legalization).

 

 

 

General information

Invention

Registration period – about 2-4 years from the application filing date.

Confirmation document – Certificate.

Term of validity – 20 years from the application filing date. Patent for invention can be extended for additional 5 years if the patent object is a medicinal product or pesticide, or when the product use requires permission of the competent authority.

What can be protected: product (device, substance, microorganism strain, plant and animal cell culture, etc.); process (method); new use of the known product or process.

Utility model

Registration period – about 8-12 months from the application filing date.

Confirmation document – Certificate.

Term of validity – 4 years from the application filing date. Patent for utility model can be extended for additional 6 years.

What can be protected: device.

 

Procedure

Invention

Step	Term	Official Notification	Deadline
Application Filing	1 day	Notification with registration number, applicant name, date and time of filing	Direct filing with claiming priority – 12 months from priority date PCT national phase entry in Bulgaria – 31 months from priority date
Formal Examination	3 months from application filing date	Formal examination request / Notification on formal examination completion	Response to formal examination request – 3 months from date of reception
Preliminary Examination	3 months after formal examination completion	Preliminary examination request / Notification on preliminary examination completion	Response to preliminary examination request – 3 months from date of reception
Substantive Examination	1,5-2 years from application filing date	Substantive examination request / Decision on grant/refusal	Filing request for substantive examination – at the time of application filing Response to substantive examination request – 3 months from date of reception
Publication and Grant	within 5 months from grant fees payment	Certificate	Payment of grant and publication fees – 3 months from reception of grant decision
Maintenance	annually	Invitation to pay annuity fees	Annuity fees for each subsequent year are paid during previous year

 

Utility model

Step	Term	Official Notification	Deadline
Application Filing	1 day	Notification with registration number, applicant name, date and time of filing	Direct filing with claiming priority – 12 months from priority date PCT national phase entry in Bulgaria – 31 months from priority date
Formal Examination	1 month from application filing date	Formal examination request / Notification of formal examination completion	Response to formal examination request – 3 months from date of reception
Preliminary Examination	3 months after formal examination completion	Preliminary examination request / Decision on grant/refusal	Response to preliminary examination request – 3 months from date of reception
Publication and Grant	within 3 months from grant fees payment	Certificate	Payment of grant and publication fees – 1 months from reception of grant decision
Maintenance	annually	Invitation to pay annuity fees	Annuity fees for each subsequent year are paid during previous year

Requirements

1. Applicant information – full name / title and registered office.
2. Inventor information – full name and registration address.
3. Number of International publication (for PCT procedure) or application materials: claims, description, abstract, drawings (for non-PCT procedure; international application was not published).
4. Translation of the application into Bulgarian (we prepare by ourselves).
5. Power of Attorney (no legalization or notarization required) must be submitted within 3 months from the date of filing.
6. Certified copy of the priority application (if priority is claimed) must be submitted within 3 months from the date of filing.