Utility Model Registration
The Simple Way to Protect Your Invention
Utility model registration is an ideal form of protection for inventors and entrepreneurs with new, industrially applicable inventions. It matters especially for inventions that do not meet patent criteria, or where the patent process would be too long and complex.
- Online Application
- 24/7 Service
- Free Search
- Free Consultancy
What Is a Utility Model?
A utility model is a protection certificate granted to inventions that are new and industrially applicable, obtainable faster and for a shorter term than a patent. Its essential difference from a patent is that no inventive step is required. A utility model lasts ten years from the filing date and cannot be extended.
Patent or Utility Model?
| Criterion | Patent | Utility Model |
|---|---|---|
| Novelty | Required | Required |
| Inventive step | Required | Not required |
| Industrial applicability | Required | Required |
| Term | 20 years | 10 years |
| Process | Longer | Usually shorter |
Inventions Excluded From Utility Model Protection
The Industrial Property Law places certain categories outside utility model protection:
- Processes and products obtained by those processes
- Chemical and biological substances and processes relating to them
- Pharmaceutical substances and processes relating to them
Utility models are therefore used mainly for mechanical structural improvements, apparatus and mechanisms.