Chile is part and member of the following organizations, treaties and agreements:

About Industrial Property matters:

- WIPO (1975)

- Paris Convention (1991)

- TRIPS (1995)

- PCT (2009)

- TLT (2010)

- Madrid System (2022)

About Intellectual Property matters:

- Inter-American Convention on Copyright in Literary, Scientific and Artistic Works (1952).

- International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (1961).

- Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1973).

- Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against unauthorized copying of their phonograms (1977).

- International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1969).

- Treaty on the International Registration of Audiovisual Works and its Regulations (1994).

- Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization and the Agreements annexed thereto (1995).

- WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) (2003).

- The law that regulates the obtaining of industrial property rights is Law No. 19.039, in force since 1991 and which has been subject to subsequent amendments.

Chilean IP Law No. 19.039

The last modification of the Chilean IP Law 19,039 became effective on May 2022. This modification is one of the most important. Its modifications include:

1) Non-traditional trademarks, such as three-dimensional, olfactory, animated, among others.

2) It establishes the possibility of cancellation due to lack of use after 5 years from the granting of the registration.

3) Establishes a grace period of 6 months to renew trademark registrations.

4) Incorporates the crime of trademark counterfeiting.

5) Incorporates the figure of Provisional Patent.

6) Establishes the patent infringement action.

7) Establishes the abbreviated procedure for industrial designs.

8) Protection for industrial designs and Industrial drawings is extended up to 15 years from date of the application.

9) Restoration of the right of priority for patents.

10) Alternative payment of annuities for renewal of patents and designs.

The following rights may be obtained under this Law:

- Patents of Invention

- Utility Models    

- Layout diagrams or topographies of integrated circuits  

- Trademarks   

- Appellations of origin   

- Geographical indications  

- Industrial designs

- Industrial and trade secrets

- Undisclosed information  

- Traditional Knowledge and Genetic Resources

Trademarks

The institution in charge of registering the aforementioned rights is the National Institute of Industrial Property (INAPI).

In Chile, trademark applications are accepted to distinguish products and services, which may consist of words( including personal names), letters, numbers, figurative elements (such as images, graphics, symbols), combinations of colors, sounds, smells or three-dimensional shapes, as well as any combination of these signs.

Advertising or publicity phrases may also be registered, provided that they are linked or attached to a registered trademark of the product or service for which they are to be used.

For classification purposes, Chile uses the following sources:

- Nice Classification of Goods and Services

- Descriptions of products and services of the Pacific Alliance (ADP)

- Descriptions accepted by WIPO

- Descriptions accepted by Chilean Trademark Office (INAPI)

Multi-class trademark applications for products and services are allowed, either using:

- Class headings of Nice Classification.

- A free description of products and services based on the classification criteria accepted by the Chilean Trademark Office (INAPI).

- Or by accessing a list of products and services pre-approved by INAPI, which facilitates and speeds up the preliminary examination.

In Chile, the "first to file" system is in force and the time required to obtain a registration is between 5-6 months.

Patents and Industrial Designs

Patents and Industrial Designs in Chile are governed by the Industrial Property Law No.19.039 of September 30, 1991, its subsequent amendment of 2005 and the latest amendment, Law No. 21.355, which came into force on May 9, 2022.

As mentioned, Chile has been a member of PCT since 2009, and a significant part of the applications in Chile relate to National Phases of the PCT.

Patents in Chile are granted for 20 years from the filing date of the application in Chile according to the Paris Convention, or from the date of the international PCT application for National Phases.

On the other hand, industrial designs are granted for 15 years, initially for 5 years and may be renewed for an additional 10 years.

The prosecution process for a patent, utility model and industrial design is the same.

Once the applications are filed the Chilean Patent Office (CLPTO) issues a Preliminary Examination (formal examination) accepting the prosecution process of the application or requesting all missing documents necessary to accept the processing of the application. The next step is the publication of the extract of the application in the Official Gazette, for opposition purposes, and then the CLPTO appoints an examiner to prepare the substantive examination (Novelty, Inventive Step and Industrial Application, as the case may be). In other words, invention patents, utility models and industrial designs applications must comply with the substantive examination requirement.

The average prosecution process period for an invention patent in Chile is approximately 3 to 4 years, while the processing period for an industrial design is 2 years.

However, the last amendment to the law incorporates only for Industrial Designs, the alternative of an abbreviated prosecution process, postponing the substantive examination. In this case, the CLPTO grants the applicant a certificate of deposit, which prevents the initiation of legal actions against potential infringers until the substantive examination is approved.

Among the topics highlighted in the patent and industrial design legislation, the following are mentioned.

1.- If a patent has been previously filed  abroad, the interested party shall have priority for a period of one year, counted from the filing date in the country of origin, to file the application in Chile. If the applicant loses the aforementioned term, he may request the restoration of the right of priority within two months following the date of expiration of the priority term. The filing of a request for restoration of the right of priority must clearly indicate the causes of non-compliance, which must be associated with a problem of force majeure.

2.- If the applicant discloses the invention in advance, our law contemplates the figure of "innocuous disclosures". These disclosures will not be considered for purposes of determining novelty or inventive step if they were made within the 12 months prior to the filing of the application. All innocuous disclosures must be declared at the time of filing the patent application.

3.- The figure of provisional applications is incorporated in the patent legislation, establishing 12 months to formally file the definitive application.

4.-If a pending application is declared abandoned for failure to comply with any processing requirement, the application may be reinstated and reactivated within 45 days by complying with the requirements and paying an official fee.

5.- Once the patent has been granted, the owner shall have a term of 60 days to request a term of supplementary protection, provided that there has been an unjustified administrative delay in the grant of the patent and the term of grant has exceeded five years, counted from the filing date of the application or three years counted from the request for examination, whichever is later. The supplementary protection shall be extended only for the period credited as unjustified administrative delay and a term of supplementary protection of more than five years may not be granted.

6.- It is possible to proceed to the declaration of the nullity of an invention patent when the granting thereof has been based on erroneous or manifestly deficient expert reports or when the registration has been granted in contravention of the rules on patentability and its requirements, in accordance with the provisions of the law. The action for nullity of an invention patent shall be barred within a period of five years from the registration thereof.

7.- The new Chilean Law also establishes the "usurpation action", which defines that in cases where the person who has obtained the patent does not have the right, the legitimate owner will have the right to request the transfer of the registration and the corresponding compensation for damages. This action may be exercised during the entire term of the registration.  

8.- Both the renewal period of patents and industrial designs are subject to an official fee, which may be paid in full for the renewed period or in the form of annuities.

Copyright

The obtaining of Copyright is regulated by Law No. 17,336 on Copyright, which dates back to 1970, with its last amendment made in 2017.

According to this law, "Copyright protects the rights that, by the mere fact of the creation of the work, are acquired by the authors of works of intelligence in the literary, artistic and scientific fields, whatever their form of expression, and the related rights determined by it".

Copyright includes economic and moral rights, which protect the use, paternity and integrity of the work.

The protection granted by this law lasts for the life of the author and extends up to 70 more years, counted from the date of his death.

The institution in charge of copyright registration is the Department of Intellectual Rights.

Plant Varieties

The protection of the breeder's right is enshrined in Chile in Law 19.342, which "Regulates Plant Breeders' Rights for New Plant Varieties", issued in 1994. Chile is a member of UPOV 78 since 1996.

The breeder's right is constituted by the registration of the variety in the Register of Protected Varieties, which is kept by the Division of Agricultural, Forestry and Seed Protection. The entry of a variety in this Register confers on its owner the exclusive right to multiply it. Anyone wishing to produce, offer, import or export propagating material must have the authorization of the holder of the right. The variety may be obtained and developed naturally or by plant breeding, and varieties of any genus and species may be registered.

The law grants breeders the registration of plant varieties as long as they are "different", "homogeneous" and "stable".

The protection period is 18 years for trees and vines and 15 years for other species.

Provided by Johansson & Langlois