FILING REQUIREMENTS

Requirements for filing a Utility Model application in Italy

For filing an application for a Utility Model patent, it is necessary to provide a description, claims and drawings, in exactly the same way as an application for a patent of invention. A Power of Attorney must also be filed, undersigned by the applicant(s): a separate Power of Attorney is necessary for each application unless the Attorney has been granted a General (or Cumulative) Power of Attorney.

- a Utility Model is valid for an initial period of five years:
- the duration of the Registration may be extended up to a maximum period of ten years; the registration may therefore be renewed for a further five year period;

Filing duties and five year maintenance duties are payable. The latter become due after the first five years, more specifically, on the fifth anniversary of the filing date.

Novelty at the filing date (or the priority date, if claimed) is a requisite.

The priority period is of twelve months in the case of a Utility Model.

The Power of Attorney and formal drawings must be filed within two months from the filing date, if the right to do so has been expressly reserved.

In the event that a Utility Model application is filed with a priority rights claim, an authentic copy of the priority application must be filed within the non-extendable deadline of six months from the filing date of the Italian application.

If the applicant for the Utility Model in Italy is different to the holder of the foreign priority application, an assignment of priority rights is required, which must be signed before a Notary Public on a date prior to the filing date of the Italian application; for more on the formal aspects, please see the section on “Assignment, Licenses etc”.