Chile

Types of protection

Patent: A patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor. Generally, the term of a patent in Chile is 15 years and is effective only within the territory of Chile. Patent term extensions or adjustments may be available in some cases.

Utility Model: Utility models are similar to patents, but generally apply to less complex technical inventions than patents. Utility models can protect instruments, apparatus, tools, devices or objects which can be described in claim form. The legal protection of utility models applies to an individual object, but protection of several elements or aspects of an object can be claimed in a single application. Validity of utility models is for 10 years from the filing date of the application.

Industrial Design: Industrial designs are any three‐dimensional shapes and industrial or handicraft items that can be used as a template for the production of other units. Industrial designs must be distinguishable from similar three dimensional objects, either by their shape, geometric configuration, ornamentation or a combination of these characteristics. The validity term of a design patent in Chile is 10 years from the filing date.

Industrial Drawing: For industrial drawings, it is sufficient to provide a flat reproduction of the drawing. In addition, for this type of right, drawings should be numbered and presented with a duplicate photostat. Validity of Industrial Designs is for 10 years from the filing date of the application.1

Layout-design (topography) of Integrated Circuits: In the case of layout- designs (topographies) of integrated circuits, the specification must contain an introduction explaining the layout-designs (topographies) of integrated circuits and description of the prototype or model submitted. Validity of layout-designs is for 10 years from the filing date of the application.2

Convention and treaty membership

Chile became a member of the Patent Cooperation Treaty in June 2009 and is a signatory of several conventions and treaties including, but not limited to:

  • Paris Convention
  • World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
  • Rome Convention
  • Berne Convention
  • Budapest Treaty3

International, National and Regional applications

For information regarding how to file international, regional or national patent applications in each country, we welcome you to contact us.

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1 https://www.inapi.cl/portal/institucional/600/w3-article-1581.html

2 https://eml.berkeley.edu/~bhhall/papers/AbudFinkHallHelmers13_Chilean_IP_report.pdf

3 https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/profile.jsp?code=CL