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Design, Trademark & Patent Registrations in South Africa This page contains information on the registration of Designs, Patents and Trademarks in South Africa. For information on registrations in OAPI affiliated African countries click here, for information on ARIPO affiliated countries click here and for information on other African countries please select the appropriate country from the drop down list on the left above. Design Applications Trademark Applications Patent Applications PCT National Phase Applications Convention and Non-Convention Applications

BEEE Status: We have received our Level 3 Accreditation for 2011/2012 Hahn & Hahn voted IP Boutique Law Firm of the Year in South Africa 2011 Janusz Luterek has been voted one of the worlds top1000 IP attorneys We are pleased to announce that Prof Karen du Toit, a pharmacist who holds a Ph.D. in Applied Chemistry and is an associate professor in the Pharmacy School of the University of Kwazulu Natal has joined our team We are pleased to announce that Janet Tomkow who is a biotechnologist and an admitted attorney has joined our team and practices predominantly law and litigation of patents

DESIGN APPLICATIONS View Tariffs

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR LODGING DESIGN APPLICATIONS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

• FORM D3 : Declaration and Power of Attorney. No witnesses or legalisation required. (Please furnish name and capacity of signatory).

• ASSIGNMENT OF DESIGN (if appropriate). No witnesses or legalisation required

• FORMAL REPRESENTATIONS of the design (in accordance with patent drawing standards, or photographs of adequate size to show the design clearly).

• PRIORITY DOCUMENT (if priority is claimed) together with a VERIFIED ENGLISH TRANSLATION THEREOF (if appropriate).

P.S. According to South African law a design may be protected as an "aesthetic design", in terms of which protection is afforded for the appearance of a design to the extent that such appearance is not solely functional, or by way of a "functional design", in terms of which protection is afforded to features of a design that are necessitated by function. An aesthetic design has to be registered in Part A of the Register and a functional design in Part F of the Register. A design having both aesthetic and functional features can be registered in both Part A and Part F. However, this requires the filing of two applications with the second application costing about two thirds of the first application (as per the above tariffs). If we are not provided with an indication as to which Part of the Register the design is to be filed in, we shall decide ourselves and file in the appropriate Part. However, if it appears that the design should be filed in both parts, we shall contact you first to obtain explicit instructions in this regard.

Furthermore, a single application for a registered design can be filed in a single class only (using the Locarno International Classification for Designs). If protection is required in more than one class, separate design applications have to be filed in each of those classes at the above tariffs. The monopoly afforded by a registered design is restricted to articles which fall within the class or classes in which the design has been registered. If we are not provided with an indication of the class, we shall classify the design ourselves. However, if it appears that the design can be classified in more than one class, we shall contact you first to obtain explicit instructions in this regard.

For filing requirements elsewhere in Africa, please select the appropriate country from the drop down list on the left above or by using the interactive map on our Home Page.

TRADEMARK APPLICATIONS
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DOCUMENTS FOR LODGING TRADE MARK APPLICATIONS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

• POWER OF ATTORNEY signed by applicant, (not legalised) required before acceptance.

• REPRESENTATIONS OF THE MARK 15 per class, if it is a device mark.

• SPECIFICATION OF GOODS OR SERVICES proposed specification(s) of goods or services.

• INTERNATIONAL CLASSES if known, (a separate application is required for each class).

• PRIORITY DOCUMENT: if priority is claimed: priority document to be lodged within 3 months of filing the application. Priority date and number required on date of filing the application.

PATENT APPLICATIONS
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DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR ENTERING PCT NATIONAL PHASE IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

• Form P3: Declaration and Power of attorney. No witnesses or legalisation required. (Please furnish name(s) and capacity of person(s) signing form P3)

• Form P26: Declaration on Indigenous Biological Resource, Genetic Resource, Traditional Knowledge or Use.

• ASSIGNMENT OF INVENTION: If applicant is not the inventor or one of the inventors. No legalisation required.

• ASSIGNMENT OF PRIORITY RIGHTS: If applicant in RSA is different from the applicant in the basic convention case.

• PCT APPLICATION NUMBER AND/OR WO PUBLICATION NUMBER.   

• TRANSLATION:        Any article 19 or article 34 amendments. Application into English. Priority document into English.

• With your instructions, if at all applicable, please furnish full name(s) and address(es) of applicant(s), full name(s) of every inventor, and if Convention application, full priority particulars, including date, country, number of basic application(s).

  see South African Patents-Memorandum on Prosecuting a PCT National Phase Application in South Africa

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR LODGING CONVENTION AND NON-CONVENTION PATENT APPLICATIONS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

• FORM P3 : Declaration and Power of attorney. No witnesses or legalisation required. (Please furnish name(s) and capacity of person(s) signing Form P3).

• Form P26: Declaration on Indigenous Biological Resource, Genetic Resource, Traditional Knowledge or Use.
  

• ASSIGNMENT OF INVENTION : If applicant is not the inventor or one of the inventors. No legalisation required.

• ASSIGNMENT OF PRIORITY RIGHTS : In Convention cases, if applicant in RSA is different from applicant in the basic convention case.

• SPECIFICATION : Two copies of description and claims in English. International paper size A4.

• FORMAL DRAWINGS :

          (a) two copies of each sheet which accompanies the specification - size A4

          (b) one figure on one sheet to be used for publication with abstract, if applicable.

• ABSTRACT : of the disclosure : not more than 150 words; may refer to reference numerals in the figure of the drawing to be used for publication.

• INTERNATIONAL CLASSIFICATION : if available. If not available, we carry out classification before acceptance, at additional cost.

• PRIORITY DOCUMENT : in Convention cases : one copy of the basic application certified by the relevant Patent Office, plus certified translation if not in English.

• One copy of each of the specification, abstract and drawings is required for our file record.

• With your instructions, if at all possible, please furnish full name(s) and address(es) of applicant(s), full name(s) of every inventor, and if Convention application, full priority particulars, including date, country, number of basic application(s).

Notes :

• In South Africa a non-Convention application may be filed with a provisional specification which does not have claims. This must be followed within not more than 15 months by a complete specification which describes the final form of the invention and includes claims.

• All documents which are not photocopies of originals must be typed in one-and-a-half line or double spacing, observing the following margins: left 25mm, top 20mm, right 15mm and foot 10mm. Formal drawings require the same margins.

• IN URGENT CASES a filing date can be obtained with the following minimum documents:

  One copy of the specification in an official language of any Convention country, including one copy of the drawings, OR the number, date and title of the Convention application from which priority is claimed, provided a copy of the specification and drawings is lodged within 14 days of the application.

• TRANSLATIONS : We are able to undertake or obtain translations from German, French and certain other languages into English.