OPI does not conduct substantive examination for utility models (short-term patents). If no search is carried out or search reports from other countries are provided, it will only be protected as a short-term patent.
OPI conducts only formality examination of design patent applications.
no
yes. A Benelux design application may contain multiple designs, but not more than 50 designs.
- Authorization Fee: None
- Annuity: pay year by year from the third year from the application date, and the payment deadline for the annual fee is the end of the month corresponding to the application date. If the annual fee is overdue, it can be paid within a grace period of 6 months, and a late fee of 20.00 Euros should be paid at the same time.
Reinstatement of priority is accepted on grounds of "due care."
no
OPI does not conduct substantive examination for utility models (short-term patents). If no search is carried out or search reports from other countries are provided, it will only be protected as a short-term patent.
no
4 months
- via Paris Convention : 12 months from earliest priority date.
- via Nationalization of PCT : 20 months from the earliest priority date.
*Luxembourg is one of the only countries in the world that still retain Chapter I for 20 months to enter the national phase (the other is Tanzania). If it takes 30 months to enter the national phase, a request for international preliminary examination must be filed.