Belgium, the global patent GO - Introduction to Belgian patent applications

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The crossroads of Europe—Belgium, the diamond capital

Belgium is located at the crossroads of Europe. In the past 2,000 years, Belgium has witnessed the rise and decline of various races and cultures in Europe. Because of this, Belgium is the true racial melting pot of Europe, including Celts, Romans, Germans, etc. The French, Dutch, Spanish and Austrians all left their cultural traces in Belgium. In 1830, Belgium became independent from the Dutch rule and became a hereditary monarchy. Belgium pursued a policy of neutrality, but even so, Belgium was still occupied in World War I and World War II. After World War II, Belgium abandoned the principle of neutrality, joined NATO, became a founding member of the European Union, and formed an economic alliance with Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Now, as one of the first countries to carry out the industrial revolution in continental Europe in the early 19th century, densely populated Belgium has become one of the most industrially developed regions in the world, with complete infrastructure such as ports, canals, railways and highways, and a per capita total production It is worth US$47,000. Its per capita export value is twice that of Germany and five times that of Japan. It has a highly skilled and efficient labor force. It is one of the top ten commodity importing and exporting countries in the world and has the reputation of being the capital of Europe.

The exchanges between China and Belgium can be traced back to the 17th century. In 1885, the Qing Dynasty began to send imperial envoys to Belgium. However, for the Chinese, their first understanding of Belgium may come from a comic book, which is "The Adventures of Tintin". This series of books, created by Belgian cartoonist Hergé, features the protagonist Tintin and his companion puppy Bai Xue, which have always been a favorite among Chinese children. Belgium's chocolate GODIVA, Leysen's Blue Fire Heartfelt Diamonds and other soft power cultural products and consumer goods are favored by many Chinese people.

So far, Belgium has become China's seventh largest trading partner in the EU, and China has also become Belgium's third largest trading partner outside the EU. In 2021, China-Belgium trade volume was US$38.95 billion, and Belgium's investment in China reached 2.22 billion. Dollar. The first Science and Technology Innovation Dialogue between China and Belgium was held in Brussels in 2017. The two sides interacted frequently and conducted extensive cooperative research. The University of Leuven, founded in 1425, and Tsinghua University mutually organize "Leuven Week" and "Tsinghua Week". Four comprehensive universities including the University of Leuven have set up offices in China. In terms of transportation, Belgium and China have achieved comprehensive land, sea and air connectivity, and the China-Europe freight train from Tangshan to Antwerp was opened in 2018. Currently, there are 32 pairs of provinces and cities between the two countries that have established friendly relations.

Belgium is also a technologically innovative country, ranking 22nd in global competitiveness in 2019, 7th in intellectual property protection, 8th in international collaborative R&D, 12th in R&D expenditures, and 14th in scientific publishing. Ranking 16th in patents per capita, with 114 patents per million people, the Belgian Microelectronics Research Center (IMEC) is the world's largest and most advanced nanoelectronics and digital technology research and innovation center. Its technology is 3-10 years ahead of the industry. Technical needs; the Belgian Institute of Industrial Technology (VITO), a leading independent research institution in the field of clean technology and sustainable development in Europe; the Belgian Institute of Biotechnology (VIB), one of the engines for promoting life science research, in cell biology, There is a large amount of innovative basic research in many fields such as gene expression and cancer treatment; the Belgian Mechatronics Technology Center (Flanders Make) is a strategic research center for the Belgian manufacturing industry, and others such as the Belgian Nuclear Energy Research Center (SCK CEN), Belgian Aerospace Research institutions, etc., all maintain world-leading levels.

Today, we will take a look at Belgium’s patent system.

Introduction to the Belgian patent system

1. Language for filing Belgian patent applications:

  • Dutch/French/German
  • If submitted in other languages, a Dutch/French/German translation must be submitted within 3 months from the date of application.

2. Types of patent protection:

  • inventions, designs

3. Ways for Chinese applicants to apply for patents in Belgium:

  • Paris Convention and PCT international applications enter the Belgian national phase

4. Review unit:

  • Invention patent: Belgian Intellectual Property Office, OPRI
  • Trademarks and design patents: Benelux Office for Intellectual Property, BOIP

5. Submit application:

  • electronic submission

6. Review process

  • The patent examination procedure in Belgium is relatively simple. Regardless of the patentability search results and examination results, it will not affect the authorization of Belgian patent applications (including invention patents and design patents). For the invention patent application received by ORPI, the EPO will search the invention patent and issue a written opinion on the patentability of the invention patent application. This opinion is only provided to the applicant for information purposes and for third party review. The patent applicant may modify the results of the search report and the written opinion on patentability, but the modified claims shall not exceed the scope of protection recorded in the original patent application. After receiving the search report, the patent applicant can clearly understand the quality of its patent application in order to decide whether to continue the process. A patent is authorized from the date of publication, and the date of publication is the date of authorization.
  • Design patent applications in Belgium must be submitted to the Benelux Patent Office.

Features of Belgian patents

1. For expired priority rights, a request for restoration may be made in Belgium. In principle, the reinstatement procedure applies to all statutory time limits.

2. The Benelux Intellectual Property Office has launched 4 new online services, including the change of trademark and design agents and the transfer of rights, which can be performed online.

3. The governments of Belgium and the Netherlands have launched a new universal digital platform for intellectual property, Creat, Protect & Benefit, for the first time, which will provide greater added value of intellectual property to more than 3 million companies in the Benelux countries.

Friendliness towards Chinese applicants:
★★★★★
The value of patent rights:
★★★★
Completeness of rights protection mechanism:
★★★★★