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Introduction

Indonesian patent system was first introduced by the end of 1989 under the Patent Law No. 6/1989 taking effect of August 1, 1991, which was amended by Law No. 13/1997 effective as on May 7, 1997. In a bid to bring the system into line with the standards required by the TRIPs Agreement, the Law was further revised and restructured, then superseded by Law No. 14/2001, which came in force on August 1, 2001. To facilitate international patent filings, Indonesia has also acceded to the Patent Law Treaty (PCT), effective since on September 5, 1997. Accordingly, foreign applicants can designate Indonesia as a contracting state now. Nevertheless, non-convention applications may be filed at any time before the invention is published anywhere in the world, or orally disclosed, used, sold or otherwise made known in Indonesia.

Patentable and Unpatentable Inventions

Apparatus or products (including chemical compounds and microorganisms) and processes (through which a product is manufactured including non-biological and microbiological processes) are all patentable.

Subject matters excluded from patentability are:

1. inventions being contrary to public order, morality and the existing laws and regulations;
2. diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods (including business methods);
3. scientific and mathematical methods;
4. plants and animals (other than micro-organisms) and essentially biological processes for production of plants and animals (other than non-biological and micro-biological processes).

Filing Requirements:

Applications must be in or translated into Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Language). To file a complete application, the following documents are required:

1. Patent Request Form
   Can be prepared and signed by ourselves on client’s behalf; but particulars should be provided with the client’s instructions.
2. Power of Attorney
   Simply signed and no legalization is necessary; but please make sure that full name and title of the signatory are clearly indicated (in case of corporate applicants).
   (-) Form enclosed
3. Specification in triplicate which consists of :
   1. Description, the contents of which must be structured in strict accordance with the following statutory format:
   1. Technical field;
   2. Background art;
   3. Technical improvements & advantages;
   4. Brief explanation of the drawing(s);
   5. Mode of carrying out the invention & working examples;
   6. Industrial applicability
   2. Claim(s)
   3. Abstract
      (Please prepare and send just one copy. We will work on the translation and adjust it to the standard format in triplicate).
4. Formal drawing(s), in triplicate
   (Please send informal ones. We can prepare the formal drawings as required. If the client wishes to send formal drawings to us, the word “FIG” on each page is required to have been changed into “GBR” and then followed by the number).
5. Certified copy of priority document
   If the basic application(s) is not in English, verified English translation will be required though it is not necessarily a sworn translation. A suitable certificate of verification signed by the translator and included at the end of this section is sufficient.
   (Please send. We can subsequently translate it into Bahasa Indonesia).
6. Assignment, simply signed (if the applicant is not the inventor itself, no legalization is required).
   (-) Form enclosed.
7. As for PCT National Phase applications, in addition to the above documents from (1) through (6) (wherein specification in (3) is an international application), Copy of amendments to the claims, if any, under Article 19 (for Chapter I), or Article 34 (for Chapter II),  is necessary for filing. While 30 months deadline of chapter I remains applied, currently is also possible that chapter I be accepted within the deadline of 31 months as for chapter II. Type of protection available via PCT is only standard patent.

Publications and Opposition

First Publication:

• Patents – for a convention application it shall be published in no later than eighteen (18) months from the priority date, and whereas for a non-convention application no later than eighteen months from the local filing date. Each shall be laid open for six (6) months for public inspections and oppositions.
• Simple Patents – the publication shall occur in no later than three (3) months from the filing date, and this will last for only three (3) months for opposition.

Second Publication:

• To take place after grant or rejection.

Examination

Substantive examination of a patent application shall be subject to a prior request in writing by the applicant or its attorney and which must be submitted within thirty-six (36) months of the application filing date. However, the examination will commence only after the first publication period has ended, and it shall have to be completed in no later than thirty-six (36) months (for standard Patents) or twenty-four (24) months (for simple Patents).

Validity

Standard patents, 20 years from filing date.
Simple patents, 10 years from filing date.
Both terms are not extendable.