The Patents, Industrial Designs and Trademarks Registration Act of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2008) unified patent, industrial design, and trademark protection under a single statute, replacing earlier fragmented legislation and establishing the framework that governed Iranian IP practice for more than a decade.

Chapter One of the Act addresses patents. Article 1 defines an invention as the outcome of an individual’s mind that produces a certain product or process for the first time and provides for a specific solution to a technical problem. Subsequent chapters set out patentability criteria, filing and examination procedures, opposition, annuities, and enforcement.

Structure of the 2008 Act

The Act is organised in three main parts: patents (Chapters One and Two), industrial designs (Chapter Two of the designs section), and trademarks (Chapter Three from Article 30 onwards). It codified rules on novelty, inventive step, industrial applicability, design ornamentation, trademark distinctiveness, well-known marks, and cancellation.

  • Patents: Substantive examination, 20-year term from filing, annual renewal fees.
  • Industrial designs: Protection of ornamental or aesthetic features, initial five-year term with renewals.
  • Trademarks: Registration, opposition, well-known mark protection, and use requirements.

Although newer legislation has since been enacted, the 2008 Act remains an important reference for understanding prior rights, transitional provisions, and the development of Iranian IP law. For a detailed overview of the Act’s provisions, see our Iran IP Law analysis.