Patent

The current patent system in Malta is mainly regulated by the 2007 Patent and Industrial Designs Act. The Maltese patent is divided into two categories: invention patent and design patent, in which the invention patent has a protection period of 20 years; the design protection period is 5 years, and can be renewed four times, each time for 5 years, and the longest can be protected for 25 years.

Invention Patent

The difference between the Malta patent application review system and China is that its invention patents are not subject to substantive examination.

After the application for the invention patent is filed, the Office will conduct a formal examination of the application. If the application meets the formal requirements and the applicant does not request the application to be returned, the Malta Patent Office will make the application public after 18 months.

Applicants have priority and can submit their application within two months of submitting the application for post-invention, or within 16 months from the date of the first application.

Design

The patent design procedure for Malta is relatively simple. The Patent Office will review the application within two months of receiving the application and review whether the application documents meet the formal requirements. If the application meets the formal requirements, the Patent Office will disclose the registered design in the government announcement.

The application fee for a Malta patent varies depending on the type of patent application. The cost is about 15,000 yuan or more.

Pct

Malta signed the instrument of accession to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on December 1, 2006, becoming the 134th signatory to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). This Treaty came into effect in Malta as of March 1, 2007.

Because of Malta's membership of PCT, provisions in all applications submitted after October 14, 2006 will be automatically bound on Malta (country code is MT). Besides, due to Malta's subjection to the stipulations of Chapter II of PCT, all international preliminary examinations required in international applications submitted after March 1 of 2007 automatically include this country. From October 14, 2006, national citizens of Malta may also file PCT applications.

Trademark

The new Trademark Law of Malta has been in effect since the end of 2000, which has 2 major amendments to the previous one: legalizing the registration of service trademark; shortening the registration and renewal term of trademark from 14 to 10 years. Malta has such trademark-related laws as Industrial Property Protective Order (1942), the No.20 Patent and Trademark Law (1948) and its amendment (effective as of January 1996).

Besides, the 2000 Act were amended in 2003, 2006 and 2007 respectively.

Malta is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and the World Intellectual Property Organization. It is not a member of the Madrid Protocol or a member of the Madrid Agreement. International registration cannot specify Malta.

In Malta, trademark application and registration are based on the Principle of First Application. Its law allows the registration application for combined trademarks and commodity trademarks under the name of one applicant, but hasn't made any provisions on the registration of collective trademarks.

The International Classification of Goods Law panel is also applied here. In addition, any language or word is eligible for registration as trademarks.

According to the legal rules in Malta, applicants with the priority to use the trademark may apply for and obtain the exclusive right to use the trademark.

People from countries that have signed the agreement with Malta on mutual protection of trademark (actually those countries refers to members of the Paris Convention) enjoy the priority within six months after their first application. Surely, before they formally obtain the registration, this priority does not serve the evidence for them to prosecute infringers.

The period of validity of registered trademark in Malta is 10 years, and it is the same with the period of each renewal.

Should the owner of the trademark fail to renew within this period, he would be granted a grace period for one month. Should the owner still fail to pay the renewal fee within three months, his trademark would be removed from the register.

Malta Customs is obliged to prevent the entry of commodities with Malta's registered trademark but not made in Malta, with the exception of those ready for exit again. Therefore, to prevent the entry of counterfeit trademark goods into Malta, the trademark owner may submit relevant documents on trademark registration in Malta and the country's prevention regulations of the entry of counterfeit trademark goods to the customs for record.

Trademark applicants will receive an official acknowledgment in one to three months. Registration period spans from 12 to 15 months. The term of validity is 10 years. The applicants, as natural persons, shall provide their name, nationality, gender, passport number and marital status when they apply for trademark registration.

Copyright

The Malta Copyright Act was enacted in 2000 and entered into force on January 1, 2001, and was revised in 2003. It mainly stipulates traditional cultural expressions, neighboring rights, enforcement of intellectual property rights and related laws, intellectual property regulatory bodies, and layout design of integrated circuits.