Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by the internal Caspian Sea, which has historically been home for major transportation routes through Eurasia. With its focus on the power industry, the country is a prime market for state-of-art machines, chemical preparations and metallurgy products. The national currency of Turkmenistan is manat.
A variety of IP objects are available in Turkmenistan:
– Inventions, through national patent applications or PCT entry
– Trademarks, through national trademark applications or Madrid registrations
– Industrial designs, through national applications or the Hague System
– Copyright
– Computer programs
The Turkmen Patent and Trademark Office conducts correspondence only in Turkmen language. However, application for any IP objects, as well as further patents ad certificates, are drawn up in three languages: Turkmen, English and Russian. Any foreign applicant needs to appoint a local Patent Attorney for handling its IP matters before the Office. The appointment can be confirmed with a copy of signed Power of Attorney. If the copy is of a good quality, the original document will not be required, unless the matter concerns registration of license or assignment.
Average examination timeframe by the Turkmen Patent and Trademark Office is about 18 months for inventions when in concerns national applications, and about 6 months for conventional and PCT applications. For trademarks, the term is about 7 to 9 months, and 6 months for industrial designs. Oppositions can be filed against trademark applications or registrations.
While such IP objects as appellations of origin and geographical indications, as well as plant varieties and animal breeds, exist as legal objects under corresponding legislation, in practice applications are not accepted by the Office due to the lack of approved procedure and regulations.
It shall be noted that the Turkmen Patent and Trademark Office tends to only indicate the article of the Law in the provisional refusal without clarifications, which makes it important to obtained an experienced attorney’s recommendations.
When an IP-related matter proceeds to court, they are considered by a commercial court in general. An attorney well-versed in the local court practice will ensure protection of the client’s best interest in any matter.
For general information on the costs, please contact us at quotes@patentica.com or info@patentica.com, and we will be happy to provide a precise calculation for your particular situation, including any unorthodox matters. If it concerns potential oppositions, litigation or other such cases that are usually based on an hourly rate, please send us a brief description of the circumstances. We will analyze the case and prepare a detailed professional estimation of associated costs.