Russia modernizes IP law for software-implemented inventions: greater clarity for digital technologies from 2027

Russia is updating its intellectual property legislation to reflect the way modern digital technologies are developed and used.

Federal Law No. 296-FZ, signed on 4 August 2026 and entering into force on 1 January 2027, introduces a number of important amendments to Part IV of the Russian Civil Code. The changes concern software-related technical solutions, smart and programmable devices, graphical user interfaces, utility models and certain biotechnology inventions.

The new wording provides a clearer statutory basis for protecting technologies that do not fit comfortably within the traditional concepts of a mechanical “device” or a conventional computer program.

In practical terms, Russian IP legislation is being brought closer to the realities of modern software-driven products.

One of the most significant changes concerns Article 1350 of the Civil Code.

From 2027, the law will expressly state that an invention may include a technical solution implemented by a device or a system of devices capable of automated information processing based on algorithms, as well as a method performed using such a device or system.

This is an important clarification for technologies in which software and hardware operate together.

Potentially relevant fields include:

— artificial intelligence and machine-learning systems;

— control and automation technologies;

— computer vision and image processing;

— telecommunications;

— robotics;

— IoT and smart devices;

— industrial software;

— medical and diagnostic systems;

— navigation technologies;

— fintech infrastructure; and

— software-controlled manufacturing processes.

What changes is the level of legal certainty. The Civil Code will now expressly recognize that a patentable technical solution may be implemented through algorithm-based information processing rather than solely through traditional mechanical or electronic structures.

The definition of a computer program under Article 1261 is being updated as well.

The existing wording refers to programs intended for computers and other “computer devices.” From 2027, the definition will cover data and commands intended for computers and other devices capable of automated information processing based on algorithms.

The change reflects a simple technological reality: software is no longer confined to conventional computers.

Today, software may control vehicles, household appliances, industrial machinery, medical devices, wearables, smart-home systems and many other connected products. The revised terminology makes the statutory framework more technologically neutral and reduces dependence on concepts developed for an earlier generation of computing.

Another commercially important amendment concerns industrial designs.

The new wording of Article 1352 expressly provides that protection as an industrial design may be available for a visual display intended for human interaction with a computer program, as well as for an independently significant part of such a display.

In practical terms, this gives a clearer legislative basis for protecting graphical user interfaces and their elements. The appearance of the user interface itself may form a separate part of an IP portfolio.

This may be particularly relevant to developers of:

— mobile applications;

— SaaS platforms;

— operating systems;

— dashboards and control interfaces;

— automotive interfaces;

— medical software;

— fintech applications; and

— interfaces for smart and connected devices.

For companies entering the Russian market, this creates additional opportunities to build layered protection around a digital product: copyright for software code, patent protection for qualifying technical solutions, design protection for the interface and trademark protection for branding.

The reform also expressly acknowledges that a technical solution implemented through a device capable of automated algorithm-based information processing may qualify for protection as a utility model, provided the applicable requirements are met.

Although much of the attention has focused on IT patents, Federal Law No. 296-FZ is not limited to software.

The open list of products capable of patent protection as inventions will expressly include protein and genetic constructs. Legislative materials describe this change in the context of the increasing convergence of computer technologies and biotechnology.

This is another indication of the direction of the reform: the legislation is being adapted to technologies that increasingly combine several technical disciplines rather than fitting into conventional industry categories.

The new legislation does not create patentability for algorithms or software “as such.” Instead, it places computer-implemented technical solutions on a clearer statutory footing.