1. IPR for SMES in the Dominican Republic: BackgroundA. Intellectual Property

Rights for SMEs: Why is this relevant to you?

B. How does the Dominican Republic’s IP legal framework compare with INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS?

2. IPR Rights in the Dominican Republic: the BasicsA. Copyright and related

rightsB. Patents and Utility ModelsC. Industrial DesignD. Trade MarksE. Trade SecretF. Appellation of origin

3. Enforcing your IPRS

4. Using Customs to Block Counterfeits

5. Related Links and Additional Information

6. Glossary

FACTSHEET DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

1. IPR FOR SMES IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: BACKGROUND

A. Intellectual Property Rights for SMEs: Why is this relevant to you?

Intellectual Property (IP) refers to any creation, invention or sign that can be used in commerce and is capable of generating profit for its creator, inventor or holder. Therefore, it must be considered as part of a company’s intangible assets. IP is usually divided into two branches, namely Intellectual Property, which relates to inventions, designs or signs used in commerce, and Copyright (‘derechos de autor’ in Spanish), which relates to literary, scientific and artistic works.

Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) are exclusive rights granted by a national authority or by law that allow their holders to prohibit all unauthorized use or exploitation of their creations, inventions or signs by third parties. IPRs are exclusive, territorial and temporary and their term and scope differs depending on the type of IPR and on the country.

The importance of IPRs therefore lies in the possibility of generating assets for companies based on exploitation of the exclusive right granted and its protection against unfair competitive practices.

The creation and protection of most IPRs, namely copyright, trade marks and industrial designs, does not require significant capital investment, whereas development and protection of inventions (patents) tend to be more expensive. In any event, both provide SMEs with protection of their rights and allow them to manage and exploit them to:

- Differentiate from competitors- Constitute a strong basis to build goodwill in the market- Generate income through other business models such as licensing or franchising- Protect intangible assets that could be even more important than tangible assets - Prevent third parties from using their names, inventions, creative works…

Although Intellectual Property legislation enjoys a certain degree of international harmonization, the legislation of the Dominican Republic differs somewhat from that of the EU. The purpose of this Factsheet is to explain the differences concerning copyright, patents, industrial designs, trade marks, trade names, geographical indications and appellations of origin.

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Tips & Watch Outs

It is useful to check the European Commission’s Trade website for information on trade barriers and market access. See Dominican Republic. It is likewise desirable to check with your local Chamber of Commerce and/or other support services before making business decisions as regards exports or investments in Dominican Republic.

B. How does the Dominican Republic’s IP legal framework

compare with INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS?

The institution in charge of IP matters in the Dominican Republic is ONAPI (Oficina Nacional de la Propiedad Intelectual).

The Dominican Republic’s IP framework is composed by:

- International Treaties, Agreements and Conventions ratified by the country

- National laws

Regarding the first group, the Dominican Republic is member of the following International Treaties and Conventions:

- Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) (more information here)

- Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (more information here)

- Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Micro-organisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure (more information here)

- Convention Establishing the Word Intellectual Property Organization (more information here)

- Madrid Agreement for the Repression of False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods (more information here)

- Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Procedure (more information here)

- Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (more information here)

- Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) (more information here)- Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers,

Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (more information here)

- Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trade marks (more information here)

- Trade mark Law Treaty (TLT) (more information here)- WIPO Copyright Treaty (more information here)- WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty

(more information here)

In connection with this, the Dominican Republic has implemented its own national laws and regulations. The following are the most relevant:

- Law No. 20-00 on Industrial Property (more information here)- Law No. 65-00 on Copyright (more information here)- Law No. 424-06 on Implementation of the Dominican Republic- Central America – United States Free Trade Agreement

(more information here)- Resolution No. 001-2011/DIR-ONAPI Resolution of the Director

General on aspects of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) (more information here)

The EU is present in the Dominican Republic with a delegation in Santo Domingo. In October 2008 the EU signed the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries, in which the Dominican Republic is included. This agreement establishes the implementation of transparent policies in accordance with international rules, including Intellectual Property Rights.

Some of the areas that have experienced improvements are enforcement against medicine counterfeiting, a slight reduction of the patents backlog and the launch of an online database. However the Dominican Republic IP framework has received some criticism with regards to:

- Wide-spread availability of counterfeit and pirated products - Piracy of software/satellite signals- Lack of expertise and emphasis on IP issues by authorities - Patent backlog- The protection of undisclosed tests against unfair commercial use - Customs authorities lacks logistics

Source. 301 Special Report 2019 Edition

INTERNATIONAL TRADE MARKTRADE MARK REGISTRATIONS

The Dominican Republic is not a member of the Madrid Protocol. Therefore if your company is interested in applying for a Trade mark in the Dominican Republic, you will need to apply locally.

In these cases, a national IPR registration will be needed.

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over all the economic rights recognized by the law or only in relation to some of them. The transfer or license of rights must be implemented by means of a written agreement.

TITLE OF A WORK

Titles of works, as long as they are original, are also protected under Copyright law in Dominican Republic. Therefore, the author or holder may prevent the use of a distinctive and characteristic title in any other similar work.

HOW LONG does legal protection last?

The exclusive right granted by Copyright and Related Rights starts from the moment of its creation and lasts during the author’s lifetime plus 70 years after his/her death. However, the starting date of protection may vary depending the type of work (e.g. in case of collective works or computer program starts from the date of publication or date of creation, if not published within 50 years after creation).

HOW do I register?

Copyright registration is not mandatory in the Dominican Republic. The work is protected against any infringement from its creation, even without formal registration. Nevertheless, registration can be a very useful in enforcement actions as a proof of ownership, and, in particular as evidence of the date of creation or the content of the work itself (e.g. the protected source code).

The application process is quite simple. Once the documents are filed, the national authority conducts a formal examination and grants the registration certificate within a month from the filing date. The checklist for filing is as follows:

a) Filed official form b) Identification of the workc) Copy of the workd) Payment of official fees

2. IPR RIGHTS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: THE BASICS

A. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

WHAT ARE COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS?

Copyright protects artistic, literary and scientific works that could be reproduced or disclosed by any current or future means such as books, lectures, musical compositions, sculptures, computer programs, etc. This protection covers both original and derivative works (e.g. adaptations, compilations, transformations, translations or arrangements).

Related rights protect the rights of those persons who are not authors but who contribute in some way to the creation, embodiment or communication of the work. Some examples are musicians who perform in a concert, actors and book editors.

For copyright protection, works must meet the originality requirement, in the sense of being unique, ingenious and/or creative.

SCOPE OF PROTECTION

In both, the Dominican Republic and Europe, copyright does not protect the idea itself, but how the idea is expressed or embodied (the “work”).

What do you need to know?Copyright in the Dominican Republic is split into two categories of rights:

- Moral rights are personal rights of the author which cannot be transferred to third parties. The main ones are the right to be recognized as author, the right to decide to publish the work and the right to the integrity of the work (i.e. the right of the author to impede any modification of his/her work without his/her consent).

- Economic rights, derived from the property of a work, granting the author (or owner) the right to prevent third parties from: communicating to the public (e.g. exhibition in a gallery), reproducing, distributing and transforming the work. Economic rights can be transferred or licensed to allow third parties to exploit the work. The transfer or license can be performed

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WHO can register?

The creator of the work must be a natural person to be recognized as an author. Companies and any other legal entities may own certain rights (economic rights) over the work in the Dominican Republic. However, they are not entitled to be authors of a work.

In the absence of proof to the contrary, the person whose name, pseudonym, initials or any other conventional marks or signs that are well-known equivalents of the name itself appear on a work or on reproductions thereof or are mentioned in the communication or any other form of public dissemination of the work shall be considered the author thereof.

HOW much does it cost?

Fees vary according the type of work*:

Musical composition € 3

Audiovisual work € 21

Screenplay € 21

Literary work € 9

Photography € 21

Blueprints € 21

Sound recording € 17

* Note that prices are being reevaluated. Latest information could be found at the website of the Dominican Republic Copyright Office (here).

B. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by the state to an inventor or his assignee; it is a monopoly over the product or process. A patent is a territorial right; therefore, it is necessary to apply for registration on a country-by-country basis.

Dominican Republic legislation provides two different types of protection for inventions:

Patents, to protect technical solutions that consist in a process (e.g. a process to improve wood slicing) or a product (e.g. a new type of glue or an automated syringe).

Utility models protect new shapes, configuration or disposition of elements of a product, tool, instrument or mechanism that improve or transform its performance, use or manufacture providing a different use, advantage or technical effect. Processes and substances cannot be protected as Utility Models.

What you need to know

In the Dominican Republic, patents and utility models must fulfill certain requirements to be protected:

Novelty: An invention is considered new when it is not included in the state of the art. The state of the art comprises everything that has been made available to the public by written or oral description, by use or marketing or by any other means prior to the filing date of the patent application or, where appropriate, the recognized priority date (see Glossary).

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Inventive step: An invention is regarded as involving an inventive step if the invention is neither obvious nor obviously derived from the state of the art for an expert with average skills in the technical field concerned.

Industrial applicability: An invention is deemed industrially applicable when its subject matter may be produced or used in any type of industry. In this context, industry includes all productive activity, including services.

DISCLOSURE AND GRACE PERIOD

Remember that if you disclose your invention before applying for a Patent, your disclosure will become part of the “state of the art” and may jeopardize any future application.This notwithstanding, the Dominican Republic provides for a grace period during which public disclosure of an invention (under certain conditions) does not affect the validity of a subsequent Patent application, provided that a complete application is filed within 12 months of disclosure. For more information about the grace period in Dominican Republic, please contact our Helpline.European countries do not award a grace period. Take this into account when planning your international protection strategy.

Excluded from patentability: some creations are excluded from protection both as patent and as utility model in the Dominican Republic:

- Creations that are not considered inventions: discoveries, scientific theories, mathematical methods, aesthetic creations (protected as Industrial Design), economic or business methods, exclusively mental activities or games, presentation of information, computer programs (protected as copyright), therapeutic, diagnostic or surgical treatments for humans or animals, living matter, pre-existent substances in nature, combination of prior existing inventions (unless the combination fulfils the patent requirements, i.e. novelty, inventiveness and industrial application).

- Prohibitions: inventions the use of which may be contrary to public order or public morals, those contrary to the health and life of humans or animals and may harm the environment and plants or animals (except microorganisms and biological process for the production of plants or animals).

Second medical use Patents (see Glossary) are not allowed under Dominican Republic Intellectual Property Law.

HOW LONG does legal protection last?

Patents are granted for 20 years from the application date. In the case of utility models, the term is 15 years from application; both are subject to the yearly payment of maintenance fees. The granting procedure takes around five years for Patents and no more than four for Utility Models.

HOW do I register a Patent or Utility Model?

The application procedures for both patents and utility models

are identical in the Dominican Republic and can be represented as follows:

1. Application

File an application with ONAPI (Oficina Nacional de la Propiedad Industrial), including the following information:

• Filed application form • Name of the invention • Description: disclosing the invention clearly enough for

evaluation and for its reproduction • Claims: indicating what exactly was invented and what is going

to be protected by the patent• Summary of the invention • Drawings (if necessary) • Proof of payment of official fees • Declaration of priority (if claimed, see Glossary for more

information)• Power of attorney • Assignment agreement (if the applicant for the patent is

different from the inventor)• Identification of the inventor, applicant and legal representative

(national ID or passport, addresses, phone numbers, e-mails…)

2. Formal Examination

The National Authority will examine, within 60 days of the date of the application, whether the application complies with the formal requirements. You will be notified of any omission or deficiency and a 2-month correction period begins on the notification date.

Before publication of the application you are entitled to transform your patent application into a utility model application.

3. Publication and Observations

Upon completion of the 18 month period counting from the filing date of the patent application or, as appropriate, from the date of the applicable priority, the application will be published in the Official Gazette.

Interested third parties may file observations concerning the patentability requirements of the application within 60 days from publication. The observations, which will be taken into account in the substantive examination phase, do not suspend the proceedings.

In the event that your application receives observations, you have the right to response or to allege whatever you consider relevant concerning the observations during a 60 days period after ONAPI notifies you the observations.

4. Substantive examination and grant of the Patent

Prior to the substantive examination, you must pay the Examination fee within 12 months of the publication announcement.

At this stage ONAPI will examine the application to decide if it meets the patentability requirements (novelty, inventiveness and industrial application). If the examination is favorable, ONAPI will grant the patent and publish it in the Official Gazette.

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WHO can register?

The applicant for a Patent may be a natural or legal person. If the applicant is not the inventor, the applicant must provide evidence of the right to apply for the patent (i.e. assignment by the inventor).

It is not mandatory to appoint a representative. However, if you do not have a legal domicile in the Dominican Republic a local representative must be appointed for notification purposes.

HOW MUCH does it cost?

PATENTS

Patent application € 200

Patent application publication € 60

Substantive Examination € 239

Patent concession publication € 80

Claiming priority € 50

UTILITY MODELS

Utility Model application € 140

Utility Model application publication € 60

Substantive Examination € 162

Utility Model concession publication € 80

Claiming priority € 50

C. INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

What are Industrial Designs?

Industrial designs protect the external appearance of the whole or part of a product. The protection is granted to any combination of lines, shapes or colors or any two-dimensional or three-dimensional shape, whether or not combined with lines or colors, that may serve as a pattern for the industrial or handcrafted manufacture of a given product.

WHAT do you need to know?

Industrial design protection requirements:

a) Novelty: an industrial design is not deemed new when, before the application date, it has been made available to the public by means of a description, use or by any other mean. In the Dominican Republic Industrial Design applicants also benefit from a 12 month grace period under certain conditions (see Patents section and/or contact our Helpline for further information.

a) Individual character: An industrial design is not deemed to have Individual character if it causes the same general impression as an already existing design.

WHAT CANNOT BE PROTECTED AS A DESIGN

• Designs that are solely dictated by their technical function• Designs already protected under other IPRs(namely Trade

marks and Copyright)• When they are contrary to morality or public order or contain

elements of public interest, e.g. the national flag

HOW LONG does legal protection last?The industrial design affords exclusivity for 5 years from the filing date of the application and may be renewed for two additional periods of 5 years each. The average granting period for designs rarely exceeds one year.

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HOW do I register?

The granting procedure for designs is very similar to patent application (see above). Once filed, ONAPI proceeds to formal examination (30 days for correction of formal deficiencies). Subsequently, the application will be published, and third parties may oppose the application within 30 days. No more than 6 months after publication ONAPI will conduct the substantive examination, which will end with the granting or refusal of the design and its publication.

You should file an application with ONAPI (Oficina Nacional de la Propiedad Industrial), including the following information:

• Filed application form • Description of the design • Drawings or pictures • Sample of the product (if necessary) • Classification under to the Locarno Agreement /see Glossary)• Claims: indicating what aims to be protected• Payment fees • Declaration of priority (if claimed, see Glossary)• Power of attorney (if necessary)• Assignment agreement (if necessary)• Identification of designer, applicant and legal representative

(national ID or passport, addresses, phone number, e-mails…)

WHO can register?

The applicant for a design must be a natural or a legal person. If the applicant is not the designer, the applicant must provide evidence of the right to apply for the design (i.e. assignment by the designer).

It is not mandatory to appoint a representative However, if you do not have a legal domicile in the Dominican Republic a local representative must be appointed for notification purposes.

HOW MUCH does it cost?

UTILITY MODELS

Industrial design application and substantive examination

€ 214

More than 5 designs in the application (max 20) € 85

Publication of Industrial Design application € 60

Publication of Industrial Design concession € 80

Renewable fee10 years: 160 €15 years: 244 €

D. TRADE MARKS

WHAT do they protect?

A Trade mark is any sign or combination of signs with graphical representation and aptitude to distinguish the products or services

of an undertaking (person, company, enterprise, etc.) from others. The sign can consist of: words, images, figures, sounds, aromas, letters, numerals, a color or color combination (with certain limits), a tactile sign, the shape of goods or any combination of the aforesaid.

Trade marks in the Dominican Republic: What do you need to know?

A trade mark application may be refused by ONAPI on either absolute or relative grounds. Absolute grounds for refusal refer to the nature of the trade mark itself, for example:

• Descriptive (e.g. “pineapple” for fruits)• Generic in the course of trade or fails to distinguish goods or

services (e.g. “high quality”)• Contrary to morals, public order or could be deemed offensive• Infringes any prior IPR including trade marks, appellation of origin,

copyright emblems, medals, personal names and other rights• Contrary to the law, including unfair competition

Relative grounds for refusal refer to conflict with earlier rights, for instance:

• Identical or confusingly similar to a previously registered Trade mark

• Identical or confusingly similar to a commercial name, sign or emblem used or registered in the Dominican Republic by a third party

• Affects the rights of a third party, especially regarding his/her name, signature or title

• May infringe copyright or constitute unfair competition

If you want to know more about these or other grounds for refusal and obtain advice tailored to your specific case, contact our Helpline: it is free, fast and confidential.

HOW LONG does legal protection last?The registered trade mark is granted for 10 years. The holder must pay a renewal fee every 10 years to preserve its validity.

The average granting period for a trade mark in the Dominican Republic is three months subject to the fulfillment of all formal requirements and the absence of opposition. In the event of objections or opposition, the granting period may extend to around two years.

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HOW do I register?

1. Prior to registration

Prior to the submission of an application it is advisable to conduct a prior trade mark search to verify that the trade mark you intend to apply for will not conflict with any prior trade mark.It is highly advisable to hire an IP expert to conduct such a search since he/she will be able to provide you with a comprehensive and exhaustive search and with an analysis on the feasibility of the proposed Trade mark. However, you could also request a prior search using ONAPI’s service (approx. fee €9). Bear in mind the latter will only contain a list of prior signs that phonetically may be similar to your intended sign.

2. Application

ONAPI allows filing of a multiclass application for a single trade mark. ONAPI uses the International Classification of Goods and Services established by the Nice Agreement to classify goods and services. To check whether products or services are within the same class, please contact our Helpline service.

You must submit your application to ONAPI’s office, including the following:

• Filed application form • Identification of the trade mark • Drawings or pictures (if necessary)• Classification under to the Nice Agreement

(establishes an international classification for trade marks concerning to their product or service)

• Payment of official fees • Declaration of priority (if necessary)• Power of attorney (if necessary)• Identification of applicant and legal representative

(national ID or passport, addresses, phone numbers, e-mails…)

TRADE MARK PRIORITY

The Paris Convention establishes a 6 month priority period for all Trade marks that:

- Have been applied for in any Member State (all EU countries are members)

- Have been used in an officially recognized international exhibition

In those cases, the application date in the country of origin or the exhibition date will be the priority date.

The holder will be entitled to oppose third parties’ applications filed after the priority date

3. Formal and substantive examination

Firstly, ONAPI will decide if your application fulfils the formal requirements. If not, you are entitled to amend the error or omission within the 30 days following notification of the deficiency.

The Office will then conduct the substantive examination by analyzing whether the Trade mark incurs in any of the absolute or relative grounds of refusal. If so, you will be awarded a 60 days period to withdraw, modify or limit the application or to respond to the objections.

4. Publication, opposition and grant

Upon completion of examination the application for registration will be published on the Official Gazette at your expense.

Any natural or legal person may oppose the application for registration within 45 days from the publication in the Official Gazette.

Finally, ONAPI will decide on the validity of any opposition and will decide if there are grounds for refusing the application. If not, it will grant the Trade mark and issue the certificate.

WHO can register?

Any natural or legal person may apply for a Trade mark in the Dominican Republic.

It is not mandatory to appoint a representative. However, if you do not have a legal domicile in the Dominican Republic, a local representative must be appointed for notification purposes.

HOW MUCH does it cost?

TRADE MARKS

Trade mark application (single class) € 115 - € 122

Fee per additional class € 93 - € 100

Trade mark application* publication € 20

Renewal € 43

Renewable fee10 years: 160 €15 years: 244 €

* Note that costs will depend on the type of Trade mark (word, mixed, sounds, smell marks etc…).

E. TRADE SECRET

A trade secret is any undisclosed commercial information that could be used in a productive, commercial or industrial manner and transmitted to another person. The information must comply with the following conditions:

− it is not generally known− it is not accessible to others− it has been treated as a secret by the holder, who has taken

reasonable efforts to maintain the secrecy

Trade secret information must remain undisclosed and obviously, registering it would go against its own nature. Thus, you should adopt as a best practice the signature of non-disclosure agreements with any person with direct (trade partners, employees, licensees)

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or indirect (outsourcing services, service providers) access to this information. This way you could be in a better position in case of unauthorized use, unauthorized disclosure or unlawful acquisition.

Yet, trade secret protection does not protect against the acquisition of secret information by lawful means such as reverse engineering or mere observation.

HOW LONG does legal protection last?

The trade secret is protected as long as the information remains secret.

F. APPELLATION OF ORIGIN

WHAT you need to know

Geographical Indication (GI) is the name of a given country, region or place or a name that is used to identify a product originating therein when its quality, reputation or other characteristics are essentially attributable to its geographical origin.

An Appellation of Origin (AO) is the name of a given country, region or place or a name, which is used to identify a product originating therein when its quality, reputation or other characteristics are essentially attributable to the geographical environment in which it is produced, including both natural and human factors.

An appellation of origin will not be admitted for registration when:

a) It deceives the public on its origin, quality, background or characteristics

b) It is contrary to public order or public moralc) It is the generic or common denomination of a product d) It is confusingly similar to a Trade mark

HOW LONG does legal protection last?

All producers, manufacturers and/or artisans located in the geographic area of the Appellation of Origin are entitled to use it for commercial purposes regardless of whether or not they were part of the registration process before the national authority. AO/GI are granted for an indefinite period and the registration may be

modified at any time.

HOW do I register?

The application procedure for AO/GIs is the same as for Trade marks.

You must submit your application to ONAPI’s office, including the following

• Official form provided by the national authority • Identification of the AO/GI • Two drawings or pictures (if applicable)• Delimitation of the geographical area • Products covered by the AO/GI • Summary of the essential characteristics of the products • Payment of official fees • Power of attorney • Identification of applicants and legal representative (national ID

or passport, addresses, phone numbers, e-mails…)• Legal domicile

HOW much does it cost?

AO/GI application € 165

Fee per additional class € 50,5

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4. USING CUSTOMS TO BLOCK COUNTERFEITS

Using customs to protect intellectual property

The Dominican customs authorities have an Intellectual Property Registry aimed at preventing infringement and fast-tracking customs measures. This registration is open to every holder of a registration certificate before the national authorities (ONAPI or ONDA) or with proof of authorship (in the case of unregistered copyright).

In the case of proven or suspected intellectual property violation, customs authorities may implement the following measures ex officio or on request of the holder:

- Notify the holder of the name and address of the exporter, importer, carriers and other involved parties

- Quantity of goods

- Notify the judicial authorities of withholding of goods

However, the customs authorities will release the goods if no legal actions are initiated within 10 days. Likewise, these actions do not apply when the quantity of goods is small, with no commercial purpose or contianedin personal and private luggage or sent in small quantities.

TIPS and WATCH OUTS

According to the US 301 Special Report, there have been cases where the Customs Authority requests that right holders pay to destroy seized counterfeit goods and returns the seized goods to importers if payment is not received.

3. ENFORCING YOUR IPRS

The Dominican Republic’s legislation offers various alternatives for enforcement of IPRs: administrative actions before ONAPI (e.g. in the case of unlawful registration), civil actions (when seeking compensation) and criminal actions (only applicable in the case of Trade mark or copyright violations) both before courts of justice.

A. Administrative Actions

Administrative actions are lodged before ONAPI and are limited to those concerning the granting, existence and ownership of the IPR, namely cancellation and opposition actions and claims of IPR ownership.

B. Civil Actions

The right-holder of patents, utility models, designs, Trade marks and appellations of origin is entitled to request, before the competent court, cessation of the infringing activity, compensation for damages and seizure and/or destruction of the infringing goods and any goods used to commit the infringement (e.g. computers, molds…)

As for copyright and related rights, the right-holder is entitled to request, before the court of first instance, payment and compensation for damages and seizure and/or destruction of the goods and any goods used to commit the infringement.

C. Criminal Prosecution

In the Dominican Republic infringers can face up to 3 years of imprisonment and fines up to a maximum of 1,000 times the minimum wage. In the event of insolvency of the infringer, each Dominican peso owed will be replaced by one day in prison, with a limit of 2 years.

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5. RELATED LINKS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Find out more relevant information on the following websites:

− EU delegation in the Dominican Republic: http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/dominican/index_es.htm

− Dominican Intellectual Property Office: http://www.onapi.gov.do

− Dominican Copyright Office: http://onda.gob.do/

− Ministry of Industry and Commerce: http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/details.jsp?id=1190

− Law on Intellectual Property: http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/details.jsp?id=1190

− National Customs Services: http://www.aduanas.gob.do

6. GLOSSARY

Right of priority: Whenever a person from any signatory country of Paris Convention files a national application for a patent or industrial design in any of the 176 Member States, the date on which the first application was filed is established as the date of priority for any future application in any Member State, provided that subsequent applications are applied for within twelve months of the first application. The priority date is very important for patents, utility models and designs since it will be the relevant date to assess the state of the art and evaluate the novelty and inventiveness of the application.

Second medical use: Refers to the possibility of patenting an already known substance or combination of substances for a new medicinal use (e.g. use of a chemical composition as a medicine to treat heart diseases when the original patent claims its use as antibiotic). In general, in Europe it is possible to patent such second medical use subject to the fulfilment of the novelty and inventive step requirements.

Version September 2019Disclaimer: The given prices are only an estimation of the minimum price of protection. This estimation only aims to serve as a guide, additional costs may apply. These costs do not include agent fees which may substantially raise the full cost of protection. Furthermore, the costs expressed in Euro are subject to change due to variations in the exchange rate with the local currency. No responsibility is accepted for actions taken the basis of the information provided in this document.

DOMINICAN REPUBLICDownload Guide

©European Union, 2019Reuse is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. The reuse policy of European Commission documents is regulated by Decision 2011/833/EU (OJ L 330, 14.12.2011, p.39).The Latin America IPR SME Helpdesk is a free service for SMEs which provides practical, objective and factual information about Intellectual Property Rights in Latin America. The services are not of a legal or advisory nature and no responsibility is accepted for the results of any actions made on the basis of its services. The content and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the European Commission and/or the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises or any other body of the European Union.Before taking specific actions in relation to IPR protection or enforcement all customers are advised to seek independent advice. Neither the European Commission nor the Agency may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained herein. “Designed by v.ivash / Freepik” EA-01-19-752-EN-C - ISBN 978-92-9202-647-9 - DOI 10.2826/96734EA-01-19-752-EN-N - ISBN 978-92-9202-648-6 - DOI 10.2826/286094

Last update September 2019

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AWARENESS RAISING EVENTS Participation in events attended by EU SMEs to increase the awareness of IP and of the visibility of the services provided by the Helpdesk.

IP ANALYSIS Analysis of IP challenges faced by EU SMEs in the target markets.

IP DIAGNOSTIC TOOLKIT Toolkit for self-evaluation of the IP-status of the user in terms of IP knowledge and management.

IP COST TOOL Online tool that allows the user to pre evaluate the costs related to IP management in every Latin American country covered by the Helpdesk.

1The language offer will depend on the specific service and experts’ availability.

www.latinamerica-ipr-helpdesk.eu

If you have any queries on how to protect your Intellectual Property in Latinamerica contact our Helpdesk service:

If you want more information on additional free services offered by the Helpdesk contact the coordination team:

Follow us on Social Media and stay tuned on new releases of factsheets and other IP content: @latinamericaipr

helpline@latinamerica-ipr-helpdesk.eu+34 96 590 9684Working Hours: Monday - Friday 9:00 -16:30 (CEST)

info@latinamerica-ipr-helpdesk.euUniversity of Alicante, Campus San Vicente del Raspeig, Edificio Torre de Control, 03690 Alicante, Spain+34 96 590 9684