Brazil’s fast-track programme for ‘green’ patents now permanent

The Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (INPI) has reportedly made its fast-track programme for ‘green’ patents permanent.

Law firm Di Blasi, Parente & Associados released a statement about the INPI’s move yesterday, December 13.

The Brazil-based law firm said that the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and INPI had run a pilot programme for expedited patent examination for technologies for alternative energy, transportation, conservation and waste management since 2012.

According to Di Blasi, Parente & Associados, “due to the excellent results” achieved by the pilot programme, which had an “average” waiting time of two years for the examination of qualified applications, the fast-track programme became permanent on December 6.

In 2013, WIPO’s magazine published an article where it outlined the role of such programmes.

It said “environmentally-friendly innovation has become a key priority in national and international environmental policy. Intellectual property regimes, particularly patent laws, are perhaps the most important of the regulatory vehicles that promote technological innovation”.

A number of IP offices have adopted measures to fast-track green patent applications, and the first programme was established in the UK, in 2009.

Under these programmes, WIPO said, the time needed to obtain a patent “can be significantly reduced” from “several years to just a few months”.

The main aim of the programmes is to encourage innovation in the green technology sector by accelerating sustainable licensing and development of new technologies.