ARIPO 2025: Key changes to patents and designs

Major amendments to the Harare Protocol by the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization represent a pivotal shift in how regional IP rights are pursued and maintained, explains Inês Sequeira of Inventa.

As of March 1, 2025, the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) has enacted a series of major amendments to its governing legal instrument, the Harare Protocol, which regulates the procedure for the protection of patents and industrial designs among its member states.

These changes, announced earlier in the year by ARIPO director general Bemanya Twebaze, affect not only the substantive examination and administrative procedures but also introduce significant revisions to the official fee structure applicable to patents and industrial designs.

With ARIPO increasingly recognised as a central platform for intellectual property protection in Africa, these adjustments represent a pivotal shift in how regional IP rights are pursued and maintained. For applicants, agents, and legal practitioners, understanding the scope and implications of these reforms is critical for effective portfolio management.

Expanded procedural flexibility through divergent claims

One of the most notable developments is the introduction of a mechanism that allows patent applications filed via ARIPO to proceed with distinct sets of claims in different designated states. This new provision provides applicants with the ability to tailor their claim sets in response to objections or requirements specific to national laws or examination practices in individual member countries.

Until now, applicants had to rely on a uniform set of claims across all designated states, which often led to challenges when one or more countries raised objections that could not be resolved without affecting the entire application.

The revised approach means that, where necessary, separate claim sets can be maintained for specific jurisdictions—without jeopardising protection in others.

This change aligns ARIPO’s procedures more closely with those of other regional and international IP systems, such as the European Patent Convention, which permits national claim adaptation.

It will be especially beneficial for multinational companies and regional innovators who seek to maximise protection across the continent while navigating varying national legal frameworks.

Revised timeframes for responses and notifications

Another critical update involves the standardisation and, in some cases, extension of time limits for responding to ARIPO notifications. These revised deadlines apply to a variety of procedural stages, including the filing of responses to examination reports, the submission of formal corrections, and the payment of outstanding fees.

The previous regime was often criticised for being unclear or inconsistently applied, which could result in avoidable rejections or missed opportunities to amend applications.

With clearer deadlines now in place, applicants will benefit from improved transparency and better planning capacity during prosecution.

Practitioners working across timezones or handling large volumes of filings are expected to particularly appreciate the added certainty. Moreover, the changes may contribute to reducing the rate of inadvertent non-compliance, thus improving overall application success rates.

Substantial fee increases and the introduction of new charges

Perhaps the most immediate and impactful reform concerns the ARIPO fee structure. The organisation has introduced a wide range of fee increases across its services for patents and industrial designs. This includes higher charges for application filings, excess claims, substantive examinations, and annual maintenance.

In addition, ARIPO has unveiled new fee items that did not previously exist, such as fees for claim amendments post-filing or for requesting extensions of time.

The rationale for the adjustments appears to be twofold: to ensure financial sustainability of ARIPO’s growing operational framework, and to account for inflationary and administrative cost increases since the last revision. Nevertheless, the rise in fees is considerable, in some cases exceeding 50% over previous amounts.

For applicants—particularly start-ups, academic institutions, or individual inventors operating on limited budgets—the increased financial burden may necessitate more selective filing strategies, especially given that ARIPO does not offer reduced or preferential fees for small entities, academic institutions, or other non-commercial applicants.

Larger organisations, while better positioned to absorb the costs, will also need to review their regional filing policies to ensure continued cost-effectiveness.

In response to the fee hikes, some IP professionals had advised clients to submit filings ahead of the March 1, 2025 implementation date to benefit from the lower legacy fees. Proactive financial planning and clear communication with ARIPO agents will be essential.

Administrative modernisation and back-office improvements

In parallel with the procedural and financial reforms, ARIPO has also implemented a number of internal administrative changes aimed at streamlining operations. These include efforts to digitalise processes, improve the responsiveness of the Secretariat, and ensure faster turnaround times on communications and actions.

Although these reforms are more inward-facing, they are expected to have a direct positive impact on the user experience. Quicker responses to queries, more efficient document processing, and better handling of appeals or procedural requests will all contribute to a more professional and predictable system.

These improvements are part of a broader trend seen across global IP offices, as organisations strive to modernise their infrastructure and deliver services that match the expectations of a digital-first user base.

Strategic implications for applicants

The cumulative effect of these reforms is to transform the ARIPO system into a more sophisticated and adaptable mechanism for securing IP rights in Africa. While the increased costs may be challenging for some, the added procedural flexibility and improved administration offer clear advantages.

Applicants should take this moment to reassess their approach to regional filings. The ability to accommodate country-specific objections via divergent claim sets, combined with more reliable procedural timelines, may reduce the need for costly national filings.

However, the higher costs may also prompt a more focused designation strategy—prioritising markets where protection offers the greatest return on investment.

In addition, regular updates to internal filing guidelines, staff training, and consultation with regional agents will be essential to navigate the new landscape effectively.

Conclusion

The 2025 amendments to the Harare Protocol mark a decisive evolution in ARIPO’s development as a regional IP authority.

Through a combination of procedural reform, financial recalibration, and administrative enhancement, the organisation is positioning itself to better meet the demands of a growing and increasingly complex innovation ecosystem in Africa.

For those active in the region, the changes underscore the importance of agility, foresight, and strategic planning in the management of IP rights.

Inês Sequeira is a trademark and patent attorney at Inventa, and can be contacted at isequeira@inventa.com