- Grant fee: It will be paid together with the granted announcement fee one month after receiving the granted notice, and the payment will be doubled if it is overdue.
- Annuity: The renewal fee payment period is the corresponding date of the application date in the year, and can be paid within the last year of the current validity period. Payment can still be made within 6 months from the overdue date, subject to a penalty.
It is protected for 10 years from the date of application, and can be renewed for 3 times, each time for 5 years, with a maximum protection of 25 years.
20 years
no
yes. Designs in the same category, or belonging to the same set or combination of articles, may contain several designs in one design (this condition does not apply when the product containing or attached to the design is an ornament).
Reinstatement of priority on grounds of "due care" and "unintentional/due care" accepted.
The BPO conducts formality examination of design patent applications.
- via Paris Convention : 6 months from earliest priority date.
- The way of the Hague Agreement: The Hague Agreement will automatically take effect in Bulgaria after 6 months from the registration of the Hague Agreement.
- EU appearance route: 6 months from the earliest priority date.
The BPO only conducts formality examination of utility model patent applications. The formality examination takes 3 months, and the content of the examination includes whether the applied for utility model patent application belongs to the object of protection, the issue of unity, etc. If the granted conditions are met, the patent is authorized.
- via Paris Convention : 12 months from earliest priority date.
- via Nationalization of PCT : 31 months from earliest priority date.
- Validation of European Patent in EPO member states: 3 months from the date of European patent grant
The initial protection period is 4 years, which can be extended for two consecutive three years, and the maximum protection period is 10 years.