Intellectual property - Hungary

Updated 12/2010

Legal requirements

In the field of intellectual property, there is separate legislation on patents for inventions, utility models, designs, trademarks and geographical indications, and for the protection of copyright. Hungary also enforces Community Directives in this field.

Legal sources for intellectual property

Intellectual property rights

Industrial property rights

The duty of protection of industrial property is to protect intellectual creations that do not come under copyright and which are usually technical in nature.

The basic framework for the protection of industrial property is the Act on Invention Patents. The Civil Code and the Competition Act also protect unpatented inventions. There are separate laws to protect utility models, designs, trademark indicators and geographical indicators. The Civil Code also helps to protect economic, technical and organisational knowledge and experience that has a material value ("know-how ").

Act on Invention Patents [443 KB]
Act on Designs [193 KB]
Act on Protection for Patents and Geographical Indicators [365 KB]
Act on Utility Models [82 KB]
Competition Act [404 KB]

The subject of a patent is an invention that can be patented.

Patent law
Patent procedure
Patent and trademark licence
Restrictions and protection of the patent
Service invention
Applied invention
Utility model

From the perspective of both producers and consumers, it is important to be able to distinguish and identify certain goods and services. This is why identifiers are registered, listed and exclusively protected by law so as to guarantee entitlement. A trademark may be any marking that can be drawn graphically.

Trademark protection

Copyright

One of the main areas of intellectual property law is that of copyright.

Copyright is due to the author from the moment when an individual, original work is created in the field of literature, science or art. As a basic rule, copyright offers protection during the author's life and for 70 years after his death. After the author's death, the rights may be exercised by the author's heirs.

Legal relationship for copyright
Restrictions and protection of copyright
Protection of copyright
Rules relating to the intellectual creation of planning contracts
Copyright institutions and tasks in Hungary
International copyright institutions

Commercial strategies

What counts as an industrial or trade secret, or information of fundamental importance, can never be defined in general terms but rather from the perspective of the company in question. During the course of their work, employees are obliged to protect any trade secrets or information of fundamental importance relating to the employer or its activities, of which the employee may become aware.

Prohibitions under competition law
Confidentiality obligation of employees

Intellectual protection bodies

In addition to the Hungarian Patent Office, there are several bodies and councils that work to supplement and support the work of the Office.

Protecting intellectual rights abroad

Important websites are as follows:

International copyright institutions
International and European cooperation agreement in the field of intellectual property protection, 2009 [6 MB]
The Hague Convention
International and Community legislation and agreements relating to trademark patents
Obtaining a patent in Europe
International reporting of a patent

Combating counterfeiting and piracy

Any activity that infringes the reproduction rights of its authors, presenters or publishers is piracy.

The places where pirated products in physical form (CD, cassette, DVD, etc.) are primarily found are monitored by interest groups. The second front in the fight against piracy is the Internet.

Public Foundation for Copyright on Audiovisual Works
Society Artisjus Hungarian Bureau for the Protection of Authors' Rights
ProArt Cooperative for Copyright
Protection of related rights

Property rights encourage investment in innovation and research.

Administrative procedures

Record-keeping

In order to make a patent application, a report must be sent to the Hungarian Patent Office, and it must contain a description and drawing of the invention.

The Office publishes information on notified inventions in the Gazette of Patents and Trademarks. The Office then conducts a novelty search: if the invention meets the search requirements, a provisional patent is issued.

The person or entity notifying the Office must request an examination of the merits separately; if no merit is found, the patent is automatically refused.

The final patent is entered into the patent register, a patent certificate is issued, and information is published in the Gazette of Patents and Trademarks.

Patent procedure

Patents for the exclusive rights to inventions, and the design registrations for utility models can be requested by submitting an application to the Hungarian Patent Office.

Forms from the Hungarian Patent Office

Obtaining certificates

Procedures for the issue of a patent are followed by the Hungarian Patent Office. The subject of a patent is an invention that can be patented. The procedure for this starts with the report.

Patent law Patent database
Technical library for protection of industrial rights
Database for protection of industrial rights

Programmes

Protecting intellectual property is an integral part of the Hungarian government's medium-term strategy (2007-2013) on science, technology and innovation policy.

The strategy also looks to promote intellectual property protection by supporting the acquisition of foreign patents and making use of the VIVACE programme for SMEs.

Medium-term (2007-2013) government strategy on science, technology and innovation policy
Government Resolution on the government's 2007-2010 action plan on science, technology and innovation policy

Check also the legislation on this topic in:

Intellectual property - Hungary