INPI and patent registration in France

TheINPI, or Institut Nationale de la Propriété Industrielle, is a French public administrative body whose mission includes receiving applications and issuing industrial property titles:

• patents,
• brands,
• designs and models.

INPI basics

INPI provides citizens with free access to databases that enable them to search for information. Here is a list of online services, directly accessible via the Internet and free of charge. Companies can consult these sites freely and without constraint.

• Trademark database: a search module for registered trademarks, enabling you to carry out a prior art search or market research, among other things.
• Base Brevet: To consult registered and granted patents. The filing of a patent, as a national industrial property title, results in the invention being disclosed to the public after 18 months.
• Base Dessins et Modèles: Consult the history of designs and models registered with the INPI, free of charge.
• Geographical Indication Database: The list of registered geographical indications, and current surveys (e.g. Limoges porcelain).
• Base Jurisprudence: A service providing access to case law in the field of industrial property.

INPI and patent registration

As a public and administrative establishment under the supervision of the Ministry of the Economy, Industry and the Digital Economy, INPI’s mission includes receiving applications for the protection of inventions.

It registers and processes applications for patents. Please note that although the French term “dessin et modèle” is translated as “design patent” in English, this is a very different procedure from filing for a patent (“patent” or “utility patent” in English).

Quel titre de PI pour mon entreprise ?

Did you know?
A patent is a national industrial property title valid for 20 years. You can apply for a patent in several countries (PCT), but after 18 months you will have to exercise the option and complete the formalities in each country. While there is a European patent, there is no international patent valid worldwide.

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Filing a patent does not mean obtaining a grant

Filing a patent application with INPI is the process of submitting a drafted patent application for examination before grant or rejection.. The term “patent application” is often interpreted as meaning to obtain a patent for one’s invention, which is not true! It’s the same difference as between submitting a building permit application to the town hall and having a building permit granted.

Between the date of filing of the patent application and its granting, it takes between 2 and 5 years, and an average of 27 months. This is the ideal time to develop your prototype and your market, whether you’re an inventor or the founder of a start-up. And it’s only once a patent has been granted that infringers can be stopped and convicted. These deadlines mean that it’s absolutely essential to start patent application procedures as soon as possible. Since December 22, 2015, it has even been possible to apply for an accelerated procedure, in 20 months, provided of course that there are no irregularities. Companies therefore have every interest in completing their procedures as soon as possible.

In addition, INPI may choose not to grant the patent to the applicant, if the file does not meet the agreed requirements.

Refusal to grant a patent occurs in particular when :

• The drafted patent does not describe the invention well enough or clearly enough,
• The invention is not new
• The invention is excluded from patentability (mathematical method, plant variety, animal breed…)

Just as the town hall doesn’t issue every building permit that’s filed, the INPI is under no obligation to grant you a patent if it doesn’t meet all the legal criteria!

The role of the industrial property attorney

An Industrial Property Attorney (IPO ) is a professional with expertise in both the scientific aspects of your invention, and in patent law. He assists inventors in filing a successful patent application. He’s a bit like the architect or project manager of your project.

In France, industrial property (IP) professionals are registered on the list of Industrial Property Attorneys. According to article L422-1 of the French Intellectual Property Code, only those listed on this register are authorized to carry out this activity. This is the case for all employees of YesMyPatent.com, Touroude & Associates’ online service.

Our IP consultants will help you interpret and respond to the search report issued by INPI following the filing of your application. The granting of a patent is characterized by a so-called “definitive” search report.

The cost of patenting an invention

The rates quoted by INPI correspond to the fees charged by the administrative body when the patent is filed. You must also take into account the annual fees payable to INPI to maintain the patent. Just as the town hall will tell you the amount of development and housing taxes, but not the architect’s fees, the rates quoted by INPI do not take into account the CPI’s fees for the time spent analyzing patentability, drafting the patent, going back and forth to compile the file, and carrying out the administrative formalities.

When hiring an IP consultant, make sure that the fees quoted are transparent, both in terms of the fees paid to the INPI and the fees paid to the CPI. You should also be sure of the nature of the support provided, whether it concerns only the filing of the patent application, or the entire procedure from the patentability study to the granting of the patent. Remember that this process can take up to 3 to 5 years, and that a patent lasts 20 years!

• Read more: The PI Pass and SME Fund, 2022 aids