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Impacts of Covid-19 on Intellectual Property in Turkey

Impacts of Covid-19 on intellectual property in Turkey

Has the intellectual property office/IP Registry of your jurisdiction taken any measures due to Covid-19 and government/state actions to prevent spread of the virus?

The Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TurkPatent) is open and active. According to the Presidential Circular No 2020/4, published in the Repeated Official Gazette dated 22 March 2020 and numbered 31076, it has been decided that the number of personnel serving in public bodies will be kept to the minimum and flexible working methods such as remote or shift working will be implemented for public employees. However, as TurkPatent is a paperless office and has a functional e-filing system, the services of TurkPatent are not interrupted in this period.

Is it possible to file applications online with the intellectual property office/IP Registry of your jurisdiction? If so, since when?

Filing online applications was already possible before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Is it possible to make payments online direct to the intellectual property office/IP Registry of your jurisdiction? If so, since when?

Online payment to the TurkPatent was already possible before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Has the intellectual property office/IP Registry of your jurisdiction made changes to any deadlines/timelines provided for in the law/applicable regulation of your jurisdiction? If so, please provide full details.

According to the Law No 7226, which was published in the Official Gazette on 26 March 2020, all time limits expiring on or after 13 March 2020 are suspended. This suspension also effects the relevant time limits and deadlines set out in the Industrial Property Code No 6769. The suspended time limits and new deadlines regarding IP applications will be calculated by TurkPatent as follows in accordance with the Law No 7226 and the President’s Resolution No 2480 dated 29 April 2020:

  • Given time limit expires on 12 March 2020 or in an earlier date, the deadline is not changed.
  • Given time limit expires on or between 13–27 March 2020, the new deadline is 30 June 2020.
  • Given time limit expires on or between 28 March 2020 to 15 June 2020, the new deadline will be calculated by adding the number of days remaining to the former deadline as of 13 March to the date of 16 June.
  • Given time limit starts before 13 March 2020 and expires on or after 15 June 2020, the new deadline is the expiry date of the given time limit plus 95 days.
  • Given time limit starts on or between 13 March 2020 to 15 June 2020, the given time limit will start on 16 June 2020.

Are in-person/online searches possible of the registers/records maintained by the intellectual property office/IP Registry of your jurisdiction? Please provide details including of any changes due to Covid-19 and government/state actions to prevent spread of the virus.

Online searches were possible before the pandemic since registers maintained by TurkPatent are available online. In-person searches are restricted due to Covid-19.

Is it possible for hearings which would normally have to be attended to in person to be conducted online? If so, since when?

There are no oral hearings held at the TurkPatent.

Are there any other changes due to Covid-19 and government/state actions to prevent spread of the virus which persons dealing with IP in your jurisdiction should be aware of?

All the prosecution procedures are maintained, remotely.

IP litigations in Turkey take place in front of specialised IP courts. During the Covid-19 health crisis courts have worked only in urgent cases. The courts will resume activities gradually and oral hearings will take place after 15 June 2020.

Official copies are sent by post; official copies of documents are also provided in pdf format with authentication by electronic signature.

Training courses are suspended but webinars have been organised.

First published by IBA in Jun 30, 2020.


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