# Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office

The Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office (CAIPO) is a Barbadian governmental agency in charge of various aspects of industrial property right affairs including: patents, trademarks, and industrial designs. It is a division of the Ministry of Industry, Innovation, Science & Technology (MIST), formerly known as the Ministry of Industry & International Business. Around 2010 Barbados was recognised for its ranking as one of the top countries where foreign patents are legally based. CAIPO's office was located on Belmont Road, and moved in March 2013 to Baobab Towers, in Warrens, Saint Michael.
In 2021 the body opened its corporate registry for online registration.

## Criticisms

In 2021 CAIPO faced criticism by some members of the public for the pace the body conducts its business.

## National legislation

Corporate affairs in Barbados are covered by the following Acts:
* Companies Act
* Registration of Business Names Act
* Bills of Sale Act
* Small Business Development Act
* Notarial acts
* Public Documents Act
* Pharmacy Act
* Limited Partnerships Act
* Registration of Newspapers Act
* Trade Unions Act
Intellectual property in Barbados are covered by the following Acts:
* Trademarks Act
* Patents Act
* Industrial Designs Act
At the international level, the department works very closely with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and its subregional unit known as the Cooperation for Development Bureau for Latin American and Caribbean.

## Treaties and conventions

Barbados is a signatory to the following copyright and intellectual property treaties and conventions influencing local laws:
| Treaty or Convention | Year it was established | Locally ratified into law |
| Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, | 1886 | ratified: 30 July 1983 |
| Geneva Convention for the Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication | 1971 | ratified: July 29, 1983 |
| Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents - (the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents) | 1961 | Succession for Barbados 30 November 1966. Barbados maintains that since the United Kingdom entered into the agreement on 24 February 1965 that it is compulsory for Barbados which didn't become independent until 1966. |
| Nice Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Registration of Marks | 1967 | ratified: 12 March 1985 |
| Nairobi Treaty (Olympic Symbol) | | ratified: 28 February 1986 |
| Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property | 1883 (as revised in 1967) | ratified: 12 March 1985 |
| Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) | 1970 | ratified: 12 March 1985 |
| Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations | 1961 | ratified: 18 September 1983 |
| Universal Copyright Convention (UCC-Geneva) | 1952 | ascension: 3 March 1983 |
| Universal Copyright Convention (UCC-Paris) | (as revised in 1971) | ascension: 3 March 1983 |
| Membership to the WIPO | |
| WTO-TRIPS Agreement on the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property | 1994 | ratified: 1 January 1995 |
Currently Barbados has yet to finalise or is absent from:
| Treaty or Convention | Year it was established | Note |
| Brussels Convention Relating to the Distribution of Programme–Carrying Signals Transmitted by Satellite | 1974 | Some provisions within the United States–Caribbean Basin Initiative already have recourse for United States-based satellite providers to be compensated through other means within that act. |
| Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure (Budapest) | 1977 | |
| Patent Law Treaty (PLT) | 2000 | |
| WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) | 1996 | |
| WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) | 1996 | |

## Domain names and trademarks

Additionally, CAIPO is entrusted with the handling of legal issues pertaining to Barbados' .bb ccTLD and second-level domains including: .co.bb, .com.bb, .net.bb, .org.bb, .info.bb, .store.bb, .tv.bb, .biz.bb .