WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIOIP/N/1/BGR/D/1
12 October 2000
(00-4207)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English/
anglais/
inglés
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
LAWS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT
BULGARIA
The present document reproduces the text1 of the Law on Industrial Designs, as notified by
Bulgaria under Article 63.2 of the Agr eement (see document IP /N/1/BGR/1/Add.1).
Conseil des aspects des droits de propriété
intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce
PRINCIPALES LOIS ET RÉGLEMENTATIONS CONSACRÉES À LA
PROPRIÉTÉ INTELLECTUELLE NOTIFIÉES AU TITRE
DE L'ARTICLE 63:2 DE L'ACCORD
BULGARIE
Le présent document contient le texte1 de la Loi sur les dessins et modèles industriels, notifiée
par la Bulgarie au titre de l'article 63:2 de  l'Accord (voir le doc ument IP/N/1 /BGR/1/Add.1).
Consejo de los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad
Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio
PRINCIPALES LEYES Y REGLAMENTOS DEDICADOS A LA
PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL NOTIFICADOS EN VIRTUD
DEL PÁRRAFO 2 DEL ARTÍCULO 63 DEL ACUERDO
BULGARIA
En el presente documento se reproduce el texto1 de la Ley de Dibujos y Modelos Industriales,
notificada por Bulgaria de conformidad con el párrafo 2 del artículo 63 del Acuerdo (véase el
documento IP/N /1/BGR/1/Add.1).
                                                     
1 In English only. The text in the original language is available for consultation by interested
Delegations at the WTO Secretariat./En anglais seulemen t.  Les délégations intéressées peuvent consulter le
texte dans sa langue d'origine, au Secrétariat de l'OM C./En inglés solamente.  Las delegaciones interesadas
podrán consultar en la Secretaría de la OMC el texto en su idioma original.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 2
LAW ON INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
(Published in State Gazette  No.81 of 14 September 1999,
in force as of 15 December 1999)
Chapter one
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Subject Matter
Art.1.  This law governs the provisions and the pr ocedure for the registration of industrial
designs, the rights resulting therefore and the protection of these rights.
Scope of Application
Art.2. ( 1) This Law shall apply to Bulgarian natural persons and legal entities, as well as to
foreign natural persons and legal entities of States party to international treaties to which theRepublic of Bulgaria is party.(2) This law shall apply to foreign natural persons and legal entities of other States subject toreciprocity to be determined by the Patent office.
Industrial Design
Art.3. (1) For the purpose of this Law industrial design, further referred to as “design”,
means the appearance of the whole or a part of  a product resulting from the specific features
of the shape, lines, contours, ornament ation, colours or combination of such.
(2) For the purpose of this Law product sh all mean any industrial or handicraft item,
including parts intended to be assembled into a complex item, sets or composition of items,packaging, graphic symbols and typographic typefaces, but excluding computer programs.
Right of Authorship
Art.4. (1) The person who has created a design sha ll have the right of authorship under this
Law. This right shall be unlimited in time and shall not be transferable and it shall enjoy theprotection afforded by this Law irrespective to the protection afforded by other Laws.
(2) If the design has been created by two or more persons, the right of authorship shall belongto all of them and they shall be joint authors. Joint authors shall not be considered the personsthat have assisted the creator tec hnically, materially or otherwise.
(3) The author or the joint authors shall be cited in the certificate for the registration and inthe publication thereof. The Patent Office shall execute ex officio the entry.(4) The Patent Office shall enter in the State Re gister of Industrial Designs the real creator of
the design that has been established with a co urt decision on dispute of authorship and joint
authorship.
Representation
Art.5. (1) Any person entitled under this Law to act in proceedings before the Patent Office
may do so either in person or through a local industrial property representative.
(2) Persons with their permanent residence or headquarters outside of the Republic of
Bulgaria shall act in proceeding s before the Patent Office th rough a local industrial property
representative.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 3
Fees
Art.6.  The Patent Office shall collect fees for: filing; examination; priority; registration;
issuing a certificate, renewal of registration; entries; corrections of errors; cancellation of aregistration; extension of time limits; publicati on; international regi stration; information
about filed or registered industr ial designs; check ups or extracts from the State Register of
Industrial Designs, payable in accordance with  the tariff established by the Council of
Ministers.
File
Art.7. (1) The Patent Office shall create and maintain for each design a file that shall consist
of all the registration documentation.
(2) The Patent Office shall provide upon re quest from third party information about
filed designs in order established by the President.
(3) The information referred to in para 2 shall consist of the data that shall be
published if the design shall be registered.
State Register of Industrial Designs
Art.8.  The State Register of Industrial Designs sha ll contain all the data of all the registered
designs and of all subsequent changes in respect of them.
Access to the State Register of Industrial Designs
Art.9.  The State Register of Industrial Designs shall be open to the public. Any person may
ask for a check up or extract from its contents.
Chapter two
LEGAL PROTECTION
Part I
Registration
Accomplishing the Right of a Design
Art.10. (1) The right of a design shall be accomplished by its registration at the Patent Office
as from the date of filing an application for registration.(2) The right to the design shall be exclusive.
Grounds for Registration
Art.11 .(1) A design shall be registered if it is new and has an individual character.
(2) The design shall be not registered if:
1.       the design is contrary to public order and to the accepted principles of morality.
2.    the specific features of the design are solely determined by the technical orfunctional features of the product3.     the specific features of the design are solely determined by the necessity theproduct in which the design is incorporated or  to which it is applied to be mechanically
assembled or put in, around or against another product, so that both products realize their
technical function , with the exception of a de sign serving the purpose of allowing the
multiple assembly or connection of interchangeable pr oducts within a modular system.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 4
Novelty
Art.12.  (1) The design shall be considered new, if before the date of filing the application,
respectively before the priority date, no identical  design has been made available to the public
by means publication, use, registration or ot herwise disclosed anywhere around the world.
(2) The designs shall be considered to be identical if their specific features differ only
in immaterial details that do not influence the overall perception of the design.
Individual Character
Art.13.  The design shall be considered to have an individual character if the overall
impression it produces on the consumer differs  from the overall impression produced by a
design that has been made available to the public before the date of filing, respectively beforethe priority date.
Non-prejudicial Disclosures
Art.14.  The disclosure of a design subject of an application for registra tion, shall not be taken
into account, if such disclosure has been made  within six months period before the date of
filing the application, respectively the priority date by:1. The creator or his successor in title or by a third person as a result of informationprovided or action taken by the creator or his successor in title;2. Third person in abuse to the creator.
Term of Protection by the Registration
Art.15.  (1) The term of protection of the register ed design shall be 10 years as from the date
of filing the application.
(2) The registration may be renewed for three successive periods each of 5 years.
Right of Filing and Right of Registration
Art.16.  (1) The right of filing of a design belongs to the creator. Where the right of filing
belongs to several persons they shall execute that right jointly. If one of such persons refusesto execute that right that does not constitute an obstacle for the rest of them to file anapplication. That refusal sha ll be explicit and in writing.
(2) If the design is an employee’s design as referred to in Art.17, para 1, the right of
filing belongs to the employer or to the commissioning person.
(3) The right of filing, in the case referred to in para 2, shall pass over to the creator, if
the employer, respectively the commissioning pe rson, do not file an application, in three
months period from a communication in writing from the creator, unless otherwisecontracted.
(4) The right of filing may belong jointly to the creator and the employer, respectively
the commissioning person, if contracted.
(5) It shall be considered that the applicant has the right of filing until otherwise stated
in a court decision.
(6) The right of registration shall belong to the first applicant.
Employee’s Design
Art.17.  (1) The design shall be considered employ ee’s design if it has been made in the
performance of duties under an employment rela tionship or other relationship upon contract,
unless otherwise provided by a contract.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 5
(2) A creator who has made an employee’s design shall have the right of
complementary remuneration.
(3) The remuneration to the creator may be determined as a part of the revenues
received as a result from the use of the design, as an one time payment or otherwise.
(4) If the remuneration, determined as one  time payment, proves to be obviously not
equivalent to the revenues received as a result from the use of the design, the creator may askfor the increase of the remuneration. If no agr eement has been achieved, the dispute shall be
fairly decided by the court.
Scope of Legal Protection
Art.18.  The scope of the legal protection shall be  defined from the graphical representation,
respectively graphical representations of the registered designs including each design thatdoes not produce to the customer an overall different impression.
Rights conferred by a Design
Art.19.  (1) A registered design shall confer to its holder the right to use and transfer the
design as well as to prevent any third party not having his consent from copying the design orcommercially using the design include d within the scope of protection.
(2) Using the design under para (1) covers  the making, offering, putting on the market
or using of a product in which the design is inco rporated or to which a design included in the
scope of protection is applied, as well as the importing, exporting or stocking of such a
product for those purposes.
(3) The right conferred shall have validity to  third parties acting in good faith as from
the date of publication of the registration of the design in the Official Bulletin of the PatentOffice.
Limitation of the Rights conferred by a Design
Art.20.  The right as referred to in Art.19 shall not extend to:
1. Using the design for privat e or for experimental purpose;
2. Using the design for the purpose of making  citations or teaching, provided that such
use is compatible with fair trade practice and do not unduly prejudice the normal exploitation
of the design and that citing is made to the source.3. Using the design on foreign land, aircraft  and naval transportation means when such
temporarily or by chance enter the territory of  the country and in which the said design is
used exclusively for their own needs as well as the importation of spare parts and accessoriesfor the purpose of repairing the said transportation means.
Exhaustion of the Right conferred by a Design
Art. 21.  (1) The holder of the right of the design  shall not prohibit the use of the products
cited in the registration, in which the design is incorporated or to which the registered design
is applied to, when the products are put on the market in the Republic of Bulgaria himself or
with his consent.
(2) The referred to in para (1) shall not apply when the holder of the right of the
design may oppose to subsequent  sales if the products have been changed or falsified.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 6
Entitlement to the Right of the Design
Art. 22  (1) The right of the design may vest in one or more persons.
(2) If the right of the design vests in two or  more persons each joint holder can use the
design without the consent of the rest of them  and without rendering a report therefore, unless
otherwise stated in writing.
Prior Use
Art. 23.  A person that has used the design acting in good faith on the territory of the Republic
of Bulgaria before the date of filing of the application or has made serious preparationsthereto shall have the right to continue exploiting it in the same scope and after that date.
Part II
Disposition
Transfer
Art. 24  (1) All rights provided by that Law shall be  transferable, if not otherwise provided for
in the same Law.
(2) If the right of the design vests in several persons the right shall be transferred by
the consent in writing of each joint holder.
(3) The transfer shall be entered in the State Register of Industrial Designs upon a
written request from one of the parties; to the request shall be enclosed the document for thetransfer and the transfer shall be applicable to third parties as from the date of entry.
Transfer of the Right deriving from Prior Use
Art. 25.  The right deriving from prior use shall be transferred only with the undertaking in
which it has originated.
Licensing Contract
Art. 26.  (1) The holder of the right of the design may permit the use of the design with a
licensing contract. The allowance to use a design  that is owned by two or more persons shall
be given upon the written consent of all join t holders, if not otherwise contracted.
(2) The license may be exclusive or non-excl usive. If not otherwise stated the license
shall be considered non-exclusive.
(3) The licenser of exclusive license shall not have the right to grant a license with the
same subject to other persons. He shall have solely the right to exploit the design himself ifthat has been explicitly stipulated.
(4) The licensing contract shall be entered in the State Register of Industrial Designs
upon request from the licensee. To that reques t shall be enclosed an excerpt from the
licensing contract. To the licensee shall be issued a certificate.
(5) The excerpt from the licensing contract shall contain the identification data of the
licenser, the registration number of the design, the term of the contract and the signatures
and/or the seals of the parties.
(6) The licensing contract shall be valid as to third parties from its entry in the State
Register of Industrial Designs.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 7
Part III
Lapse and Invalidation of the Registration
Lapse of the Registration
Art. 27  (1) The registration shall lapse:
1. On expiry of the time period referred to in Art.15;2. On relinquishment by the holder of the right;3. On the termination of the functions of th e legal person holder of the design right if
there is no successor in title.
(2) The lapse referred to in para 1, ite m 3 shall be carried out upon request from an
interested party.
(3) With the lapse of the registration extinguishes the right of the design.
Surrender of a Right on a Design
Art. 28.  (1) The holder of the design right may surrender his right of the design.
(2) The surrender of one or several of the joint holders shall not lead to the lapse of
the legal protection.
(3) The surrender may refer to all or to some of the designs, for which the registration
has been effected.
(4) If there is an entry of licensing contract, the surrender of the right of the design
shall be entered only after the holder of the de sign right has delivered evidence that he has
informed the licensee of his intention to surrender the right of the design. The entry shall bedone after the expiry of two months period from the date on which the evidence wasdelivered.
(5) The surrender of the design right shall be done in writing to the President of the
Patent Office.
(6) The surrender shall have effect as from the date of its entry in the State Register of
Industrial Designs.
Invalidation of Registration
Art. 29.  (1) The registration shall be declared invalid upon request of any person, if the
design:1. has been registered controvers e to Art. 3 or Art. 11, para 1;
2. is excluded from protection as referred to in Art.11, para 2;3. is identical as referred to in Art. 12, para 2 to a design – object of national or
international application for wh ich the Republic of Bulgaria is  a designated country and with
an earlier date of filing, respectively priority  under the condition that such an application
shall be registered.4. includes an object of an earlier right of  a third person under the Copy Right and
Related Rights Law and there is no consent for using it.5. has been registered controverse to the requirements referred to in Art. 2.
(2) If the grounds for the invalidation concern some of the designs, included in a
multiple application, the registration sha ll be invalidated only in this part.
(3) The registration shall be declared invalid also when a court decision states that the
entered holder is not one of the persons referred  to in Art. 16 and in one months period from
the date of entry into force of the court decision there is no request for entering the realholder.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 8
(4) The registration may also be declared  invalid upon request from the President of
the Patent Office under the conditi ons provided for in para 1 and 2.
Legal Consequences of the Invalidation
Art. 30.  (1) The invalidation of a registration shall have effect as from the date of the request
thereto.
(2) The invalidation shall not extend over:
1. the legal actions entered into force as far as they have been executed before theinvalidation.2. The licensing contracts as far as they have  been executed before the invalidation if not
otherwise contracted.
Chapter three
PROCEDURE WITH THE PATENT OFFICE
Filing of an Application
Art. 31.  (1) The application for the registration of a design shall be filed with the Patent
Office:
(2) For a filing date of the application shall be considered the date on which the Patent
Office has received:1. request for registration;2. the name and the address of the applicant;3. one or several graphical or photographical re presentations that clearly and fully reveal
the design, for which protection is sought.
Contents of the Application
Art. 32.  (1) The application shall contain the data re ferred to in Art. 31, para 1 and also the
following:1. the name of the State of which the applicant is national, of which he is resident or inwhich he has a real and effective co mmercial or industr ial establishment;
2. the name and address of the industrial property representative, if such has been
appointed, and power of attorney;3. priority claim if such;4. reproductions of the representation of the design;5. number of the designs for which protection is sought;6. designation of the products in which the design is incorporated or to which it is
applied;7. classification index of the products accord ing to the International Classification of
Industrial Designs under the Locarno Agreement;8. list of the accompanying representations;9. name and address of the creator;10. document for paid fees for app lication, examination and priority.
(2) The application may be accompanied by a brief description of the specific features
of the design upon the initiative of the applicant.
(3) The documents and the data they consist shall be in the Bulgarian language. If
they have been presented in another language, the date of filing shall be preserved if in threemonths period the documents are submitted in the Bulgarian language.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 9
Multiple Application
Art. 33.  (1) Several designs may be  filed in one multiple app lication upon the condition that
the products in which they are intended to be in corporated or to which they are intended to be
applied belong to one and the sa me class of the International Cl assification, or to one and the
same set or com position of items.
(2) For each subsequent design after the first included in the multiple application shall
be paid additional fees.
Division of the Application
Art. 34. (1) The applicant shall have the right to divide the application up to the moment of
taking decision on it. The divided applications shall enjoy the priority of the initially filedapplication if they are filed with in three months from the division.
(2) The Patent Office shall invite the appli cant to divide the application filed upon the
national procedure in three months period, if  the application does not comply with the
provisions of Art. 33. The applications deriving  from the divided application shall enjoy the
priority of the first filing of the application if they are filed in the said period.
Right of Priority
Art. 35.  (1) From the date of filing the applicati on as referred to in Art. 31, para 2 the
applicant shall be afforded the right of priority as to applications of identical designs filedafter that date.
(2) The right of priority shall be acknowledged to the applicant from the date of an
earlier application if:1. the earlier application has been dully file d in the Republic of Bulgaria, in a country
member of The Paris Convention or  of the World Trade Organization;
2. the earlier application is the first application as referred to in Art. 4 of the ParisConvention and in that application ha s been disclosed the same design;
3. the application has been filed with the Patent Office within six months period from
the date of the filing of the first application;4. the priority claim shall be submitted within two months period from the date of filingthe application as referred to in Art.31, para 2 with designation of the date and state of the
earlier application, and5. within three months period from the date of filing the applicant pays the priority feeand submits the priority certificate, issued by the competent authority of the country, in which
the first application has been filed.
(3) A dully filed application as referred to in para 2, item 1 shall be considered the
application with established date of filing notwithstanding its further proceeding.
(4) By multiple application the priority may be claimed on the basis of more than one
earlier application under th e conditions of para 2.
Examination as to formal Requirements
Art. 36.  (1) Each application shall be examined whether it complies with the requirements
laid down in Art. 31, para 2 for establishing th e date of filing. If these requirements are not
complied with the materials shall be returned to the applicant.
(2) Each application with established date of filing shall undergo the formal
examination that proves whether the application complies with the requirements laid down inArt.31, para 1, Art. 32, 33, Art. 34 para 2 and Ar t. 35, para 2, 3 and 4. When deficiencies are
established the applicant shall be invited in three months period to remedy them.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 10
(3) If in the time limit under para 2 the applic ant does not remedy the deficiencies, the
procedure shall be terminated.
Examination as to Substance
Art. 37.  (1) Each application that complies with the formal requirements shall be examined in
one year period whether the design applied for is:1. design under the conditions laid down in Art. 3;2. not excluded from protection under the cond itions laid down in Art. 11, para  2;
3. new under the conditions laid down in Art. 12 in respect to designs that have been
already registered under the national or international procedure;4. not identical as referred to in Art. 12, para 2 to a design – subject of a national
application with an earlier date of filing, respectively priority, which later shall be grantedregistration.5. not identical as referred to in Art. 12, para  2 to a design – subject of an international
application with an earlier da te of filing, respectively priority, for which the Republic of
Bulgaria is a designated country and for which no decision for refusal has been taken.
(2) If there are grounds for the refusal of the registration of the applied object or part
of it, the applicant shall be informed in writin g for all the grounds thereto and shall be invited
in three months to submit an opposition.
(3) If in the time limit under para 2 th e applicant does not submit reasonable
objections and/or does not limit the filed object, a decision for refusal of the registration shallbe taken.
(4) If it has been established that the file d object or part of it may be registered, a
decision for the registration shall be taken.
Withdrawal, Limitation and Changes in the Application
Art. 38.  (1) Up to the moment of taking a d ecision upon the application the applicant may
withdraw it in respect to all or to some of the designs.
(2) In the application shall not be entered changes with the exception to changes
concerning the name and the address of the applicant or in the case of errors in the name andaddress of the applicant and by obvious erro rs upon the condition that such errors do not
concern the design itself.
(3) The changes referred to in para 2 shall be carried out upon request of the
applicant.
Renewal of the Registration
Art. 39.  (1) The registration shall be renewed upon re quest of the holder of the right of the
design. The request shall contain the regist ration number and a document for the payment of
the due fees.
(2) The request for the renewal may be lodged within the last year of the term
provided under Art.15 , para 1 or on payment of a complementary fee up to six months after
expiry of the said term.
(3) If the requirements under para 2 are not complied with the President of the Patent
Office shall refuse the renewal of the registration.
(4) The holder may request the renewal of the registration only in respect to some of
the designs. In the request for the renewa l he shall designate only the said designs.
(5) The renewal shall enter into force as from the date following the date of expiry of
the preceding registration.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 11
Changes in the Name and Address of the Holder
Art. 40.  (1) The holder of the right of a design sh all notify in three months period the Patent
Office for any change in his name and address.
(2) The changes shall be entered in the State Register of Industrial Designs upon
request of the holder.
(3) All documents for which the holder of the right of the design shall be notified shall
be sent to him on the last a ddress entered in the State Register of Industrial Designs.
Appeals Procedure
Art. 41.  (1) The Appeals Department of th e Patent Office shall consider:
1. appeals against decisions under Art.37, para 3 for refusal of registration;
2. appeals against decisions under Art.36, pa ra 3 for termination of the procedure;
3. requests for the invalidation of the registration.
(2) The ad hoc boards of the Disputes Depar tment of the Patent Office for considering
the appeals shall consist of three state examiners, one of them jurist and the ad hoc boards forconsidering the requests - of five state examiners, two of them jurists.
(3) The Boards under para 2 shall be appoint ed by the President of the Patent Office.
Time Limits
Art. 42.  (1) The appeals shall be filed in three months period from the notification for the
decision.
(2) The request may be filed throughout the whole term of the registration and after
that term- only from the defendant in an  action for infringement of rights.
(3) Procedure shall not be set up for requests that have not been filed in due time or
for appeals and requests, for which the due fees have not been paid.
Contents of the Appeals and the Requests
Art. 43.  (1) The appeal shall contain data of the appellant, data of th e application and the
opposition against the decision of refusal.
(2) The request shall contain data of the petitioner, data of the registration of the
design and the grounds for the grounds for the inva lidation as referred to in Art.29, para 1, 2
and 3.
(3) If deficiencies are established the appe llant shall be invited in one month period to
remedy them. If the deficiencies are not reme died in the said period, the procedure shall be
terminated.
Appeals Authority
Art. 44.  (1) If the appeal is not well grounded th e decision for refusal shall be confirmed by
the President of the Patent Office.
(2) If the appeal is grounded the decision shall be canceled by the President of the
Patent Office and he sha ll take decision either for registration or to return the application for a
second consideration.
(3) If there is a cancellation of a decision for refusal by the second consideration of
the application, the decision as to substance sh all be taken by the Pr esident of the Patent
Office.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 12
Proceedings of the Requests
Art. 45.  (1) A copy of the request shall be sent to  the holder of the right of the design and he
shall be invited to file an opposition in three months period.
(2) If the request is not well grounded a de cision for rejection shall be taken by the
President of the Patent Office.
(3) If the decision is grounded a decision fo r the full or partial invalidation of the
registration shall be taken by the President of the Patent Office.
(4) In the cases of partial invalidation the registration certificate that has been issued
shall be replaced by a new one.
Extension of Time Limits
Art. 46.  Upon request of the applicant that has b een submitted before the expiration of the
terms provided under Art. 36, para 2, Art. 37, pa ra 2 and Art. 45, para 1 the said time limits
may be extended by three months, but not more than twice, on payment of the prescribedfees. The request shall not be considered if th e prescribed fees have not been paid at the
moment of its submission.
Renewal of Time Limits
Art. 47.  If the time limits are not complied with due to special unforeseen circumstances,
such time limits may be renewed on request of the applicant or the holder of the right of thedesign. The request shall be submitted within three months after the cause for missing theterms has been eliminated but not later than one year from the expiry of the said term. Thedecision for the renewal of the term shall be taken by the President of the Patent Office.
Publications in the Official Bulletin
Art. 48.  The Patent Office shall publish in its Offi cial Bulletin all the registered industrial
designs and the subsequent changes in them.
Review by Court
Art. 49.  The decisions of the President of the Pa tent Office under Art. 44, para 1 and 3 and
Art. 45, para 2 and 3 may be a ppealed before the Sofia City Court within three moths from
the date of receiving the notification for the decision.
Chapter four
REGISTRATION OF INDUSTRIAL DESIGN UNDER THE HAGUE
AGREEMENT
International Registration of Industrial Designs
Art. 50.  (1) An international registration shall be considered the registration by the Bureau of
the International Union for the Protection of I ndustrial Property, further referred to as “The
International Bureau,” under the Hague Agreement, further referred to as “The Agreement”.
(2) In respect to third parties the international registration shall have effect on the
territory of the Republic of Bulgaria as from the date of the expiration of the 6-months periodunder Art. 8, para  1 of the Agreement.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
Page 13
Duration of Protection of the International Registration
Art. 51.  The term of validity of the international registration on the territory of the Republic
of Bulgaria shall be as provided in this Law.
Procedure at the Patent Office
Art. 52.  (1) International application for which the Republic of Bulgaria is a designated
country shall be treated at the Patent Office as provided for in Art. 37.
(2) The Patent Office shall require from the applicant a declaration as to the real
creator/s of the design, if such have not been  mentioned in the international application and
shall invite him in two months period from the dispatch of such request to submit thedeclaration. If the applicant does not answer to the request in the said period, the application
shall be considered surrendered in respect of the Republic of Bulgaria.
(3) If established that the object or part  of it applied for cannot be registered a
decision for refusal shall be taken and the International Bureau shall be informed thereto asreferred to in Art. 8, para  1 and 2 of the Agreement.
Filing of an International Application
Art. 53.  Natural persons and legal entities who have citizenship or have a real and effective
commercial or industrial establishment in the Republic of Bu lgaria may file an international
application under the Agreement through the Pa tent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria.
International Application for which the Re public of Bulgaria is country of origin
Art. 54.  An international Application for which the Republic of Bulgaria is country of origin
shall have no effect on the territo ry of the Republic of Bulgaria.
Chapter five
PROTECTION UNDER THE CIVIL LAW
Infringement of the Right of the Design
Art. 55.  Any use under Art.19, para 2 of a regist ered design in comme rcial activities without
the consent of the holder of the right of the design constitutes an infringement of the right ofthe design.
Right of Action
Art. 56.  (1) The holder of the right of the design  may file an action against infringement.
(2) The licensee of an exclusiv e license may file an action, if the holder of the right of
the design does not execute his right in one moths period from the date of receiving
notification for the infringement from the licensee.
(3) The licensee of non-exclusive license may file an action only with the consent of
the holder, if not otherwise provided by the contract.
Infringement Action
Art. 57.  (1) The actions of infringement of the rights provided by that Law are:
1. action for establishing the fact of infringement;2. action for suspension of infringement;3. action for compensation of damages.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
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(2) Simultaneously with the action unde r para 1 may be also demanded:
1. the remaking or the destroying of the subject of the infringement, or by intentionalinfringement the means through which it has been made.2. The publication of the court decision in two daily papers on the expenses of theinfringer.
Actions for Employees Design
Art. 58.  (1) Any interested person may file an ac tion for establishing employee’s design.
(2) The action shall be filed at latest w ithin one year after coming to know of the
registration.
(3) By disputes under Art.17, para 1 the party not agreeing with the established
remuneration may file an action as to its amount.
Actions for Prior Use
Art. 59.  Any interested person may file an action fo r establishing the fact of the prior use.
Actions for Authorship and joint Authorship
Art. 60.  (1) A person claiming authorship or joint authorship of a design may file an action
within the whole term of the registration.
(2) On the basis of a court decision entered into force the Patent Office shall enter the
creator in the State Register of Industrial Designs.
Jurisdiction
Art. 61.  The actions under this Law shall be heard by the Sofia City Court.
Chapter six
BORDER CONTROL
Grounds and Field of Application
Art. 62. (1) Goods, passing through the state border of the Republic of Bulgaria,
manufactured by means of copying or using a design, included in the scope of protectionunder Art. 18, without the consent of its holder, shall be detained by the customs officials
upon a written request from the holder.
(2) The request for detaining shall contain a detailed description of the goods. To the
request shall be enclosed a copy from the registration certificate of the design and acertificate ascertaining that the registration is in force.
(3) When the holder of the right has his re sidence or headquarters outside the country
he shall give a court address in the Republic of Bulgaria.
(4) Small quantities of goods for non-comme rcial and for non- manufacturing purpose
shall not be detained as well as transit goods.
Acts upon Initiative of the Customs Authorities
Art. 63.  The customs officials may upon their own in itiative detain goods that they consider
that infringe rights of a registered design.
Complementary Regulation
Art. 64.  The rules for applying this chapter shall be determined in Regulations, adopted from
the Council of Ministers.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
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Chapter seven
ADMINISTRATIVE PENAL PROVISIONS
Sanctions
Art. 65.  (1) Any person that produces, offers, puts on the market or stocks for that purpose
products, manufactured through copying or using a design, included in the scope of
protection under Art. 18, without the consent of its  holder, shall be imposed a fine or property
sanctions from 500 up to 5000 BGL.
(2) The products shall be confiscated and sh all go to the state notwithstanding whose
property they are and shall be destroyed and the holder or authorized person may be present
by the act of destruction.
(3) The provision in para 2 shall not apply in the cases when products in which the
design, subject of the infringement, is incorpor ated or applied to, may be reprocessed so that
the right of the holder shall not be infringed.
(4) By a repeated infringement or by an y subsequent infringement the provisions of
para 3 shall not  be applied.
(5) The infringement under para 1 shall be determined by an act of an official
appointed by the President of the Patent Office.
(6) The penal injunctions shall be issued by the President of the Patent Office.(7) The acts and the penal injunctions sh all be issued, appeal ed and executed under
the provisions of the Administrative Penal Law.
COMPLEMENTARY PROVISION
§ 1. Under this Law :
1. “Hague Agreement” shall mean The Hague Agreement Concerning the
International Deposit of Industr ial Designs , of November 6, 1925, Revised at the Hague on
November 28, 1960
2. “Paris Convention” shall mean The Paris Convention for the protection of
Industrial Property , conclu ded on March 20, 1883, with its revisions and amendments.
3. “Locarno Agreement” shall mean Locarno Agreement establishing an
International Classification fo r Industrial Designs of Octobe r 8, 1968, as amended on October
2, 1979 and thereafter.
4. “Local industrial property represen tative” shall be the representative as
referred to in Art. 3, para 2 of the Patents Law.
5. “State examiner” shall be the examiner as  referred to in Art. 83, para 3 of the
Patent Law.
TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS
§ 2 The legal protection of a design as provided for in this Law shall not exclude the
cumulative protection under The Copy right and Related Rights Law.
§ 3. This Law shall apply to the applications for registration of designs that have already been
filed and there is no final decision upon them up to  the moment of the entry into force of this
Law.§ 4. The term of protection, deriving from the re gistration of an industrial design under the
Law on Trademarks and Industrial Designs, that shall not expire up to the entry into force ofthis Law, shall be determined as referred to in Art. 15.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
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§ 5. This Law shall suspend Part II of th e Law on Trademarks and Industrial Designs
(published  in State Gazette N 95 from 1967; amendments N 55 from 1975, N 56 from 1986and N 27 1993) and Art. 1, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50,51 and 52 from the same Law from its part
concerning Industrial Designs).§ 6. In the Patents Law (published  SG , N 27 from 1993; am. N 83 from 1996; am. N 11
from 1998) shall be entered the following amendments and supplements:
1. In Art. 80. item 2 the words “industrial de signs” shall be replaced by industrial
designs’
2. In § 10 from the final and transitional provisions after the words “employee “s
inventions” shall be added “utilit y models and industrial design”
§ 7. In the Penal Code (published  SG. N 26 from 1968; corr., N 29 from 1968; am. N 92
from 1969, N 26 and 27 from 1973, N 89 from 1974, N 95 from 1975, N 3 from 1977, N 54from 1978, N 89 from 1979, N 28 from 1982; am. N 31 from 1982, am. N 44 from 1984, N41 and 79 from 1985; corr. N 80 from 1985; am. N 89 from 1986; corr. N 90 from 1986; N37, 91 and 99 from 1989, NN 10, 31, and 81 from 1990, N 1 and 86 from 1991; corr. N 90from 1991; am. N 105 from 1991; am. N 105 from 1991, N 54 from 1992, N 10 from 1993, N50 from 1995, N 97 from 1995 - Decision N 19 of the Constitutional Court from 1995; am. N102 from 1995, N 107 from 1996, NN 62 and 85 from 1997; N 120 from 1997 - Decision N19 of the Constitutional Court from 1997; am. NN 83, 85, 132, 133 and 153 from 1998, NN 7and 51 from 1999) shall be made the following amendments:
1. In Art. 173, para 2 the words “indus trial design” shall be replaced by
“industrial design” and the word “ra tionalization” with  “utility model”.
2. In Art. 174 the wording “industrial desi gn” shall be replaced by “industrial
design” and the word “rationalization” with “utility model”.§ 8. In the Commercial Law (published  SG, N 48 from 1991; am. N 25 from 1992, NN 61
and 103 from 1993, N 63 from 1994, 63 from 1995, NN 42,59, 83, 86 and 104 from 1996,NN 58, 100 and 124 from 1997, NN 52 and 70 from 1998, NN 33, 42 and 64 from 1999)shall be made the following amendments:
1. In Art. 587, para 1 the words “indus trial design” shall be replaced by
“industrial design.”
2. In Art. 588 the words “industrial desi gn” shall be replaced by “industrial
design.”§ 9. In § 1 item 8 of the complementary provisi ons of the Law on Corporate Income Taxation
(published  SG N 115 from 1997; corr. N 19 from 1998; am. NN 21 and 153 from 1998,NN12, 50 and 51 from 199) the words “industrial de sign” shall be replaced by “industrial
design.”§ 10.  In Art.31, para 1 from the Cooperative Society Law (published in SG, N 63 from 1991,
am. NN 34 and 55 from 1992, N 63 from 1994, NN 59 and 103 from 1996, N 52 from 1997,N 52 from 1998) the words “industrial design” sh all be replaced by “industrial design.”
§ 11.  In Art.19, para 2, item 2 from the Book - keeping Law (published SG, N 4 from 1991,
am. N 26 from 1992, N 55 from 1993, NN 21, 33 and 59 from 1996, N 52 from 1997, N 21from 1998, N 57 from 1999) after the “marks” shall be placed the wording “industrialdesigns”.§. 12.  The Council of Ministers shall adopt Re gulations for the drafting, filing and
examination of i ndustrial designs.
§.13.  The President of the Patent Office shall issue instructions and indications on the
implementation of this Law.§. 14.  The enforcement of this Law shall be assigned to the President of the Patent Office.IP/N/1/BGR/D/1
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§. 15.  This Law shall enter into force three months after its publication in the State Gazette.
The Law is adopted by the XXXVIII Parliame nt on the 2 of September 1999 and is sealed
with the seal of the Parliament
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