WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION  
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE  
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIO  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
17 November 2006 
 (06-5568) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights Original:   English/ 
 anglais/  inglés 
 
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 
LAWS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER 
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT 
 
SAUDI ARABIA 
  The present document reproduces the text
1 of the Law of Patents, Layout-Designs of 
Integrated Circuits, Plant Varieties, and Industr ial Designs, which Saudi Arabia has notified under 
Article 63.2 of the Agreement (see document IP/N/1/SAU/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 
 
ARABIE SAOUDITE 
 
 Le présent document contient le texte1 de la Loi sur les brevets, les schémas de configuration 
de circuits intégrés, les variétés végétales et les dessins industriels, notifiée par l'Arabie saoudite au 
titre de l'article 63:2 de l'Accord (voir le document IP/N/1/SAU/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 
 
ARABIA SAUDITA 
  En el presente documento se reproduce el texto
1 de la Ley de Patentes, Esquemas de Trazado 
de los Circuitos Integrados, Obtenciones Vegetale s y Diseños Industriales, que Arabia Saudita ha 
notificado en virtud del párrafo 2 del artículo 63 del Acuerdo (véase el documento IP/N/1/SAU/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/SAU/I/3 
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Law of 
Patents, Layout Designs of 
Integrated Circuits, Plant Varieties, 
and Industrial Designs 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 3 
 
 
  Chapter One 
General Provisions 
Article One: 
 This Law aims to provide full protection  - within the Kingdom - for inventions, 
layout designs of integrated circuits, plant varieties and industrial designs. 
Article Two: 
 The following terms and phrases, wherever mentioned in this Law, shall have the 
meanings expressed next to them, unless the context requires otherwise: 
City:  King Abdulaziz City fo r Science and Technology. 
Directorate:  The General Directorate of Patents at  King Abdulaziz City for Science and 
Technology. 
Subject matter of protection:  Either an invention, a layout design of integrated circuits, a 
plant variety or an industrial design. 
Protection document:  The document granted by the City for one of the subject matters of 
protection. It may either be a patent, a certif icate of layout design, a plant patent, or a 
certificate of an industrial design. 
Invention:  An idea developed by the inventor that  results in a solution of a certain 
problem in the field of technology. 
Integrated circuit:  A product in its final or intermedia te form in which the elements, at 
least one of which is active, and some or all of the interconnections are integrally formed 
in or on a piece of material, and the purpose of this is to perform an electronic function. 
Layout design:  Three dimensional disposition of the elements – at least one of which is 
active - and of some or all of the interconnect ions of an integrated circuit, or such a three 
dimensional disposition prepared for an inte grated circuit intended for manufacture. 
Plant variety:  A plant grouping within a single bot anical taxon of the lowest known rank 
which, irrespective of whether the conditions  for the grant of a breeders right are fully 
met, can be defined by the expression of the characteristics resulting from a given IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  genotype or a combination of genotypes dist inguished from any other plant grouping, by 
the expression of at least one of the said c haracteristics, and considered as units with 
regard to its suitability for being propagated without change. 
Plant breeder:  The person who breeds, discovers or develops a new plant variety. 
Industrial design:  A composition of two-dimensional  l i n e s  o r  c o l o r s ,  o r  a n y  t h r e e  
dimensional shape that gives an industrial product, or a prod uct of traditional crafts, a 
special appearance provided that this is no t only for functional or technical purpose 
including textile designs. 
Compulsory license:  The permission given to others to exploit the subject matter of 
protection without the consent of the owner of the protection document, in accordance 
with the provisions of this Law. 
Contractual license:  A contract under which the owner of the protection document 
grants a third party some or all of his rights  to exploit the protection document for a 
specified period against a specified fee.  
Gazette:  The Gazette issued by the City concerning  all that relates to the subject matters 
of protection in accordance with the prov isions of this Law and its Implementing 
Regulations.  
Committee:  The committee stipulated in Article Thirty Five of this Law.  
Table: The table annexed to this Law which specifies the fees for the works carried out by 
the Directorate in accordance with the provisions of this Law.  
Applicant: The person requesting the protection  document, as registered in the 
Directorate records.  
Regulations: The Implementing Regulations of this Law. 
Article Three: 
The City shall have the authority to apply the provisions of this Law and its 
Implementing Regulations.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 5 
 
 
  Article Four: 
(a) The protection document shall not be granted if its commercial exploitation 
violates the Shari'a h.  
(b) The protection document shall not be gr anted if its commercial exploitation is 
harmful to life, to human, animal or plant health, or is substantially harmful to the 
environment.  
Article Five: 
(a) The protection document shall be a personal right of the person in whose 
name it was issued. This right may be transferred by inheritance, as well as with or without consideration.  
(b) If the subject matter of protection is a joint work of several persons, they 
shall be equally entitled to the right, unless they have agreed otherwise.  
(c) No one shall be deemed a partner unless he contributes to the subject matter 
of protection, and his efforts are only co nfined to assistance in its execution.  
(d) If more than one person have independently developed the same subject 
matter of protection, the protection do cument shall be granted to the first 
applicant. 
(e) The person who develops the subjec t matter of protection shall have the 
right to state his name in that capacity in the protection document. 
 
Article Six: 
(a) The employer shall be the owner of the protection document, unless the work 
contract stipulates otherwise, where its su bject matter results from the execution of 
a contract, or an obligation providing for ex erting efforts to develop it, or if the 
employer proves that the employee would not have developed the subject matter of 
the protection had he not used facilities, means or data made available through his 
employment.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
Page 6  
 
  (b) This shall be without prejudice to the empl oyee’s right to receive a special award to 
be agreed upon with the consent of both parties, or assessed by the Committee in light of the various circumstances of the contract of employment, and the economic 
importance of the subject matter of the pr otection. Any special agreement depriving 
the employee of this right shall be null and void. 
(c) An application for a protection document filed by the employee within two years 
from the date of termination of employment  shall be deemed as if submitted during 
the employment.   
(d) The previous provisions shall a pply to government employees. 
(e) If the subject matter of protection develope d relates to national security, it shall be 
governed by the provisions stipulated  in the Implementing Regulations. 
Article Seven: 
 If the subject matter claimed in the applic ation or in the protection document is 
derived from a subject matter owned by a pers on other than the applicant or the owner of 
the protection document, then this person  may request the Committee to transfer the 
ownership of the application or protection document to him. The case for the transfer 
application shall not be heard after the elapse of  five years of granting the protection unless 
the applicant's bad faith is established.  
 
Article Eight: 
 
 The application for granting protection document shall be submitted to the 
Directorate in the prescribed form. The Re gulations shall specify the information and 
documents required to be enclosed with the a pplication. If the applicant is not the party 
which developed the subject matter of protection, his name must be stated and the document proving the transfer of title of th e patented subject matter to him must be 
enclosed, and the Directorate may, in this case , send a copy of these documents to the party 
which developed the subject matter of protecti on. After satisfying the requirements and 
payment of the specified fee, the application shall be registered.   IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Nine: 
 The applicant may introduce the amendmen ts he deems fit in the application, 
provided that these amendments shall introd uce no change to what was disclosed in the 
original application.  
Article Ten: 
(a) The applicant may benefit from the priority  given to a previous application filed 
during the priority period specified for each of the subject matters of protection, from the 
filing date of the previous application, prov ided that it is accompanied by a written 
declaration stating the date and number of th e previous application and the place where it 
was filed by him or his predecessor. He shall al so submit a copy of the previous application 
approved by the authority where the protection  application was submitted, within ninety 
days from the date of filing the application with the Directorate. 
(b) The priority period for patents and plant varieties shall be twelve months. 
(c) The priority period for the indust rial design shall be six months. 
Article Eleven: 
The Directorate shall publish applicatio ns for patents on invention and plant 
varieties within eighteen months from the date  of filing the application, after paying the 
specified fee. 
Article Twelve: 
The Directorate shall examine the registered a pplications in terms of formalities. If it 
appears, from the examination, that some of  the legally prescribed conditions are not 
satisfied it may instruct the applicant to satisf y them within a maximum of ninety days from 
the date of notification. If he did not fulfill what was requested within the said period, his 
application would be considered as if it had never been filed. IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Thirteen: 
Once the application for patent or plant patent has been examined in terms of 
formalities, it shall be examined in terms of su bstance, in accordance with what is stated in 
the Regulations.  
Article Fourteen: 
(a) If the Directorate finds that the application has satisfied the stipulated conditions, it 
shall issue a decision granting the protection do cument. The said decision shall be published 
in sequence as regard to its issuance by the Directorate. 
(b) If the Directorate finds that the applic ant does not qualify for the protection 
document, it shall issue a decision stating the reasons for the rejection, and the applicant 
shall be notified thereof. 
Article Fifteen: 
The applicant may withdraw his application at any time unless it has been finally 
decided upon. However, such withdrawal shall no t give the right to recover the fees paid or 
any other expense. 
Article Sixteen: 
Any action resulting in the assignment of th e protection application or the protection 
document itself must be in writing, signed by  the two parties, and approved by an authority 
acceptable to the Directorate. No transfer of titl e, relating either to the protection application 
or the protection document itself shall be effe ctive vis-à-vis a third party, except after filing 
the change application, paying the required fees, and recording it in the Directorate 
registers.  
If several parties participated in filing on e protection application or in the ownership 
of one protection document each one of them may assign his right in the application or the 
protection document to any of the partners, to all of them, or to a third party. The 
Directorate shall publish the transfer of title in the Gazette.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 9 
 
 
  Article Seventeen: 
If the protection document is disposed of to others in accordance with any act of 
disposition, or the right to exploit it is trans ferred to others for any reason, the owner of the 
protection document shall inform the party to whom the disposition is made or the party to 
whom the right of exploitation is officially  transferred, of any legal measure taken in 
connection with the protection document, whethe r taken by him or by others against him. 
Article Eighteen: 
(a) Annual fees shall be due for the protection  application or the protection document – 
in accordance with the table attached to this Law – which shall be paid at the 
beginning of each year starting from the year following the application filing date.  
If the applicant or the owner of the protec tion document fails to pay it within a 
maximum period of three months from its du e date, he shall be liable to pay double 
the amount. If he fails to pay after being warned during the three months following 
the expiration of the first three months, th e application or the protection document 
shall cease to be valid, and this shall be re corded in the Register and published in the 
Gazette. 
(b) Where the applicant has paid the required fees for three years without being granted 
the protection document, he may postpone payment of the fees for the following 
years until the decision to grant th e protection document is issued. 
Article Nineteen: 
(a) The patent protection period shall be twenty years from the  date of filing the 
application. 
(b) The layout design certificate protection period shall be ten years from the date of 
filing the application or ten years from the da te of start of its commercial exploitation 
anywhere in the world. In any case, the pr otection period may not exceed fifteen 
years from the date of creation of the design. IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  (c)  The plant patent protection period shall be twenty years from the date of 
filing the application. However, the pr otection period for trees shall be 
twenty five years. 
(d) The industrial design certificate protec tion period shall be ten years from the 
date of filing the application. 
 
Article Twenty: 
If a person, in good faith, manufactures a product, utilizes an industrial process, 
manufactures an integrated circuit incorporat ing a layout design or a commodity including 
such a circuit, exploits a plant  variety or makes serious arrangements, before the date of 
filing the patent application, or the priority application relating to that product or the 
process, design, plant variety, date of first commercial exploitation of the design anywhere 
in the world, such a party shall be entitled – despite the issuance of th e protection document 
– to continue to perform these acts without ex panding them. This right shall not be assigned 
or transferred to others except with all parts of  the firm or one of them including goodwill. 
 
Article Twenty One: 
 
 The owner of the protection document may grant a contractual license to others to 
perform all or some of the acts of exploitation  stipulated in the special provisions, for each 
protected subject matter. A license contract s hall not be valid vis-à-vis a third party unless 
the specified fee is paid and it is registered in the records of the Directorate. This license 
shall not deprive the owner of the protection document from exploiting the subject matter 
himself or granting another license for the sa me protected subject matter, unless the first 
license contract states otherwise.   
Article Twenty Two: 
 
 The Directorate may instruct the parties to th e license contract to amend it in order to 
prevent abusing the right in the protection document or any other negative effect on 
competition or the acquisition of technology and its dissemination. 
  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Twenty Three: 
 
The license gives the licensee the right to perform all acts and enjoy all privileges 
assigned to the holder of the protection do cument related to the subject of protection 
throughout the Kingdom during the whole period of protection, unless it is otherwise stated 
in the license contract. The licensee shall not a ssign the rights and privileges licensed to him 
by the owner of the protection document, unless it  is expressly stated in the license contract.  
 
Article Twenty Four: 
 
(a) The City may grant a compulsory licen se to a third party to exploit an 
invention covered by the patent or a layout  design of an integrated circuit covered 
by a certificate of design upon an application submitted to it, according to the following:  
(1) The application shall be submitted after the elapse of four 
years from the date of filing the patent application or three years from the date of granting the patent, whichever expires later, without the owner of the protection document 
exploiting his invention or having exploited it in an 
inadequate fashion, unless he justifies that with a legitimate excuse. 
 
(2) The applicant for the compulsory license must prove that he 
has exerted -over a reasonable period of time- efforts in order to obtain a contractual license on the basis of reasonable 
commercial conditions, and for a reasonable financial 
compensation. However, this provision and the provision of the preceding paragraph do not apply where the applicant is a government body or a person authorized by it, and the aim 
was to meet public interest - especially security, health, 
nutrition or the development other vital sectors of the national economy- or to meet a state of emergency or other very IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
Page 12  
 
  compelling circumstances, or where the aim thereof was 
public non-commercial purposes. In the latter case, and upon knowledge of the existence of a patent or a certificate of 
design, their holder shall be promptly informed.  
 (3) The compulsory license is basically granted to make the 
invention or design available in  the local markets. But this 
provision does not apply where the aim of the license is to 
prevent or restrict practices against which a decision or 
judgment is issued declaring them to be acts of unlawful competition. 
 
(4) The decision granting the license shall specify the scope and 
term of the license, according to the purpose for which it was granted. The license shall be subject to termination if the 
conditions for which it was granted cease to exist and their 
recurrence is not likely, with due regards to the lawful interests of the licensee. 
 
(5) The license shall not be exclusive. 
 (6) Each application shall be independently decided. 
 
(7) The owner of the protection document or the holder of a 
certificate of a design hall be awarded a fair compensation. The Committee shall determine the amount of the 
compensation, and the licensee undertakes to pay it. 
 
(b) If the compulsory license is related to a patent of semiconductor technology, 
the purpose of the license shall be fo r public non-commercial purposes only 
or to control acts concerning whic h a decision or judgment is issued 
declaring them to be acts of unlawful competition.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 13 
 
 
  (c) If the patent involves a significant te chnological advance with a considerable 
economic value, which requires the expl oitation of another patent, the City 
may grant that owner of the protection  document a compulsory license to 
exploit the other patent. In such a case  the compulsory license shall not be 
assigned unless the other patent is a ssigned. The owner of the other patent 
shall be entitled to a counter license  from the compulsory licensee, in 
accordance with reasonable conditions. 
 
Article Twenty Five: 
 
(a) The City may grant a compulsory license  to a third party to exploit a plant 
variety patented by a plant patent, upon an application submitted to it in 
accordance with the following: 
(1) The compulsory license is necessary to protect public interest. 
(2) The applicant for the compulsory license being able financially and 
technically. 
(3) Failure of the applicant to obtain a licen se from the owner of the plant patent 
at reasonable terms. 
(4) The elapse of three years between the date of granting the plant patent and 
the date of applying for the compulsory license. 
(5) The compulsory license shall not be rest ricted to performing all or some of 
the acts referred to in Article 56 of this Law to meet the needs of the local market. 
(6) The owner of the patent shall be awarded a fair compensation. The 
Committee shall determine the amount of compensation, and the licensee shall undertake to pay it. 
 
(b) The City may instruct the owner of the plant patent to provide the holder of a 
compulsory license with the required qu antity of propagation material for the 
use of the compulsory license in a reasonable fashion. 
 
(c) In other than exceptional circumstances, the compulsory license shall not be granted 
for a period less than two years or more than four years. The City may extend the IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
Page 14  
 
  term for additional periods, upon veri fying that the grounds for granting the 
compulsory license still exist.  
 
Article Twenty Six: 
If a compulsory license is granted for a pa tented subject matter the beneficiary of the 
compulsory license may not assign it to others, unless the assignment includes all or part of 
the firm benefiting from the license or its good will. The City’s approval of the assignment is 
required; otherwise, it shall be null and void . If the City approves such assignment, the 
assignee becomes liable for the obligations assu med by the first beneficiary prior to the 
approval of the assignment.  
Article Twenty Seven: 
The City may amend the decision to grant th e compulsory license if need arises. The 
owner of the protection document or the bene ficiary of the compulsory license may request 
the City to make this amendment if its pre- requisites are fulfilled. The reasons for the 
decision of the City to amend the license or to reject the request must be stated. 
Article Twenty Eight: 
The City shall cancel the compulsory license in the following cases: 
(a) If the beneficiary of the license fails to  exploit it in a way that satisfies the 
Kingdom’s needs, within two years from  the grant of the license, renewable 
for an equal period, if it is proved that there is a legitimate cause. 
(b) If the beneficiary of the compulsory lic ense fails to pay the due fees within 
ninety days from the due date, incl uding the compensations to which the 
owner of the protection document is en titled, as stipulated in the decision 
granting the license. 
(c) If the beneficiary of the compulsory license fails to observe any condition 
necessary for granting of the license.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Twenty Nine:  
The beneficiary of the compulsory licens e may relinquish the license by a written 
request to the City. However, the relinquis hment becomes effective from the date of 
approval of the City. 
Article Thirty : 
Decisions of compulsory license, its amendm ent, withdrawal, transference to others 
and relinquishment shall be ente red in the records of the Directorate, published in the 
Gazette and notified to the owner of the protection document. 
Article Thirty One: 
The owner of the protection document ma y relinquish it by submitting a written 
request to the City. The relinquishment may be  confined to one or more of the stated 
elements of protection. However, relinquishmen t of the protection document, in case of 
compulsory license, shall only be  accepted with a written consent of the beneficiary of the 
license, or the proof of the existence of compelling circumstanc es justifying this 
relinquishment. The relinquishment  shall be registered and published in the Gazette, and it 
shall not be effective against a third party except from the date of publication. 
Article Thirty Two: 
Any party with interest may challenge th e decision of granting of a protection 
document before the Committee, and seek tota l or partial revocati on, relying upon the 
violation of the stipulated conditions for granting the protection document. The owner of 
the protection document shall include the benefici ary of the license as a party to the lawsuit; 
otherwise, the latter may interfere on his ow n. The Committee may order to enter any party 
with interest, and the Implementing Regulati ons shall specify the grounds upon which the 
request for the revocation of  any protection document shall be based. 
Article Thirty Three: 
A judgment of total or partial invalidity of the decision granting the protection 
document renders the decision null and void fr om the date of issuance, within the scope of IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
Page 16  
 
  what is nullified. However, the decision to nu llify the protection document shall not imply a 
refund of the sums paid for the license to expl oit it, unless the licensee proves that what he 
has gained, as a result of the license, is not equal to what he has paid, in which case he may 
recover the amount exceeding the gain he re ceived. The decision of annulment of granting 
the protection document shall be published afte r its issuance, and shall be effective vis-à-vis 
a third party from the date of publication. 
Article Thirty Four: 
Any act of exploitation provided for in th e special provisions governing each of the 
protection subject matters, performed by any  person in the Kingdom without a written 
consent of the owner of the protection docume nt recorded with the Directorate, shall be 
deemed an infringement on the subject matter of  protection. At the request of the owner of 
the protection document, and any party wi th interest, the Committee shall grant an 
injunction to prevent the infringement in ad dition to the necessary damages, and it may 
impose a fine upon the infringer not exceed ing one hundred thousand riyals. The maximum 
fine shall be doubled in case of repetition. If  the Committee sees that the infringement calls 
for the punishment of imprisonment, the infrin ger shall be referred from the start to the 
Board of Grievances. The Committee may take the necessary prompt measures it deems 
necessary to prevent the damages resulting from the infringement. 
The decision issued by the Committee in this  case shall be published in the Official 
Gazette, the Gazette and two daily newspapers, at the expense of the party against whom the decision is issued. The provis ion of this article shall be applied, without prejudice, to any 
harsher punishment provided for in any other law. 
Article Thirty Five: 
(a) A committee shall be formed of three la w specialists and two technical experts 
whose grade shall not be lower than grade twelve.  
(b)  The members shall be nominated by the President of the City.  
(c)  The formation of the Committee shall be purs uant to a resolution by the Council of 
Ministers for a term of three years renewable fo r one time only. The resolution shall appoint 
one of the law specialists as chairman of the Committee.   IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Thirty Six: 
(a) The Committee shall have jurisd iction over the following:  
(1) All disputes and appeals against de cisions issued in connection with 
protection documents. 
(2)  Penal lawsuits for violations of the provisions of this Law and its 
Implementing Regulations.    
(b) The litigants shall be notified of the lawsui ts filed with the Committee, in accordance 
with the Implementing Regulations.  
Article Thirty Seven: 
Decisions of the Committee shall be issued  by majority vote, provided that the 
grounds for the decisions are stated, and thei r text is read in a public session. The 
Committee shall not refuse to issue a decision in  the lawsuit on the ground that there is no 
provision to govern the dispute in the Law or the Implementing Regulations. In that case 
the Committee shall refer to the general rules ob served in the Kingdom. An appeal against 
any decision issued by the Committee may be  brought before the Board of Grievances 
within sixty days from the date of notification of the decision. 
Article Thirty Eight: 
The Committee may contact the government bodies concerned and request any 
explanation and information it deems necessary.  The City shall provide the Committee with 
all documents and papers relating to applications  or subject matters of protection in dispute, 
whenever requested to do so by the Committee.  
Article Thirty Nine: 
The Committee may seek the assistance of di fferent expert bodies for whatever it 
deems necessary of the technical matters referre d to it, and it shall determine the litigants 
liable for the expenses incurred.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
Page 18  
 
  Article Forty: 
Reviewing of the protection documents and any related information registered with 
the Directorate may be allowed free of charge . Any person may obtain copies therefrom, 
upon payment of the required fees. 
Article Forty One: 
Employees of the Directorate and member s of the Committee shall not disclose 
technical information relating to the protection  applications of which they become cognizant 
in their capacity to any person, unless such pers on is officially authorized to receive that 
information in accordance with the rules appl icable in the Kingdom. They shall also not 
disclose such information to the public, or us e it in any way. This undertaking continues 
after the end of their service. 
Employees of the Directorate and members of the Committee may not obtain any of 
the protection documents or deal in any of the rights relating to them during their service 
and for two years after the end of service. 
Article Forty Two: 
Fees payable under the provisions of this  Law shall be determ ined in accordance 
with the Table attached hereto, which may be amended by a resolution of the Council of 
Ministers upon the recommendation of the President of the City. 
 
Chapter Two: 
Special Provisions Governing Patents 
Article Forty Three: 
A patent may be issued on an invention, in  accordance with the provisions of this 
Law, if it is new, involves an inventive step , and capable of industrial application. The 
invention may be a product, a process or relates to either.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 19 
 
 
  Article Forty Four:  
(a) An invention is new if it is not anticipated by  prior art. In this respect, prior art means 
all that is disclosed to the public anywhere by means of written or oral disclosure, by 
use or by any other way through which know ledge of the invention is realized. This 
has to be prior to the filing date of the pate nt application or the priority application. 
The disclosure of the invention to the public shall not count if it takes place during the 
priority period. The Regulations shall spec ify other cases of invention disclosure 
which do not fall within the meaning of prior art and the provisions governing 
temporary protection of inventions. 
(b) An invention is deemed to involve an inventiv e step if, with regard to prior art related 
to the patent application, it is not obvious to a person with ordinary skills in the art. 
(c) An invention is deemed industrially applicab le if it can be manufactured or used in 
any type of industry or agriculture, in cluding handicrafts, fishing and services. 
Article Forty Five:  
In the application of provisions of this La w, the following shall not be regarded as 
inventions: 
(a) Discoveries, scientific theori es and mathematical methods. 
(b) Schemes, rules and methods of conducting  commercial activities, exercising pure 
mental activities or playing a game. 
(c) Plants, animals and processes – which are most ly biological – used for the production 
of plants or animals, with the exception of  micro-organisms, non- biological and 
microbiology processes. 
(d) Methods of surgical or ther apeutic treatment of human or animal body and methods 
of diagnosis applied to human or animal bodi es, with the exception of products used 
in any of these methods. IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Forty Six: 
The application shall relate to a single invent ion or to a group of integrated parts that 
form a single inventive concept. The applicant, before a decision to grant him a patent is 
made, may divide his application into more th an one, provided that none of them shall 
deviate from what was disclosed in the original  application. The date of filing the original 
application or the date of priority shall be  deemed to be the date of filing of these 
applications. 
Article Forty Seven: 
The owner of the protection document may initiate an action before the Committee 
against any person who infringes his invention by exploiting it in the Kingdom without his 
consent. The following shall be deemed  as exploitation of the invention: 
(a) If it is a product: Its manufacture, sale, offe ring for sale, use, storage or its importation 
for any of these purposes.  
(b) If it is a process: The use of the process, or performing any of the acts referred to in 
the pervious paragraph, in relation to the product which is directly obtained by the 
use of this process.  
However, the owner of the protection docu ment’s right shall not preclude others 
from exploiting his invention in non-commercial activities relating to scientific research. 
Article Forty Eight: 
Subject to the legitimate interests of the defendant in protecting his industrial and 
commercial secrets, if the subject matter of the pa tent claimed to be infringed is a process to 
manufacture a certain product, the defendant mu st prove that the identical product was not 
manufactured by this process without the cons ent of the owner of the protection document, 
if one of the following two conditions is satisfied: 
(a) Where the product obtained through a patented process is a new product.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 21 
 
 
  (b) Where there is a substantial probability t hat the identical product was manufactured 
through the patented process, and the owne r of the protection document was unable 
to determine the method actually used, by ex erting reasonable efforts in this respect. 
 
Chapter Three 
Provisions Governing Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits. 
Article Forty Nine: 
 An application for registration of a layout  design of an integrated circuit may be 
filed, if the design has not been commercially exploited before or was subject to commercial 
exploitation for a period not exceeding two years in any part of the world.  
Article Fifty: 
The certificate of layout design shall be grant ed, if the layout design is original; i.e., a 
result of its creator’s own intellectual effort , and is not commonplace among creators of 
designs and manufacturers of integrated circuits at the time of its creation. As to a design 
that consists of a combination of elements and   interconnections that are commonplace, it 
shall be deemed original if the whole combination is original.  
Article Fifty One: 
The owner of the certificate of design may initiate an action before the Committee 
against any person who infringes his design by exploiting it without his consent inside the 
Kingdom. The performance of any of the following  acts shall be deemed to be exploitation 
of the design: 
(a) Reproducing the whole design or any original  part of it, whether by incorporation in 
an integrated circuit or otherwise. Acts rela ting to personal purposes, or scientific 
purposes such as research, analysis, educat ion or evaluation shall not be deemed to 
be infringement. 
(b) Importing, selling or distributing a design, or  any integrated circuit in which a design 
is incorporated. It shall also be deemed to  be infringement the performance of any of 
the acts referred to in this paragraph in re lation to any article incorporating such an 
integrated circuit, if this circuit co ntains an unlawfully reproduced design. IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Article Fifty Two:  
 The rights conferred by the certificate of design are confined to acts performed for 
commercial purposes. The owner of the certificate shall not be  entitled to exercise his rights in 
relation to an identical original design indepe ndently created by another party. These rights 
do not extend to any other original design cr eated on the basis of analyzing or evaluating 
the protected design, nor to any integrated circ uit in which the other design is incorporated.  
Article Fifty Three: 
Acts mentioned in paragraph (b) of Article Fifty One shall not be deemed an 
infringement, if exercised or ordered to be performed by a person who does not know or 
has no reasonable grounds to know - when ac quiring the integrated circuit or the article 
incorporating such circuit– that it incorpor ated an unlawfully reproduced design. He may 
perform these acts in relation to the stock on hand or ordered before he had received a  
sufficient notice that the design was unlawfu lly reproduced. He shall, however, pay the 
owner of the certificate of design a fair co mpensation estimated by the Committee on the 
basis of licenses granted pursuant to contractual negotiation. 
 
Chapter Four 
Provisions Governing the Protection of New Plant Varieties 
Article Fifty Four: 
The plant variety shall be patentable if it  is new, distinct, uniform and stable, and 
proceedings have been taken to designate a denomination for it. 
Article Fifty Five: 
(a) The plant variety shall be deemed new if, at  the date of filing the application or the 
date of the claimed priority, propagating or harvested materials of the variety have 
not been sold or otherwise made availabl e to others by the breeder or with his 
consent, for the purposes of exploiting th e variety in accordance with the following: 
(1) In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for more than one year.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  (2) In other countries for more than four year s or, in case of trees or vines, for 
more than six years. 
(b) The plant variety shall be deemed distinct if it is clearly distinguishable from any 
other variety whose existence is a matter of  common knowledge at the time of filling 
the application or the time of the claimed priority. The Regulations shall specify the 
cases in which the existence of the plant variety is a matter of common knowledge. 
(c) The plant variety shall be deemed uniform if, subject to the variation that may be 
expected from the particular features of it s propagation, it is sufficiently uniform in 
its basic characteristics. 
(d) The plant variety shall be deemed stable if  its basic characteristics remain unchanged 
after repeated propagation or at the end of each given propagation cycle. 
(e) The plant variety shall be named by specifying its genus and species, and the 
denomination must enable people to identify it. 
Article Fifty Six: 
(a) The plant owner of the protection document may initiate an action before the 
Committee against any person who infringes the patented variety by exploiting the 
propagating material of the patented variet y without his consent inside the Kingdom. 
The following shall be deemed to be exploi tation of the propagating material of the 
patented variety: 
(1) Producing or propagating it. 
(2) Conditioning it for purposes of propagation. 
(3) Exporting it. 
(4) Importing it. 
(5) Offering it for sale, selling it or  any other sort of marketing. 
(6) Stocking it for any of the above purposes. IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  (b) Rights stipulated in paragraph (a) of this  Article include harvested material of the 
variety, including the whole plant or part thereof obtained by unlawful use of the 
propagating material of the variety. This applies where the owner of the protection 
document of the plant patent was not given a reasonable chance to exercise his rights 
in relation to the propagating material of the said variety. 
(c) Rights stipulated in paragraphs (a) and (b) extend to the varieties derived essentially 
from the protected variety if it is not possibl e to distinguish such varieties clearly, in 
accordance with paragraph (b) of Article Fi fty Five of this Law, from the said 
protected variety, or that the production of these varieties requires the repeated use of 
the said protected variety. 
(d) Rights stipulated in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this Article shall not extend to acts 
performed for non-commercial personal purpos es or for experimental purposes or for 
purposes of breeding new varieties. 
Article Fifty Seven: 
The right conferred by the plant patent sha ll not be restricted by any measure taken 
to regulate the operations of producing the ma terials of plant varieties, their monitoring, 
marketing, importation and exportation. 
Article Fifty Eight: 
The owner of the plant patent is obligated to do the following: 
(a) Maintain the protected variety or, when nece ssary, its hereditary components for the 
whole duration of the term of protection. 
(b) Provide the City, upon its request, and with in the specified period, with information, 
documents or necessary materials to pr ove his maintenance of  the variety. 
(c) Propose a suitable denomination for the variety, within the specified period, in case 
its denomination was cancelled by the City.  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 25 
 
 
  (d) Provide the City when necessary, upon its request and within the specified period, 
with reasonable samples of the protected va riety or its hereditary components for the 
following purposes. 
(1) Establishing or renewing the o fficial sample of the variety. 
(2) Undertaking a comparative test of other varieties for purposes of protection. 
In case the owner of the plant patent does  not observe any of these obligations, the 
plant patent shall be forfeited after notifying him of the necessity of fulfilling his obligation 
and giving him a reasonable grac e period to fulfill the obligation he has violated. In all cases 
the forfeiture of the plant patent shall be entered in the register and published in the 
Gazette. The Regulations shall specify the grace periods stated in this Article. 
 
Chapter Five 
Special Provisions Governing Industrial Designs 
Article Fifty Nine: 
The industrial design certificate shall be gr anted, if it is novel and has features that 
distinguish it from known industrial designs. Th e industrial design shall be deemed novel if 
it was not disclosed to the public through pub lication anywhere in a tangible form, by use or 
by any other way, prior to the date of filing the registration application or the priority 
application. Disclosure of the in dustrial design to the public shall have no effect if it occurs 
during the priority period. The Regulations s hall determine the other cases of disclosure 
which have no effect, as well as the provisions governing temporary protection of industrial 
designs. 
Article Sixty: 
The owner of the industrial design certif icate may initiate an action before the 
Committee against any person who infringes the industrial design by exploiting it for 
commercial purposes without his consent within  the Kingdom through manufacture, sale or 
importation of a product that includes or re presents a wholly or substantially copied 
industrial design.  
 IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  Chapter Six 
Concluding Provisions 
Article Sixty One: 
Without prejudice to what Article Thirty Fo ur stipulates, any party that violates any 
of the provisions provided for in this Law sha ll be punished with a fine not exceeding fifty 
thousand riyals, and the maximum limit s hall be doubled in case of repetition. 
Article Sixty Two: 
Grace periods and time limits stated in this Law shall be in accordance with what is 
provided for by the international agreements in this respect. 
Article Sixty Three: 
The President of the City shall issue the Implementing Regulations for this Law, 
within one hundred eighty days from the date  of its coming into effect. They shall be 
published in the Official Gazette. He s hall also issue the necessary decisions for 
implementing the provisions of this Law.  
Article Sixty Four: 
This Law shall replace the Patent Law issu ed by the Royal Decree No. (M/38) dated 
10/6/1409H, and its provisions shall govern the pa tent applications and the patents in force, 
and shall supersede all provisions that are inconsistent therewith. 
Article Sixty Five: 
This Law shall be published in the Official  Gazette and shall come into force after 
thirty days from the date of publication. 
 
  
  IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
 Page 27 
 
 
   
Table of fees referred to in Article Forty Two  
 
No. Fees Patent Industrial Designs  Designs of 
Integrated Circuits New Plants 
Varieties 
Individuals Establishment  Individuals Establishme
nt Individuals Establishment  Individuals Establishment  1 Registration 
application 
400 800 150 300 500 1000 500 1000 
2 Change or 
transfer of ownership 200 400 75 150 500 1000 500 1000 
3 Amendment 
or addition to 
the 
application 100 200 50 100 250 500 100 200 
4 Obtaining a 
copy of the application 
or certificate 50 100 50 100 50 100 50 100 
5 Registration 
of license contracts 400 800 150 300 500 1000 500 1000 
6 Grant of 
compulsory 
license 4000 8000 1500 3000 2500 5000 2500 5000 
7 Grant and 
publication 500 1000 175 350 500 1000 500 1000 
8 Annual fees         
8/1 First year 250 500 150 300 500 1000 500 1000 
8/2 Second year 500 1000 150 300 750 1500 500 1000 IP/N/1/SAU/I/3 
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  8/3 Third year 750 1500 300 600 1000 2000 750 1500 
8/4 Fourth year 1000 2000 300 600 1250 2500 750 1500 
8/5 Fifth year 1250 2500 450 900 1500 3000 1000 2000 
8/6 Sixth year 1500 3000 450 900 1750 3500 1000 2000 
8/7 Seventh year 1750 3500 600 1200 2000 4000 1250 2500 
8/8 Eighth year 2000 4000 600 1200 2250 4500 1250 2500 
8/9 Ninth year 2250 4500 750 1500 2500 5000 1500 3000 
8/10 Tenth year 2500 5000 750 1500 2750 5500 1500 3000 
8/11 Eleventh year 2750 5500     1750 3500 
8/12 Twelfth year 3000 6000     1750 3500 
8/13 Thirteenth year  3250 6500     2000 4000 
8/14 Fourteenth year 3500 7000     2000 4000 
8/15 Fifteenth year 3750 7500     2250 4500 
8/16 Sixteenth year  4000 8000     2250 4500 
8/17 Seventeenth year  4250 8500     2500 5000 
8/18 Eighteenth year 4500 9000     2500 5000 
8/19 Nineteenth year  4750 9500     2750 5500 
8/20 Twentieth year 5000 10000     2750 5500 
8/21 Twenty first year to twenty fift h year for protection of trees 3500 7000 
 
__________ (Continuation: Table… )