WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION  
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE  
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIO 
IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
16 February 2012 
 (12-0889) 
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 
 
FINLAND 
  The present document reproduces the text
1 of the Act on the Right in Employee Inventions, as 
notified by Finland on 10 February 2011 unde r Article 63.2 of the Agreement (see 
document IP/N/1/FIN/3). 
 
 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 
 
FINLANDE 
  Le présent document contient le texte
1 de la Loi sur le droit a ux inventions de salariés, 
notifiée par la Finlande le 10 février 2011 au titre de l'article 63:2 de l'Accord (voir le 
document IP/N/1/FIN/3).  
 
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 
 
FINLANDIA 
 
 En el presente documento se reproduce el texto
1 de la Ley relativa al derecho sobre las 
invenciones de los empleados, notificada por Fi nlandia el 10 de febrero de 2011 en virtud del 
párrafo 2 del artículo 63 del Acuerdo (véase el documento IP/N/1/FIN/3). 
                                                      
1 In English only./En anglais seulement./En inglés solamente.   
   IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
 Page 3 
 
 
   
    
 
    
 
 
 
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWS 
AND REGULATIONS 
(in English) 
   
Unofficial translations 
 
 
  
PATENTS (Including plant variety protection and utility model protection 
and related legal instruments) 
   
   IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
 Page 5 
 
 
  ACT ON THE RIGHT IN EMPLOYEE INVENTIONS  
 (Unofficial translation) 
 
(656/1967; amendments up to 1078/2000 included) An updated translation including the latest 
amendments shall be submitted at later stage. 
 
Section 1  
 
The provisions of this Act apply to inventions pate ntable in Finland and made by a person employed 
by another, that is, by an employee. This Act shall apply correspondingly to persons employed in the 
public service.   If the employer claims a right in an employee's inve ntion which restricts the employee's right to apply 
for or obtain a patent for the invention, such an inven tion shall in that respect be held to be patentable 
in Finland, unless the employer gives probable r easons for obstacles to the grant of a patent. 
(526/1988)   A teacher and a researcher of a university, college or a similar institution of higher education shall 
not, in such capacity, be regarded as an employee w ithin the meaning of this Act. This Act shall, 
however, apply to a teacher at a military educationa l institution who holds an office or a post in the 
Defence Forces. (526/1988)  
 This Act is not applicable to a person who is in military service under the Conscription Act. 
(526/1988)   
For the purposes of this Act, a consolidated corporation means a consolidated corporation, a 
municipality and a joint municipal board under se ction 6 of Chapter 1 of the Accounting Act 
(1336/1997) as well as enterprises subject to its author ity in the manner referred to in section 5 and 
section 6(2) of Chapter 1 of the Accounting Act. (1078/2000)   Section 2  (526/1988)  
 
The provisions of this Act shall be applied insofa r as nothing else has been agreed upon or can be 
considered to appear from the employment co ntract or from other circumstances. However, 
contractual terms incompatible with section 3, section 6(2), section 7(1) and (3), section 7a, 
section 8(2) or section 9 are void.  
 
Section 3  
 
An employee shall have the same right in his inve ntions as other inventors, unless otherwise provided 
in this Act or any other Act.  
Section 4  (1078/2000)  
 If an invention has ensued from an  employee's activity in the perfo rmance of his duties or essentially 
as a result of using his experiences gained in the en terprise or institution of his employer or in an 
enterprise or an institution belonging to the same co nsolidated corporation, the employer may acquire 
the right in the invention, in whole or in part, if the use of the invention falls within the field of 
activity of the employer's enterprise or of an  enterprise belonging to the same consolidated 
corporation. If the invention is the result of a t ask assigned to him more specifically, the employer 
may acquire the right even if the use of the inve ntion is not within the field of activity of the 
employer's enterprise or of an enterprise belonging to the same consolidated corporation. 2  IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
Page 6  
 
   
If an invention the use of which falls  within the field of activity of the employer's enterprise or of an 
enterprise belonging to the same consolidated corporation but which has been conceived in 
connection with the employment other than those refe rred to in the first subsection, the employer is 
entitled to acquire the right to use the invention.  
 
Should the employer wish to acquire a more compre hensive right in an invention referred to in the 
second subsection than that provided fo r therein or should he wish to acquire the right in an invention 
which has been conceived without any connection to the employment but the use of which falls within 
the field of activity of the employer's enterprise or of  an enterprise belonging to the same consolidated 
corporation, the employer shall have priority to ac quire such a right by agreement with the employee.  
 Section 5  (526/1988)  
 An employee who makes an invention referred to in section 4 shall notify the employer of it in writing 
without delay and at the same time shall communicat e such particulars of the invention as to enable 
the employer to understand it. At the employer's re quest the employee shall also inform the employer 
of what he considers to be the connection be tween the employment and the conception of the 
invention.   If the employee, before being bound to the obligati on referred to in subsection 1 above, has become 
aware of the field of activity of an enterprise bel onging to the same consolidated corporation with the 
employer, which essentially differs from the employer 's field of activity, the employee's notification 
obligation shall also apply to inventions made in the field of activity of the afore-mentioned 
enterprise. (1078/2000)   Section 6  
 
An employer who wishes to acquire the right in an  invention in accordance w ith section 4(1) or (2) 
shall, no later than within four months from his rece ipt of the notification provided for in section 5, 
notify the employee in writing that he will claim a sp ecified right in the invention. The employer shall 
also exercise the priority given to him under section 4(3) within the same period of time.  
 
During the four months following the receipt of the notification under section 5, the employee may not dispose of an invention referred to in section 4 without his employer's permission in writing or 
make any disclosure which would render the inventi on public or would enable it to be used for the 
benefit of another person. After the notification has been made in  accordance with section 5, the 
employee may, however, apply for a patent for the in vention in Finland. In this case he may not file 
the application with the patent authority before one month has elapsed from the day he notified the 
employer in writing of his intention to apply for a patent for the invention. (1078/2000)   
Section 7  
 Where an employer acquires the right in an invention made by an employee by virtue of section 4 or 
on other grounds, the employee is entitled to reasona ble compensation from the employer even if it 
was agreed otherwise before the invention was made.   When determining the amount of the compensation, par ticular attention shall be paid to the value of 
the invention, the scope of the right which the employer acquires, as well as to the terms and 
conditions of the employment contract of th e employee and the contribution which other 
circumstances connected with the employment had to the conception of the invention.  
  IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
 Page 7 
 
 
  Where an action for compensation has not been in stituted within ten years from the employer's 
notification of claiming the right in the invention, the right of action shall lapse. If a patent for the 
invention has been applied for, the action may, howe ver, always be instituted within one year from the 
grant of the patent. (526/1988)    
Section 7a  (526/1988)  
 The employer shall be obligated to provide the employee with information necessary for the 
determination of the compensation for the inventi on, specifically the information on the filing and 
grant of the patents for the invention, as well as on the production quantities and selling prices of the 
products conforming to the invention, or of the pr oducts manufactured by a process conforming to the 
invention.   The employee shall be obligated to provide the employer with the necessary information on the 
invention and its utilisation.  
 
Section 8  
 
Where an application for a patent is filed durin g the six months following the termination of the 
employment for an invention to which section 4 shou ld be applied if it had been conceived during the 
course of employment, the invention shall be d eemed to have been made during the period of 
employment unless the inventor can give probable r easons why the invention had been made after the 
employment had terminated.   Any agreement between an employer and an employee that limits the employee's right to dispose of 
an invention made more than one year after the termination of the employment shall be void.  
 
Section 9  
 
Notwithstanding any provision in a court judgmen t or contract concerning compensation under 
section 7, the court may order otherwise if this is required by a substantial change in circumstances. 
An employee shall not, however, be obligated to refund a compensation already paid.  
 
The provisions of the Act on legal acts under the law of property (228/1929) shall apply to the adjustment of an unreasonable condition in a contract  concerning the right in an employee invention. 
(961/1982)   
Section 10  (526/1988)  
 Anyone who by virtue of this Act learns about an  invention, a trade or professional secret or the 
financial status of another person shall not without authorisation disclose to any outside third party 
this information.   
Section 11  (526/1988)  
 An Employee Invention Committee shall be institut ed to give opinions on matters concerning the 
application of this Act; the Committee shall consist of a chairman and eight members.   
The chairman and two members shall be appointed  by the Government for a fixed term, from among 
persons who are considered not to represent either employer or employee interests. The chairman and one of the two members referred to, who shall at the same time act as vice-chairman, shall have the qualifications of a judge and be familiar with the work of a judge. The other member shall have a 
degree in engineering and be familiar with patent issues.  IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
Page 8  
 
   
The other members, who shall possess practical work ing experience and be familiar with invention 
activities and of whom three shall represent the employers and three the employees, shall be 
appointed by the Government for two years at a time  at the proposal of the respective organisations.  
 
Each member of the Committee shall have an alte rnate member, appointed by the Government, with 
the qualifications required of a member.   Section 11a  (526/1988)  
 
An opinion from the Inventions Committee may be sought by employers and employees as well as by 
a court of law when a dispute over an invention has been brought before it. The National Board of 
Patents and Registration of Finland sh all also have the same right if it is handling an application for a 
patent for the invention. The party concerned shall notify the Committee whether he intends to 
observe the opinion. The notification shall be subm itted within two months from the end of the month 
when the party concerned received a copy of the opinion. (1078/2000)  
 The Committee may also function as an arbitration tribunal if the employer and employee have so agreed. In this case the provisions of the Arbitrati on Act shall apply, unless otherwise provided in this 
Act.   
The costs ensued from the Comm ittee's activities shall be paid from public funds. Where the 
Committee functions as an arbitration tribunal, the Mi nistry of Trade and Industry shall determine the 
honorarium of the chairman, the members and the secretary.     The Committee shall be entitled to obtain the info rmation necessary for giving the opinion from the 
employer, an enterprise belonging to the same consolidated corporation and from the employee. The 
Committee shall issue its opinion and arbitration award, unless it is in whole or in part against the secrecy obligations provided for in the Act on th e Openness of Government Activities (621/1999). 
Where a patent application concerning the employ ee invention is pending, the opinion may not be 
published before the documents have become availabl e to the public under section 22 of the Patents 
Act (1078/2000)  
 
Further provisions on the Committee may be given by Government decree.   Section 12  (1698/1995)  
 
The District Court of Helsinki shall have jurisdic tion in disputes concerning employers' or employees' 
rights under this Act. In such proceedings, the provi sions on court proceedings in patent matters shall 
apply where appropriate.   The District Court of Helsinki shall be the competent court if the dispute concerns the right in an invention within the meaning of this Act for which a European patent referred to in the European 
Patent Convention (Finnish Treaty Series 8/96) has been applied and if the employee at the time of 
making this invention principally was working in Finland. If no State can be indicated where the 
employee principally was working, the District Court of Helsinki shall be the competent court, if the 
employer at the moment the invention was concei ved had in Finland such a place of business with 
which the employee making the invention was employ ed. The matter may be heard at the District 
Court of Helsinki also when the parties to the di spute have, orally or in writing, agreed that the 
District Court of Helsinki is the competent cour t in the matter and where such an agreement is 
permitted in the legislation of the State whose legi slation is applied to the employment contract 
concerned.    IP/N/1/FIN/I/1 
 Page 9 
 
 
  Section 13  
 
Further provisions on the application of this  Act may be given by Government decree.  
 
Section 14  
 
This Act enters into force on 1 January 1968.   This Act does not apply to inventi ons made before 1 January 1968. 
 
 
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