FAQs

It is extremely difficult to enforce patent protection in Myanmar, in absence of a proper Patent law in place. On a positive note, however, Myanmar has acceded to Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, under which it is obliged to comply and implement laws in accordance with the Agreement, no later than 1^st July 2021.

As such, the drafting of laws (include Patent Law) is currently in progress to meet said obligation. It is hoped that the Patent Law in Myanmar be officially enacted and in force in the near future, so that inventors and investors may be assured of protection of their inventions in Myanmar.

Pharmaceutical products are not patentable in Myanmar. Aside from the registry office currently not accepting and processing patent and design applications as of 1 September 2017, please also note that the Decision of the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) of 6 November 2015 does not place any obligations on Myanmar, being a ‘least developed country’, to enforce rights with regard to pharmaceutical products, at least until 1 January 2033.

Yes. It is possible to register a utility model in Myanmar. The three required documents are:

• A Declaration of Ownership
• A Power of Attorney form
• Certified proof of a registered Utility Model national filing in another country

Currently, as Myanmar does not boast an examination system, the only utility models that may be accepted are those that have already been registered in another jurisdiction.

See Myanmar Patent System for further information.

As of February 2018, the  Upper House of Myanmar Parliament has passed the Trademark Law, Industrial Design Law, Patent Law and Copyright Law. However, there still remain certain steps to be made before the laws are fully enacted. The draft law will still have to be submitted for review and approval of the Lower House of the Myanmar Parliament and the Assembly of the Union of Myanmar respectively.

Once they have been approved by the Assembly of the Union, they will be sent to the President for his signature and they will become effective on the day of publication in the Official Gazette.

As such, the current approach would still entail filing declarations of ownership.

In Myanmar, as per local practice, it is advisable but not compulsory to have the client’s ownership of the mark brought to the public’s attention by publication of a Cautionary Notice in a leading newspaper of Myanmar every 3-5 years.

As there are no proper trademark laws implemented in Myanmar as of February 2018, a Cautionary Notice is a way in which the ownership of a mark can be brought to the public’s attention.

In Myanmar, given the lack of case law precedent, mere registration of a trademark is not sufficient to signify ownership.

The right of ownership does not start from the filing date of an application – ownership is determined by the commencement of actual use of the mark.

If an applicant registers their trademark and does not renew it every 3 years, there will be no invalidation of that trademark. The registration of a trademark is valid indefinitely. However, we advise that, once the subject mark is registered, it is published as a “Cautionary Notice” in a Myanmar newspaper, advertising the mark holder’s ownership.

It is also customary (and advisable) to republish the Cautionary Notice every three years to keep third parties on notice of the mark holder’s ownership.