Registry of Geographical Indications will come into operation on 1 April 2019

25 Mar 2019

The Registry of Geographical Indications will come into operation on 1 April 2019. Applications for registration for geographical indications will also be accepted from 1 April 2019.
 
An earlier update on the establishment of the Registry may be accessed here.
 
Stages which a successful geographical indication (“GI”) application can expect to go through
 
(a) The Registry will check that the application meets the filing requirements.
 
(b) The application will be examined to determine whether the GI is registrable in accordance with the law. This process includes searching the registers of geographical indications and trade marks for earlier GIs and trade marks which conflict with the GI applied for. 
 
(c) After the examination is completed, the application will be accepted and published in the Geographical Indications Journal.
 
Any interested party may oppose the registration of a GI (by submitting a notice of opposition accompanied by a statement of grounds and supporting evidence) within six weeks after the date of the publication.
 
(d) If there is no opposition or if opposition proceedings are withdrawn or decided in favour of the applicant, the GI will be registered. A certificate of registration will be issued to the applicant.
 
The average processing time from the date on which the application for registration is filed to the registration of the GI is about nine months.
 
Upon successful registration, the GI will be conferred a protection period of ten years from the date of registration. This registration may be renewed every ten years.