Repeal of Special Law on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights During Martial Law

On May 1, 2025, Law No. 4362-IX related to protection of intellectual property rights, adopted by Ukrainian Parliament on April 16, 2025, was published.

Why is this important?

During the war, a special law (No. 2174-IX) was adopted, which automatically extended the validity of all intellectual property rights that were due to expire during martial law. This extension applied even to rights that, under existing legislation, were not subject to renewal.

Such an approach led to undesirable consequences:

• the artificial prolongation of monopolies, particularly in the pharmaceutical sector;
• obstacles to the entry of generic medicines into the market;
• maintenance of high prices and restriction of competition.

The new Law No. 4362-IX repeals these provisions and restores the application of standard intellectual property protection rules.

What Has Changed?

• The special regime for the protection of intellectual property rights during martial law has been repealed.
• The general rules for the protection of intellectual property rights that were in place prior to martial law are now restored.

Key Provisions of the New Law:

🔹 Resumption of Time Periods:
The calculation of time periods related to the protection and acquisition of intellectual property rights, which were suspended during martial law, resumes from the date the Law comes into force, taking into account the time that had elapsed before suspension.
Important: the minimum continuation period is 75 days.

🔹 Payment of Fees:

• Fees for registration and other procedural actions, which were not paid during the period of the previous law, will be considered timely paid if they are paid within 75 days of the Law’s effective date.
• This applies to fees under the following laws:
  • On Protection of Rights to Industrial Designs;
  • On Protection of Rights to Trademarks and Service Marks;
  • On Protection of Rights to Topographies of Semiconductor Products;
  • On Protection of Rights to Inventions and Utility Models;
  • On Legal Protection of Geographical Indications;
  • On Protection of Rights to Plant Varieties.

🔹 Annual Maintenance Fees:

• Annual fees for maintaining the validity of patents and certificates that were due during martial law are also considered timely paid if paid within 75 days.
• If such fees are not paid within this period, the intellectual property rights will be terminated retroactively to the date when the payment should have been made.

🔹 Trademark Renewals:

• Payment for the renewal of trademark certificates is allowed within 75 days without loss of rights.
• Upon payment, the certificate will be renewed for an additional 10 years from the end date of the previous term.

🔹 Effective Date:
The Law enters into force on 31 May 2025, 30 days after its official publication.

Key Points for Businesses to Consider

• Review the status of all intellectual property assets — particularly patents and certificates whose validity was due to expire during martial law.
• Assess the need to pay maintenance fees to preserve rights within the newly established timeframes.
• Prepare for the expiration of rights that could not be renewed under normal legal conditions.
• Take into account the updated deadlines for renewing trademark certificates.

The restoration of the general regime of intellectual property protection after an extended period of martial law is a positive step towards stabilizing the legal environment and protecting rightsholders in Ukraine. However, it is crucial for businesses to carefully track all deadlines and requirements to avoid the risk of losing their rights due to procedural errors.