The request for ensuring the validity of a European patent on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria must contain:

1. Request with the title of the invention and the identification data of the applicant for recommendation according to the model of the Patent Office.
2. Translation into Bulgarian of the description, patent claims and drawings of the issued European patent, for which Bulgaria is a designated country.
3. Document for paid fees for publication, the amount of which is determined in the Tariff for fees collected by the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria.

In order to initiate the procedure in the Patent Office, in addition to the obligatory documents, the request must also contain:

• Power of attorney of an industrial property representative, when authorized.

The time limit for filing an application for a European patent shall be 3 months from the publication of the notice of the grant of a European patent in the Official Bulletin of the European Patent Office.

Yes, after an amendment of a European patent, with effect on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria, it is necessary to submit a request for the amendment again within 3 months from the publication B2 / B3, translation into Bulgarian of the reissued European patent and to attach a document for paid fees and a power of attorney, where applicable. In the event that the owner omits this action, the European patent will expire.

The application for a European patent shall be filed directly with the Patent Office, by fax, e-mail, postal operator or electronically through the Patent Office Portal.

For all actions related to the filing of an application, the proceedings in the Patent Office, the issuance of a protection document and the publications, fees are paid according to the current Tariff of Fees collected by the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria.

Bibliographic information on the European patent shall be published in the Official Bulletin of the Patent Office as soon as a decision has been taken to ensure the validity of the European patent.

Adjustments can be submitted at any time and after payment of the relevant fee.

The validity of the issued patent is 20 years from the date of filing the application. The validity of the European patent is maintained by paying a fee for the respective patent year in the previous patent year. Fees for maintaining the validity of the European patent for the period from the filing of the application to the grant of the patent shall be paid to the European Patent Office.  If the holder of the European patent with effect on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria has failed to pay the respective patent year in time, he has the opportunity within 6 months from its expiration to pay the due fee with a fine, which will keep the patent. If this period is also missed, the owner has the opportunity to restore the European patent within an additional 6 months by paying the corresponding fee in double amount and in addition it is necessary to pay an additional fixed amount to restore the European patent.

The due fees can be paid at the cash desk in the Office, by bank transfer, by standard bank transfer, as well as by electronic banking. The bank account is indicated on the website of the Office.

The issuance of a duplicate is part of the administrative services provided by the Patent Office. The application shall be filed in free form or in a form of the Patent Office by the holder of the registration, by paying a corresponding fee under the Tariff for fees collected by the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria.