# Patent Registration

> Covers preparing patent and utility model applications, the differences between protection types and the TÜRKPATENT procedure.

- Canonical: https://www.webx.net.tr/en/hizmetler/patent-tescil
- Language: en
- Last updated: 2026-10-11
- Publisher: Webx Marka Patent ve Fikri Sınai Haklar Danışmanlık A.Ş. (https://www.webx.net.tr/)

_Machine-readable copy of the page above. The canonical HTML page is authoritative; fees and regulations may change — check the last-updated date._

---

Protect your inventions and innovations with patents before your competitors. Expert support from filing to certificate.

- 17+ Years of Experience
- 98.3% Success Rate
- PCT Network in 130+ Countries
- GDPR/KVKK Compliant
- SSL Security
- Digital Client Portal

**Every passing day you risk your priority right.** A patent application must be filed before the invention is disclosed publicly.

## In Brief: What Is Patent Registration?

Patent registration is the process of protecting a new technical invention involving an inventive step before the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office. An examined patent is valid for 20 years and a utility model for 10 years. The process begins with technical analysis and a search report, passes through examination after filing and concludes with a patent certificate.

Design registration, meanwhile, protects the visual and aesthetic appearance of a product separately, for up to 25 years.

## Which Patent Type Suits You?

- **Examined Patent** — The strongest invention protection. 20-year term. For new technical solutions, drug formulas, mechanical systems.
- **Utility Model** — Fast registration, 10-year protection. Ideal for small technical innovations and practical improvements.
- **Design Registration** — Protects the visual and aesthetic features of a product. 5+5 year terms (up to 25 years). For packaging, furniture and textile designs.

## Patent, Utility Model and Design Registration Compared

The differences between the three types of protection under Industrial Property Law No. 6769, in one table. They can be combined for the same product: the technical solution is protected by a patent or utility model, and the appearance by design registration.

**Patent, utility model and design registration: subject matter, requirements, Office examination, term of protection, official fee items and best fit**

| Criterion | Patent | Utility Model | Design Registration |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| What does it protect? | A technical invention: a product or a process | A technical invention, excluding processes and chemical, biological, pharmaceutical and biotechnological inventions | The appearance of a product resulting from its lines, shape, colour, texture or material |
| Requirements | Novelty, inventive step, industrial applicability (IPL Art. 82) | Novelty and industrial applicability; no inventive step required (IPL Art. 142) | Novelty and individual character (IPL Art. 56) |
| Office examination | Search report, then substantive examination on request (IPL Art. 98) | Search report; no substantive examination (IPL Art. 143) | Formal examination, registration and publication; 3-month opposition period from publication (IPL Arts. 64–67) |
| Term of protection | 20 years from the filing date; cannot be extended (IPL Art. 101) | 10 years from the filing date; cannot be extended (IPL Art. 101) | 5 years; renewable in five-year terms up to 25 years in total (IPL Art. 69) |
| Official fee items | Application, search report and examination report fees; an annual fee every year from the end of the 2nd year | Application and search report fees; an annual fee every year from the end of the 2nd year | Application fee (charged per additional design), publication fee; a renewal fee every 5 years |
| Best fit | High-value, long-lived technical solutions | Small technical improvements that call for faster, lower-cost protection | The appearance of products such as packaging, furniture and textiles |

Sources: Industrial Property Law No. 6769; TÜRKPATENT patent and design fee schedules. See the schedules for current amounts.

## The Right Protection for Innovation at Every Scale

- **Technology Startups** — Protect your product's technical foundation before your competitors do; investors regard a patent portfolio as security.
- **Manufacturing & Engineering Firms** — Protect your mechanical/electronic innovations quickly with a utility model, or robustly with an examined patent.
- **Universities & R&D Centers** — Register your research output before commercializing it and secure your intellectual property rights.
- **Product Designers** — Protect your visual designs — packaging, furniture, textiles — against imitation with design registration.
- **Exporters** — Protect your invention simultaneously in your target markets (EU, US, Asia) with a PCT application.
- **Individual Inventors** — Register your invention before disclosing it publicly and protect both its novelty and your rights.

## Patent Registration Steps

- 1
  **Technical Analysis**
  We evaluate your invention and analyze its patentability.
- 2
  **Search Report**
  We scan existing patents and prepare the novelty report.
- 3
  **Application Drafting**
  Our expert team prepares technical drawings and descriptions.
- 4
  **TÜRKPATENT Submission**
  We file the official application with the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office.
- 5
  **Examination Follow-up**
  We manage objections and responses during examination.
- 6
  **Patent Certificate**
  The certificate of your granted patent is delivered.

## Frequently Asked Questions

Ask us anything you want to know about patent, utility model or design registration.

- **What is a patent?** — A patent is the official document that gives the owner of a new, inventive and industrially applicable technical invention the right to prevent others from producing, using or selling the invention without permission for 20 years from the filing date. In Türkiye it is obtained before TÜRKPATENT, and the 20-year term cannot be extended. These three requirements are set out in Article 82 of Industrial Property Law No. 6769.
- **What is the difference between a patent and a utility model?** — The main differences between a patent and a utility model are the inventive step requirement, the type of examination and the term of protection. An examined patent is a strong right that requires novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability in full and grants 20 years of protection. A utility model is a lighter form of protection, registered faster on the basis of a search report, without an inventive step or substantive examination, and grants 10 years of protection.
- **Which inventions cannot be patented?** — Scientific theories, mathematical methods, mental acts, business methods, computer programs as such, aesthetic creations and treatment methods cannot be patented. Software-implemented inventions, however, may fall outside this exclusion under certain conditions. A patent protects only technical inventions that are new, involve an inventive step and are industrially applicable; for aesthetic features relating to a product's external appearance, design registration can be considered.
- **How long does a patent application take?** — How long a patent application takes is not fixed; the Industrial Property Law (SMK) sets no overall completion time for patents or utility models. Timing depends on when the search and examination requests are filed and on the notifications received along the way. For an examined patent, the search report, publication of the application at 18 months and the subsequent examination stage make the process markedly longer than for a utility model. We share an estimated timeline at the preliminary assessment.
- **How much does patent registration cost?** — The cost of patent registration is not fixed; it varies with the type of application (examined patent or utility model), the complexity of the technical field and the scope of protection sought. The official fee items are the application, search report and examination report fees for a patent, and the application and search report fees for a utility model; both also require an annual fee every year from the end of the second year. Request a free preliminary assessment for a firm quote.
- **Why choose a utility model registration?** — Utility model registration is preferred because it concludes faster, costs less and requires no inventive step, making it a practical form of protection for small and medium-scale technical improvements. There is no substantive examination and protection lasts 10 years. However, processes and chemical, biological, pharmaceutical and biotechnology inventions cannot be protected by a utility model; for high-value, groundbreaking inventions an examined patent is recommended.
- **Which documents are required for a patent application?** — A patent application requires a technical description of the invention, the patent claims, technical drawings (if any), an abstract and the applicant's identity or tax details. Before filing, the invention's patentability and the right form of protection, that is, patent or utility model, are assessed. Our expert team prepares the technical file together with you and files the application with TÜRKPATENT.
- **Should I file a patent application before telling anyone about my invention?** — Yes, you are strongly advised to file a patent application before disclosing your invention publicly. In the patent system, the novelty requirement means absolute novelty worldwide. If you disclose your invention publicly before filing, through a publication, a trade fair or social media, it may lose its novelty and your application may be refused. When the application is filed, an application number and a priority date are obtained.
- **Is a patent application valid abroad as well?** — No, a patent application filed in Türkiye provides protection in Türkiye only. International protection requires a PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) application or direct national or regional filings with offices such as the EPO or USPTO. Under the Paris Convention, applications filed abroad within 12 months of the first filing can rely on the date of that first filing. We manage this process through our 130+ country network.
- **What is a patent search report and why does it matter?** — A patent search report is the official report in which your invention is compared against existing patents and literature worldwide and assessed for novelty and inventive step. For an examined patent, examination must be requested within 3 months after the report (SMK Article 98). An unfavourable report carries a risk of refusal, which is why a preliminary search before filing matters so much.
- **Should a patent be registered in the company's name or an individual's?** — Patent registration can be made in the name of either an individual or a company. If the invention was made by an employee within an employment relationship, the service invention provisions apply and registration in the employer's name may be appropriate; in that case managing the invention notification process correctly is important. A registered patent can later be assigned in whole or in part, and the assignment takes effect against third parties once recorded in the TÜRKPATENT register.
- **Is it possible to assign or license a patent?** — Yes, assigning or licensing a patent is possible: a registered patent can be assigned in whole or in part, licensed or pledged. An assignment agreement is valid only if made in writing and notarised. These transactions take effect against third parties once recorded in the TÜRKPATENT register (SMK Article 148). The patent registration certificate is the official proof of your right in licence and assignment agreements.
- **What happens if I don't use my patent?** — If a patent is not used within 3 years of registration or 4 years of filing, whichever expires later, interested parties may request the grant of a compulsory licence. Even an unused patent stays in force only if its annual fees are paid: they are due every year from the end of the second year, and a fee not paid on time can be paid with a surcharge within 6 months.
- **What can be done in case of patent infringement?** — In a patent infringement, a cease-and-desist letter can be sent to the infringing party, an action can be brought to stop and prevent the infringement, damages can be claimed (SMK Articles 149–151), and the entry of counterfeit or imitation goods can be stopped at customs. Our Legal Protection service provides opposition, litigation follow-up and lawyer support; at the court stage Webx works with partner lawyers or with your own lawyer.
- **Can software be patented?** — Software, meaning a computer program as such, cannot be patented on its own. However, software-implemented inventions that solve a technical problem and have a technical effect, for example an algorithm controlling a piece of hardware, may benefit from patent protection under certain conditions. Like any other invention, they must meet the requirements of novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability (SMK Article 82).
- **Can a refused patent application be appealed?** — Yes, if a patent application is refused, re-examination of TÜRKPATENT's refusal decision can be requested and, if necessary, an appeal can be brought before the Re-examination and Evaluation Board. A reasoned appeal explains in technical terms why the invention meets the requirements of novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. Webx manages this appeal process before TÜRKPATENT with its expert team, acting as the registered patent agent.
- **Can a utility model application be opposed?** — A utility model application has no opposition stage like a patent, but observations can be submitted on the search report. The report is published in the Bulletin; within three months of publication third parties may submit observations on it and the applicant may contest it (SMK Article 143(8)). Once the utility model is granted, no opposition route is available; only invalidity can be sought before the courts (Article 143(11)).
- **What is the right of priority?** — The priority right is an international right (Paris Convention) under which applications filed in other countries within 12 months of a first patent application in one country are treated as bearing the date of that first filing. Thanks to this right, after filing in Türkiye and obtaining your priority date, you can plan your applications abroad, via the PCT or direct national filings, within those 12 months.
- **Can the output of a university or R&D project be patented?** — Yes, inventions developed at universities and R&D centres can be patented if they meet the requirements of novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. To preserve novelty, it is important to file before disclosing the research output publicly, for example through a publication. TÜBİTAK and KOSGEB also run support and incentive programmes for patent filing and registration.
- **What is a patent registration certificate good for?** — A patent registration certificate is the official proof of your exclusive right over the invention. It is used as evidence in licence and assignment agreements, investment negotiations, infringement actions and customs protection requests. The protection it confirms lasts 20 years from the filing date for a patent and 10 years for a utility model, and stays in force as long as the annual fees are paid.
- **Can I change my invention during the patent application?** — You can change your invention only to a limited extent during a patent application. Amendments that broaden the scope of the application are not accepted; this is the prohibition on adding new matter. Amendments that clarify the description or narrow the scope may, however, be made under certain conditions. New technical features added to the invention later cannot be included in the existing application; a separate application should be considered for them.
- **Are there industrial property incentives and tax advantages?** — Yes, there are conditional tax advantages for inventions protected by a patent or utility model certificate. Certain income from such inventions, resulting from research, development and innovation activities carried out in Türkiye, may be partly exempt under the conditions of Article 5/B of Corporate Tax Law No. 5520. Incentives for R&D activities are separately governed by Law No. 5746. We recommend consulting your financial adviser on the conditions of application.
- **How can I manage my patent portfolio?** — You can manage your patent portfolio from Webx's digital client portal: you can track multiple patent, utility model and design registrations from a single panel and manage renewal dates and annual fee (annuity) payments without missing them. This tracking matters, because patent and utility model annual fees are due every year from the end of the second year, while designs are renewed every 5 years.
- **What happens if annual patent fees (annuities) are not paid?** — If annual patent fees (annuities) are not paid on time or within the grace period, the patent or utility model right lapses. These fees are due every year throughout the protection period from the end of the second year (SMK Article 101). A fee not paid on time can be paid with a surcharge within 6 months; if that period is also missed, protection is lost. You can track payment dates from the client portal.

## Sources

- [Industrial Property Law No. 6769 (Türkiye)](https://www.mevzuat.gov.tr/mevzuat?MevzuatNo=6769&MevzuatTur=1&MevzuatTertip=5) (mevzuat.gov.tr) Arts. 82, 98, 101: patents; Arts. 142–143, 145: utility models; Arts. 55–56, 64–69: designs
- [TÜRKPATENT — Patent Fees](https://www.turkpatent.gov.tr/patent-islem-ucretleri) (turkpatent.gov.tr)
- [TÜRKPATENT — Design Fees](https://www.turkpatent.gov.tr/tasarim-islem-ucretleri) (turkpatent.gov.tr)
- [WIPO — The PCT System (international patent applications)](https://www.wipo.int/en/web/pct-system) (wipo.int)
- [WIPO — PATENTSCOPE patent database](https://www.wipo.int/en/web/patentscope) (wipo.int)

Last updated: 11 October 2026

## Related Resources

- [Trademark or Patent? The Differences Between Design and Utility Model Protection](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/trademark-vs-patent-design-and-utility-model): Trademark vs patent in Turkey: a trademark protects a sign, a patent a technical invention. Requirements, terms and examination for utility models and designs.
- [Disclosing an Invention Before Filing a Patent: Trade Fairs, Presentations and Investors](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/disclosing-an-invention-before-filing-a-patent): Disclosing an invention at a trade fair, in a paper or to investors before filing: Turkey's 12-month grace period, Europe and the US, a safe-sharing protocol.
- [How to File a Patent Application in Turkey: 2026 Step-by-Step Guide](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/how-to-file-a-patent-application-in-turkey): How to file a patent application in Turkey: patentability, description and claims, EPATS steps, statutory deadlines and 2026 TÜRKPATENT fees with codes.
- [Who Owns a Logo, Design or Invention Created by an Employee or a Freelance Designer?](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/who-owns-ip-created-by-employees-and-freelancers): Who owns a logo, software, design or invention made by an employee or freelancer? FSEK and SMK rules, notification deadlines and a contract checklist.
- [Patentability Search vs. Freedom-to-Operate Analysis: What Is the Difference?](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/patentability-search-vs-freedom-to-operate): Why are an FTO analysis and a patentability search separate? Differences in question, scope, country and status, free databases and your options after FTO.
- [How to Register a Design in Turkey: Novelty Requirement and Filing Steps](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/blog/how-to-register-a-design-in-turkey): How to register a design in Turkey: novelty and individual character, preparing views, EPATS filing, examination, the 3-month opposition period and 2026 fees.
- [Design Registration](https://www.webx.net.tr/en/hizmetler/tasarim-tescil): Explains registering a product’s appearance as an industrial design, Locarno classification, multiple applications and protection of up to 25 years.