Office overview

Full name: Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)
Established: 2006 (successor to the Benelux Trademarks Office & Designs Office)
Legal basis: Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP)
Headquarters: The Hague, Netherlands
Affiliation: Benelux Union
Official languages: Dutch, French and English
Covered countries: Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg

BOIP is responsible for the registration and management of trademarks and designs. It also assists the three governments in coordinating patent policy (patents are examined centrally by the European Patent Office, EPO).

International cooperation and system interoperability

• BOIP is a long-term cooperation partner of WIPO, EUIPO and EPO;

• Supports interoperability with EUIPO tools (TMView, DesignView, TMClass);

• Coordinates the implementation of patents in the three Benelux countries together with the EPO;

• Uses the eService platform to handle online filing, renewals and opposition proceedings.

Trademark system

Filing routes

• Applications can be filed directly via the official BOIP website;

• Alternatively, Benelux may be designated via the Madrid System (Madrid Protocol).

Classification standard

• Applies the Nice Classification;

• Supports both single-class and multi-class applications.

Examination procedure

• Formality examination: about 1–2 weeks;

• Substantive examination focuses on distinctiveness and formal compliance; no prior-rights search is carried out;

• Opposition period: 2 months from the date of publication.

Use and renewal

• Registration term: 10 years, renewable indefinitely;

• A continuous period of 5 years of non-use may lead to cancellation.

Examination features

• Flexible choice of examination language: Dutch, French or English;

• Relies on electronic communication and automatic notification systems;

• Opposition and cancellation proceedings are administered by BOIP, with appeals possible to the Benelux Court of Justice.

Patent system

Jurisdiction

BOIP does not itself grant patents, but it helps coordinate a unified policy across the three countries:

• Patent registration is handled by the European Patent Office (EPO) under the European Patent Convention (EPC);

• Once granted by the EPO, European patents can take effect in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg;

• Each country may also process a limited number of national patent applications.

International routes

• Applicants may cover the Benelux region via the EPO or through PCT international applications entering the European phase;

• Benelux itself has no separate, unified patent registration system.

System features

• Term of protection for inventions: 20 years from the filing date;

• Substantive examination is carried out by the EPO, while implementation and maintenance take place at national level;

• Regional coordination is shared between BOIP and the national patent offices of the three countries.

Design system

Legal basis

• Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP).

Scope of protection

• The appearance of a product, including its shape, lines, colours, patterns or ornamentation, or a combination thereof;

• Applies to both industrial and handicraft designs.

Term of protection

• Initial term of 5 years, renewable up to four times, for a maximum of 25 years in total.

Examination procedure

• Only a formality examination is carried out;

• Average examination period is about 1–2 weeks;

• Examination languages are the same as for trademarks.

System features

• A single registration takes effect simultaneously in all three Benelux countries;

• Multiple designs can be combined in one application;

• International applications can be filed via the Hague System for the international registration of industrial designs;

• Design data are published in the Benelux Designs Register.