Bulgarian law recognises both national and international protection and enforceability of intellectual property rights (including industrial property rights like patents, marks, geographical indications, industrial design and copyrights and neighbouring rights, etc.).

Bulgaria is the member state to a number of international treaties and conventions governing intellectual property, including the Bern Convention for the Protection of the Literary and Artistic Works, Hague Agreement Concerning the International Deposit of Industrial Designs, Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, the series of Classification Treaties, Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks and the Protocol thereto, as well as other treaties, administered by WIPO, with the exception of the Trademark Law Treaty.  After becoming member of the WTO on December 1, 1996, Bulgaria has become a party to the TRIPS Agreement as well.

Bulgaria is also a member of the Patent Cooperation Treaty, as well as a party to the European Patent Convention.

Bulgarian national legislation in the area of intellectual property protection is modern and provides protection to a broad range of intellectual property rights.  Protection of objects like industrial designs, new plant varieties, animal breeds and topographies of integrated circuits, is governed by separate laws.

Trademarks

Trademark protection could be granted by registration of a sign that could be represented graphically, comprising of letters or digits, all types of drawings, figures, the shape of the article or its packaging, a combination of colors, and even sound signals, as well as a combination of said elements.  Collective and certification marks and geographical indications could also be filed for registration.  Marks and registered for an initial ten year period and might be renewed for further ten year periods, subject to filing of a request to that effect and payment of an official fee. 

Under the Law on Marks and Geographical Indications (“LMGI”) the Bulgaria Patent Office, being the authority having competence for all registrable rights, conducts examination for both absolute and relative grounds.  It is expected that the trademark registration system will switch to a full-scope opposition system as a result of legislative changes that are at the stage of discussion. 

Further to the accession of Bulgaria into the EU all CTMs were extended automatically and at present enjoy protection on the territory of the country and might be enforced, as if registered under the national procedure. 

Geographical Indications

Geographical indications, being appellations of origin and indications of source are governed by the LMGI.  The law defines appellation of origin as the name of a country, or of a region or locality in that country, that serves to designate goods originating therefrom and whose quality or characteristics are due essentially or exclusively to the geographical environment, including natural and human factors.  An indication of source is the name of a country, or of a region or locality in that country, that serves to designate goods originating therefrom and whose quality, reputation or other characteristics can be attributed to that geographical origin. 

The legal protection to a registered geographical indication arises from registration and terminates once the relationship between the properties or peculiarities of the goods and the geographical environment no longer exists.  The registration of a foreign geographical indication is declared invalid following invalidation thereof in the country of origin. 

Copyright

Protection of works of literature, including science and technical literature, periodicals and computer programs, musical works, scenic works, films and other audio-visual works, works of drawing, including works of applied art, design and folklore artistic handicrafts, etc. is guaranteed by a modern Law on Copyright and Neighboring Rights. 

Under Bulgarian law copyright arises as of the very moment of creation of the work and its affixing on a tangible carrier.  Bulgarian copyright legislation recognises the “author’s rights” approach to legal protection of author's works following the example of countries like Germany, Greece and Hungary.  This approach contemplates the right of the author as a “natural” right and thus certain elements of the bundle of rights to a work are seen as inalienable by being extremely personal.  This approach is very different from the “copyright system” recognized in common law countries such as the U.K. and U.S. which allows total transfer of the exclusive rights, be they economic or moral.  The result from the mentioned differences in the systems is that copyright in Bulgaria is not assignable srticto sensu.  The only possibility to transfer copyright is limited in time, because license contracts are only then valid, when they are for a term of no more than 10 years.

The legislation in Bulgaria reflects in all significant respects the directives of the European Union in the sphere of copyright and more specifically in the sphere of computer programs. 

Patents and Utility Models

Patent protection and registration of utility models is governed by the Law on Patents and Industrial Models protection dating back to year 1993.  Discoveries, scientific theories,  mathematic methods, artistic work results, schemes, rules and methods for performing mental activities, playing games or doing business, computer programs and presentation of information are not patentable.  Patents are issued for inventions that are novel and not part of the " prior art" and further have an inventive step and are might be put in industrial use. 

The application for patent protection should be filed with the Bulgarian Patent Office.  If granted, a patent is valid for a term of twenty year commencing on the priority date.  Generally, no extension of the patent protection is available.  
Bulgarian law recognizes “inventions made for hire” and thus guarantees the right of employers or other persons that have assigned and invested into the development of an inventions.  

Similarly to other intellectual property rights patents might be subject to registered pledges or used as a collateral.
In order to be registered an utility model should be novel, industrially applicable and should not be a part of the prior art.  If registered an utility model may enjoy protection for an initial term of four years, which might be subject to two extension of three years each.  The overall period of protection of utility models is capped to ten years. 
Industrial Designs

The law defines industrial designs as the appearance of the whole or a part of a product resulting from the specific features of the shape, lines, contours, ornamentation, colours, or combination of such.  The right to a design is acquired by registration with the Patent Office as from the date of filing the application to that effect.  A registered design confers on its holder the right to use and transfer the design and the right to prevent any third party not having his consent from copying the design or commercially using the design included within the scope of protection.  Similarly to all other industrial property, all rights under the Law on Industrial Design are transferable, where the transfers shall be entered in the State Register of Industrial Designs at the written request of one of the parties.  A transfer shall have effect vis-a-vis third parties as from the date of entry.

Pursuant to the EU Accession Treaty of Bulgaria as of the date of Bulgaria’s accession to the EU (1 January 2007) all registered Community Designs are effective on the Bulgarian territory, without any additional registration.

New Plant Varieties and Animal Breeds

New plant varieties and animal breeds are protected through a certificate.  The certificate certifies the existence of a registered plant variety, the priority, the right to authorship and the exclusive right of the owner on the variety.  The certificate is granted by the Patent Office after an expert examination.

Topology of Integrated Circuits

The Law on Topographies of Integrated Circuits assures protection of an original topography that is the result of its creators’ own intellectual efforts and is not in the common place among the creators of topographies and manufacturers of integrated circuits at the time of its creation.  The right to file an application belongs to the person who has created the topography.  In the case of “topography made for hire”, the right to file shall belong to the employer or to the person who has commissioned the creation of the topography. 

A topology is protected for a term of ten years commencing on the effective date thereof.  

The transfer of a topography is effective vis-a-vis third parties as from the date of its publication in the Official Bulletin of the Patent Office.