New Regulations For Patent Matters In Oman

The Omani Patent Office recently issued an administrative decision which addresses three issues: substantive examination, annuity payments and the term of patent protection in Oman.

Substantive examination

The Omani Patent Office started accepting patent applications in 2005 after the introduction of the official fees schedule (published in Official Gazette no. 805 dated 17^th December 2005). Despite this, mechanisms for the examination of patent applications were not established. Pursuant to the recent administrative decision, dated 21^st October 2009, the Omani Patent Office has indicated that examination procedures are being implemented.

The administrative decision invites applicants to submit any outstanding documents for pending applications, as the Patent Office will start examining applications for formalities. This step is a precursor to substantive examination, which will involve sending applications to the Austrian Patent Office or European Patent Office