El Salvador’s new Intellectual Property Law will come into force in February 2025

El Salvador’s new Intellectual Property Law will come into force in February 2025

In February 2025, El Salvador’s new Intellectual Property Law will come into force, approved by Legislative Decree No. 66 and published in Official Gazette No. 444. The new legislation consolidates the existing rules on copyright and industrial property rights, introducing significant changes that impact rights holders and companies operating in the country. In general, the law aims to establish a legal framework for the protection and enforcement of copyright and industrial property rights, as well as encouraging innovation and creativity, facilitating the dissemination of information, knowledge, technology, culture and the arts. In this way, it seeks to promote the country’s economic development and sustainable growth.

Among the innovations brought by the new legal framework is the creation of the Salvadoran Institute of Intellectual Property, a legal and technical body dependent on the National Registration Center, in charge of administering intellectual property in El Salvador.

With regard to trademarks, the law expressly provides for the protection of well-known trademarks, establishing that a foreign trademark can be protected in El Salvador even without formal registration, as long as it is well-known in the country. The law also prohibits the registration and use of trademarks that reproduce, imitate, translate or transcribe, in whole or in part, a well-known trademark. In addition, the new legal framework allows the coexistence of similar trademarks or signs, provided there is a written agreement between the interested parties. In addition, the law now allows the protection of taste marks, as well as marks that feature reliefs and textures. The legislation also introduces a ten-year limit for the protection of business names, which can be renewed for equal periods.

In the field of copyright, one of the main novelties is the possibility of resolving conflicts related to collective management through a mediation procedure, conducted by the Salvadoran Institute of Intellectual Property. With regard to the extraterritorial protection of copyright, the new regulation stipulates that a foreign author who publishes a work in El Salvador will have the same rights as nationals. Likewise, works published abroad also enjoy protection in Salvadoran territory, in accordance with the terms established by international treaties and conventions in force in El Salvador. In other cases, the principle of reciprocity applies.

In the area of patents, the “bolar exception” was introduced, which allows a third party to use the information in a patent, without the authorization of the owner, for experimental purposes, studies and tests, in order to generate the data needed to apply for the corresponding health registration. With regard to industrial designs, the term of protection has been extended to fifteen years, requiring the payment of five-yearly fees to keep the registration in force.

The new Intellectual Property Law of El Salvador can be accessed via the link:  Intellectual Property Law of El Salvador

Note: For quick release, this English version is provided by automated translation without human review.