In Venezuela, as a consequence of the Partial Reform of the Fiscal Stamp Law (art. 6 of Decree No. 1.398) year 2015, there has been a significant increase in the official rates corresponding to procedures for rights already registered.
The Reform has also greatly complicated the management of payment of registration, renewal and registration fees for changes in ownership, domicile and licenses, in terms of trademarks.
Experience has shown us that The procedures in Venezuela must be anticipated as much as possible to the expirations, since the payment of the fees must be transferred to the account of the Autonomous Service of Intellectual Property (hereinafter SAPI) and once the effective deposit has been made, the receipts of said transfers must receive the official seal. It is not uncommon to encounter extraordinary bureaucratic obstacles that delay actions.
Furthermore, recently, the US Government has imposed economic sanctions on Venezuela that also have an effect on trademark matters. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is tracking transactions made in dollars to Venezuelan accounts, which can cause significant delays in the materialization of payments. These obstacles can have important consequences for trademark rights. Taking as an example the renewal procedure for which Venezuelan legislation does not provide for a grace period to extend the expiration period, the payment of the official fee – which for a trademark in a class currently amounts to 3.000 USD - must have been properly credited. before the SAPI before the expiration date of the trademark in order to prevent the body from declaring its abandonment.
It is worth keeping in mind, therefore, that in Venezuela, in those procedures that involve the payment of a fee affected by art. 6 of Decree No. 1.398, it is necessary to act quickly and with sufficient advance notice of the expirations.
Author: Cristina Arroyo
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