Why early patent filing matters when entering a new market

The filing date is the asset

A patent protects a new invention that is novel, inventive and industrially applicable. Novelty is judged against everything already public anywhere, so the moment an invention is disclosed without protection, the right to patent it erodes. Because protection turns on who filed and when, the filing date is the most valuable thing you hold. Waiting to file while you test the market is the most expensive delay in IP.

Two routes into Syria

You can file directly under the Paris Convention, claiming priority from a first filing in the previous twelve months, or enter the national phase in Syria under the Patent Cooperation Treaty within thirty-one months of the priority date. Each route has its own documents and deadlines, and the right one depends on where and when you first filed.

Term and working

A Syrian patent runs twenty years from the filing date. Annuities are paid yearly with a grace period, and the invention is expected to be worked in Syria within three years of grant, failing which it may face a compulsory license. Alazmeh prepares and prosecutes patents including PCT national-phase entry, tracking every annuity and deadline so a patent is never lost by oversight.

Written by the Alazmeh team

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