INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NEW VARIETIES OF PLANTS

of December 2, 1961, as revised at Geneva on November 10, 1972, and on October 23, 1978

Bibliographic data

79E

Organization: UPOV

Short title: UPOV Convention (1978 Act)

Subject matter: PVV

Text Identifier: W-UP78

WDN: 4338V.ASC

 

THE CONTRACTING PARTIES,

 

Considering that the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants of December 2, 1961, amended by the Additional Act of November 10, 1972, has proved a valuable instrument for international cooperation in the field of the protection of the rights of the breeders,

Reaffirming the principles contained in the Preamble to the Convention to the effect that:

 

 

(a)

they are convinced of the importance attaching to the protection of new varieties of plants not only for the development of agriculture in their territory but also for safeguarding the interests of breeders,
 

(b)

they are conscious of the special problems arising from the recognition and protection of the rights of breeders and particularly of the limitations that the requirements of the public interest may impose on the free exercise of such a right,
 

(c)

they deem it highly desirable that these problems, to which very many States rightly attach importance, should be resolved by each of them in accordance with uniform and clearly defined principles,

Considering that the idea of protecting the rights of breeders has gained general acceptance in many States which have not yet acceded to the Convention,

Considering that certain amendments in the Convention are necessary in order to facilitate the joining of the Union by these States,

Considering that some provisions concerning the administration of the Union created by the Convention require amendment in the light of experience,

Considering that these objectives may be best achieved by a new revision of the Convention,

Have agreed as follows:

 

Article 1

Purpose of the Convention; Constitution of a Union; Seat of the Union

(1)

The purpose of this Convention is to recognise and to ensure to the breeder of a new plant variety or to his successor in title (both hereinafter referred to as "the breeder") a right under the conditions hereinafter defined.

(2)

The States parties to this Convention (hereinafter referred to as "the member States of the Union") constitute a Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants.

(3)

The seat of the Union and its permanent organs shall be at Geneva.
 

Article 2

Forms of Protection

(1)

Each member State of the Union may recognise the right of the breeder provided for in this Convention by the grant either of a special title of protection or of a patent. Nevertheless, a member State of the Union whose national law admits of protection under both these forms may provide only one of them for one and the same botanical genus or species.

(2)

Each member State of the Union may limit the application of this Convention within a genus or species to varieties with a particular manner of reproduction or multiplication, or a certain end-use.
 

Article 3

National Treatment; Reciprocity

(1)

Without prejudice to the rights specially provided for in this Convention, natural and legal persons resident or having their registered office in one of the member States of the Union shall, in so far as the recognition and protection of the right of the breeder are concerned, enjoy in the other member States of the Union the same treatment as is accorded or may hereafter be accorded by the respective laws of such States to their own nationals, provided that such persons comply with the conditions and formalities imposed on such nationals.

(2)

Nationals of member States of the Union not resident or having their registered office in one of those States shall likewise enjoy the same rights provided that they fulfil such obligations as may be imposed on them for the purpose of enabling the varieties which they have bred to be examined and the multiplication of such varieties to be checked.

(3)

Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) and paragraph (2), any member State of the Union applying this Convention to a given genus or species shall be entitled to limit the benefit of the protection to the nationals of those member States of the Union which apply this Convention to that genus or species and to natural and legal persons resident or having their registered office in any of those States.
 

Article 4

Botanical Genera and Species Which Must or May be Protected

(1)

This Convention may be applied to all botanical genera and species.

(2)

The member States of the Union undertake to adopt all measures necessary for the progressive application of the provisions of this Convention to the largest possible number of botanical genera and species.

(3)

 

(a)

Each member State of the Union shall, on the entry into force of this Convention in its territory, apply the provisions of this Convention to at least five genera or species.
 

(b)

Subsequently, each member State of the Union shall apply the said provisions to additional genera or species within the following periods from the date of the entry into force of this Convention in its territory:
 
 

(i)

 within three years, to at least ten genera or species in all;
 
 

(ii)

 within six years, to at least eighteen genera or species in all;
 
 

(iii)

 within eight years, to at least twenty-four genera or species in all.
 

(c)

If a member State of the Union has limited the application of this Convention within a genus or species in accordance with the provisions of Article 2(2), that genus or species shall nevertheless, for the purposes of subparagraph (a) and subparagraph (b), be considered as one genus or species.

(4)

At the request of any State intending to ratify, accept, approve or accede to this Convention, the Council may, in order to take account of special economic or ecological conditions prevailing in that State, decide, for the purpose of that State, to reduce the minimum numbers referred to in paragraph (3), or to extend the periods referred to in that paragraph, or to do both.

(5)

At the request of any member State of the Union, the Council may, in order to take account of special difficulties encountered by that State in the fulfilment of the obligations under paragraph (3)(b), decide, for the purposes of that State, to extend the periods referred to in paragraph (3)(b).
 

Article 5

Rights Protected; Scope of Protection

(1)

The effect of the right granted to the breeder is that his prior authorisation shall be required for
 

?

the production for purposes of commercial marketing
 

?

the offering for sale
 

?

the marketing
 

of the reproductive or vegetative propagating material, as such, of the variety.

 

Vegetative propagating material shall be deemed to include whole plants. The right of the breeder shall extend to ornamental plants or parts thereof normally marketed for purposes other than propagation when they are used commercially as propagating material in the production of ornamental plants or cut flowers.

(2)

The authorisation given by the breeder may be made subject to such conditions as he may specify.

(3)

Authorisation by the breeder shall not be required either for the utilisation of the variety as an initial source of variation for the purpose of creating other varieties or for the marketing of such varieties. Such authorisation shall be required, however, when the repeated use of the variety is necessary for the commercial production of another variety.

(4)

Any member State of the Union may, either under its own law or by means of special agreements under Article 29, grant to breeders, in respect of certain botanical genera or species, a more extensive right than that set out in paragraph (1), extending in particular to the marketed product. A member State of the Union which grants such a right may limit the benefit of it to the nationals of member States of the Union which grant an identical right and to natural and legal persons resident or having their registered office in any of those States.
 

Article 6

Conditions Required for Protection

(1)

The breeder shall benefit from the protection provided for in this Convention when the following conditions are satisfied:
 

(a)

Whatever may be the origin, artificial or natural, of the initial variation from which it has resulted, the variety must be clearly distinguishable by one or more important characteristics from any other variety whose existence is a matter of common knowledge at the time when protection is applied for. Common knowledge may be established by reference to various factors such as: cultivation or marketing already in progress, entry in an official register of varieties already made or in the course of being made, inclusion in a reference collection, or precise description in a publication. The characteristics which permit a variety to be defined and distinguished must be capable of precise recognition and description.
 

(b)

At the date on which the application for protection in a member State of the Union is filed, the variety
 
 

(i)

 must not or, where the law of that State so provides, must not for longer than one year have been offered for sale or marketed, with the agreement of the breeder, in the territory of that State, and
 
 

(ii)

 must not have been offered for sale or marketed, with the agreement of the breeder, in the territory of any other State for longer than six years in the case of vines, forest trees, fruit trees and ornamental trees, including, in each case, their rootstocks, or for longer than four years in the case of all other plants.
 

Trials of the variety not involving offering for sale or marketing shall not affect the right to protection. The fact that the variety has become a matter of common knowledge in ways other than through offering for sale or marketing shall also not affect the right of the breeder to protection.

 

(c)

The variety must be sufficiently homogeneous, having regard to the particular features of its sexual reproduction or vegetative propagation.
 

(d)

The variety must be stable in its essential characteristics, that is to say, it must remain true to its description after repeated reproduction or propagation or, where the breeder has defined a particular cycle of reproduction or multiplication, at the end of each cycle.
 

(e)

The variety shall be given a denomination as provided in Article 13.

(2)

Provided that the breeder shall have complied with the formalities provided for by the national law of the member State of the Union in which the application for protection was filed, including the payment of fees, the grant of protection may not be made subject to conditions other than those set forth above.
 

Article 7

Official Examination of Varieties; Provisional Protection

(1)

Protection shall be granted after examination of the variety in the light of the criteria defined in Article 6. Such examination shall be appropriate to each botanical genus or species.

(2)

For the purposes of such examination, the competent authorities of each member State of the Union may require the breeder to furnish all the necessary information, documents, propagating material or seeds.

(3)

Any member State of the Union may provide measures to protect the breeder against abusive acts of third parties committed during the period between the filing of the application for protection and the decision thereon.
 

Article 8

Period of Protection

The right conferred on the breeder shall be granted for a limited period. This period may not be less than fifteen years, computed from the date of issue of the title of protection. For vines, forest trees, fruit trees and ornamental trees, including, in each case, their rootstocks, the period of protection may not be less than eighteen years, computed from the said date.

 

Article 9

Restrictions in the Exercise of Rights Protected

(1)

The free exercise of the exclusive right accorded to the breeder may not be restricted otherwise than for reasons of public interest.

(2)

When any such restriction is made in order to ensure the widespread distribution of the variety, the member State of the Union concerned shall take all measures necessary to ensure that the breeder receives equitable remuneration.
 
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