MICRO-ORGANISMS – BUDAPEST TREATY – ACCESSION OF THE ORIENTAL REPUBLIC OF URUGUAY

On January 7, 2025, the Budapest Treaty (1977) on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure will take effect with respect to the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, commonly known as Uruguay.

In substance, the purpose of this treaty is that “a contracting State which allows or requires the deposit of microorganisms for the purposes of patent procedure must recognize, for such purposes, the deposit of a microorganism with any ‘international depositary authority,’ irrespective of whether such authority is on or outside the territory of the said State.” (Source: WIPO)

This treaty thus allows a patent applicant to avoid having to deposit a sample of the concerned microorganism in each contracting State selected for patent protection, and instead to deposit such a sample with a single “international depositary authority,” which is an entity capable of preserving it.

For information, the Budapest Treaty has 90 members and has been in force in Switzerland since August 19, 1981. The international depositary authority in Switzerland is the “Culture Collection of Switzerland AG (CCOS).”

 

For  more information :

https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/treaties/notifications/details/treaty_budapest_366