Intellectual Property
The “Ideas Powered for business” SME Fund, which is open for applications as of January 11th 2021, is a 20 million EUR grant scheme to help EU SMEs protect their intellectual property rights. Co-funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the European Commission, the SME Fund will grant IP related financial grants to EU SMEs in five separate grant windows throughout 2021 on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.
The applications cycles are the following:
- 11 January 2021 – 31 January 2021
- 1 March 2021 – 31 March 2021
- 1 May 2021 – 31 May 2021
- 1 July 2021 – 31 July 2021
- 1 September 2021 – 30 September 2021
Open to all enterprises in the EU that fit the official definition of a SME, the SME Fund offers a maximum reimbursement of 1500 EUR per applicant. SMEs can apply for:
- 75% discount in IP pre-diagnostic fees (IP Scan), services facilitated by participating National IP Offices; and/or
- 50% discount in trade mark and design application fees (national, regional and EU).
Intellectual property is extremely valuable for many companies and often a tool to maintain a competitive advantage over their competitors. Solid and innovative ways of developing, exploiting and protecting these precious assets are, therefore, required to stay ahead of the game. Our firm advises on all intellectual property areas, including copyrights, trademarks, design rights, trade name rights, brands, patents and trade secrets.
For further information on our intellectual property services as well as on whether your company is eligible to receive the EU financial support referred above, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Disclaimer: This note serves as a general overview of the relevant Cyprus and EU legislation and the information set out shall not be considered as a legal advice nor shall be relied upon by any natural or legal person. G.C. Hadjikyprianou & Associates LLC shall not be liable for any damages incurred by any person who relied solely on the information provided herein. For the avoidance of any doubt, this note is merely intended to highlight key issues and not to be comprehensive and no party shall re-produce and/or use the same without our prior written consent. Use of the information provided herein is subject to our Terms of Use.
