This year, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has once again launched a grant programme to support intellectual property rights for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – The Ideas Powered for Business SME Fund.

The SME Fund will operate until funds are exhausted, as the number of funds is limited, and funds will therefore be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

Benefits of registering intellectual property rights

Registering intellectual property rights allows us to prevent others, especially competing businesses, from using our products or ideas without permission.

Entities eligible for funding

Only entities established in a European Union Member State and belonging to the category of small and medium-sized enterprises as defined in the table below are eligible to benefit from the funding:

What activities can be funded?

Funding from the SME Fund covers the following activities:

• The IP Scan/IP Scan enforcement voucher (up to a maximum of €1,350) can be used for IP pre-diagnosis services at a national IP office in an EU Member State offering the service under the initiative
• The Trademark and Design Voucher (maximum €700) can be used to register trade marks or designs for protection at national, regional, EU or international level.
• The patent voucher can be used to register national patents with the national intellectual property office of an EU Member State (maximum EUR 1,000) or European patents filed with the European Patent Office (EPO) (maximum EUR 2,500) .
• The Community plant variety voucher (maximum EUR 1,500) can be used to register plant varieties for protection in the EU.

How to obtain funding

Entrepreneurs interested in obtaining funding will first be required to submit a funding application, specifying the activities they wish to finance and attaching the required documents (bank statement, VAT certificate or certificate of national registration number issued by the relevant national authority, and a power of attorney if the SME is represented by a representative). Next, the entrepreneur will need to submit an application for IP scan support or an application for registration of the intellectual property rights for which funding is sought. After receiving IP scan support or registering the selected intellectual property rights, the entrepreneur will be required to submit a claim for reimbursement of incurred costs. Importantly, the entrepreneur will be required to cover official fees from their own funds and only then recover the incurred costs.

Assistance in obtaining funding

In previous editions, Graś i Wspólnicy Law Firm has helped numerous entities obtain funding from the SME Fund for various activities sponsored by this program. Our assistance includes, in particular, determining which activities, from the entrepreneur's perspective, merit funding, as well as preparing the funding application and all necessary documents. Once funding is awarded, the Firm can also submit an application on behalf of the entrepreneur to register the intellectual property rights for which the entrepreneur received funding. At the end of the process, we can also apply for reimbursement of incurred costs on your behalf.

Invitation to the webinar

We cordially invite you to a free webinar "How to obtain funding for trademark registration?", which will take place on February 5, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.

Webinar registration: https://forms.gle/8vaVdjkUaNnFvTWE8

If you are interested, please contact us at the following email address: p.filipek@kglegal.pl .