Trademarks

Indonesia’s Law No. 20 of 2016 on Trademarks and Geographical Indication (the 2016 trademark law) defines a mark as any sign capable of being represented graphically “in the form of drawings, logos, names, words, letters, numerals, colors arrangement, in 2 (two) and/or 3 (three) dimensional form, sounds, holograms, or combination of 2 (two) or more of those elements, used to distinguish goods and/or services produced by a person or legal entity in trading goods and/or services.” The 2016 trademark law recognizes various forms of trademarks, including 3-dimensional and non-traditional marks such as sounds and holograms. Like most Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia follows the first-to-file principle. However, this is not absolute, as unregistered well-known marks and bad-faith applications are also recognized. Legitimate non-registered trademark holders may challenge applications during the publication period through opposition, or later through a lawsuit against a registered mark.

The trademark application process involves filing an application through an electronic filing system, administrative examination, a two months publication period and a substantive examination process. An opposition filed by a third party, along with a rebuttal (if the applicant files a rebuttal against the opposition), will be considered by the trademark examiner in conducting the substantive examination. Recently, the Directorate General of Intellectual Property (DGIP) has committed to a stricter 9-month timeline from filing to final decision. However, the implementation of this timeline still depends heavily on each examiner’s workload.

The key elements examined during substantive examination are regulated under Articles 20 and 21 of the 2016 trademark law. These include distinctiveness, similarity to prior registrations and inherent registrability. Inherent registrability involves assessing whether a mark contradicts state ideology, laws and regulations, morality, religion, decency or public order; whether it merely describes the goods or services; whether it contains elements that may mislead the public as to origin, quality, type, size, variety or intended use; whether it uses the name of a protected plant variety for similar goods or services; whether it contains a description inconsistent with the quality or efficacy of the goods or services; whether it lacks distinctiveness; or whether it constitutes a generic name or public sign.

In 2024, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia (Decision No. 144/PUU-XXI/2023 dated July 30, 2024) amended the period for non-use cancellation. A registered mark is now vulnerable to cancellation if it has not been used for five consecutive years in the trading of goods and/or services since the registration date or the latest utilization. This replaces the previous three-year period stipulated under Article 74 paragraph (1) of the 2016 trademark law. The decision was prompted by the need to support small and medium enterprises, which frequently encounter difficulties – such as economic downturns or force majeure situations – that restrict their effective use of registered trademarks.

Patents

Indonesia’s patent system has undergone a significant update with the enactment of Patent Law No. 65 of 2024 on the Third Amendment to No. 13 of 2016 on Patents (the 2024 patent law). The changes are designed to foster national innovation, align with international standards, and advance the country’s goal of Industry 5.0. With these developments in mind, the following provides brief guidance on the current patent practice in Indonesia.

Indonesian patent law distinguishes between two forms of protection depending on the nature of the invention, namely, a patent, for which protection is valid for 20 years, and a simple patent, for which protection is valid for 10 years, both are non-extendable. 

A patent is granted for an invention that is novel, inventive and industrially applicable. Meanwhile, a simple patent (utility model) covers an invention that is novel, an improvement of an existing product or process, has practical utility and is industrially applicable. Compared to a standard patent, a simple patent follows a faster timeline with lighter requirements, but it is  limited to a single invention and is not available for PCT-based applications. Importantly, in Indonesia, a simple patent is subject to a substantive examination, and the request for such examination must be filed together with the application.

The definition of “invention” has been expanded to explicitly include systems, methods and uses, in addition to products and processes, as well as refinement and development of products and/or processes. The expansion serves to accommodate the implementation of the amended Article 4, which lists categories that do not qualify as inventions, including aesthetic creations; schemes; methods for conducting mental activities, games, and business; computer programs, except for computer-implemented inventions; presentations; and theory and methods in the fields of science and math. 

This change introduces an important clarification: while standalone computer programs remain unpatentable, computer-implemented inventions qualify for patent protection. This clarification is especially relevant given that since 2016, applications related to computer-implemented inventions have grown to make up as much as 30 to 40% per year of Indonesia’s total patent applications. 

Another notable change is that new uses of known products and new forms of existing compounds are now recognized as inventions, a step expected to stimulate growth and innovation in Indonesia’s chemical, biological and pharmaceutical sectors, particularly in traditional medicine.

Several procedural improvements have also been introduced. The grace period for disregarding prior disclosures from novelty assessment has been extended from six to 12 months for certain disclosures, and restoration of priority rights is now allowed up to four months after the usual 12-month deadline. Applicants may also request early publication.

Several procedural improvements have also been introduced. The grace period for disregarding prior disclosures from novelty assessment has been extended from six to 12 months for certain disclosures, and restoration of priority rights is now allowed up to four months after the usual 12-month deadline. Applicants may also request early publication which can take place as soon as three months from the filing date – shortened from the previous six-month minimum. In addition, the applicant may also request an accelerated substantive examination, provided the application is complete and the request is filed before publication begins. This, too, is aimed at shortening the overall examination timeline.

Applicants may also benefit from a new optional re-examination process, which provides an additional opportunity to respond to Patent Examiner decisions before resorting to appeal. In addition, reinstatement is now possible for applications that have lapsed or been voluntarily withdrawn, provided that the request is submitted within six months.

In line with these changes, the requirements for inventions involving genetic resources or traditional knowledge have also been simplified. Instead of a determination from government authorities, applicants now only need to submit a simple statement.

While not new, Indonesia’s substantive examination system offers ways to expedite prosecution. Applicants may refer to corresponding granted patents to speed up examination, or utilize the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) with South Korea or Japan to fast-track cases based on favourable examination results obtained in those jurisdictions.

Once granted, a patent gives its holder exclusive rights in Indonesia, but these rights also come with obligations. Patent holders are required to pay annual maintenance fees to keep the patent in force; late payment is now allowed by paying a penalty. Also, patent holders must implement their patents locally, whether by manufacturing, importing or licensing the patented product or any product resulting from patented process, method, system or use. To ensure compliance under the new law, a statement of patent implementation must be filed with the patent office by the end of each year. While the law does not explicitly state immediate consequences for non-compliance, failure to implement a patent in Indonesia may expose it to the possibility of a compulsory license. 

Copyright

The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1886) introduced the principle that copyright protection arises automatically upon creation of a work, without the need for registration. Although the convention does not expressly use the term “declarative principle”, Indonesia’s Law No. 28 of 2014 on Copyright (the 2014 copyright law) explicitly incorporates this concept into its definition of copyright.

Article 1, paragraph (1) of the 2014 copyright law, defines copyright as an exclusive right of the author vested automatically on the basis of declaratory principle after works are embodied in a tangible form without reducing by virtue of restrictions in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations. Although copyright protection arises automatically, the 2014 copyright law provides for recordation of works as an administrative option. Article 64, paragraph (2) of the 2014 copyright law, further clarifies that recordation is available, but not a mandatory formality for protection.

The law deliberately uses the term “recordation” rather than “registration” to distinguish copyright from other intellectual property systems, such as trademarks and patents, where registration is required to obtain exclusive rights. Unlike those systems, copyright recordation does not involve substantive examination. Instead, it serves only as prima facieevidence that the recorded author is the rightful creator of the work.

Works protected by copyright includes creation in the field of science, art and literature. Among others are books, speech, teaching materials made for educational and scientific purposes, music, songs, drama, paintings, calligraphy, maps, photographs, translations, computer programs, etc. Under the 2014 copyright law, copyright consists of two components: moral rights and economic rights. Moral rights are inherent in the author and cannot be transferred during the author’s lifetime. Economic rights refer to the author’s right to obtain financial benefits from their creations, for example, by receiving payment from parties who use the work. Unlike moral rights, economic rights may be transferred from the author to a copyright holder. 

While the moral right of an author lasts indefinitely, the protection of economic rights varies depending on the type of work and the nature of the copyright holder. For instance, the copyright in a book or speech or song is valid for the lifetime of the author and continues for 70 years after the author’s death, starting from January 1 of the following year, while for works such as photographs, computer programs and video games, the protection is valid for 50 years since first publication. If the copyright is owned by a legal entity, protection lasts for 50 years from the first publication date. 

In addition to copyright, Indonesian law also recognizes related rights (neighbouring rights), which protect the interests of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations. These rights grant control over the fixation, reproduction, distribution, rental and communication of performances, sound recordings and broadcasts. The duration of the economic rights protection varies: performers are protected for 50 years since the performance is fixated in a phonogram or audiovisual medium, producers of phonograms for 50 years since the phonogram is fixated, and broadcasting organizations for 20 years from the first broadcast. The said protection period is valid from 1st of January the next year.

Copyright holders may grant licenses to other parties through a written agreement. Pursuant to Article 83, paragraph (1) of the 2014 copyright law, such license agreements must be recorded by the Minister. Without this recordation, the license will not have legal effect against third parties. This requirement is an important aspect of copyright implementation in Indonesia because while copyright itself is declarative, therecordation of copyright license agreements is mandatory. In practice, however, the license recordation system requires proof that the underlying copyright itself been recorded.

The 2014 copyright law provides certain limitations and exceptions to the exclusive rights of authors, which function similarly to fair use or fair dealing principles. Articles 43 and 44 allow the use of works for the purposes of education, research, writing of scientific works, criticism or review, provided that the source is acknowledged and the use is non-commercial. The law further permits the use of works for reporting current events through the mass media, again with the requirement of citing the source. These provisions are designed to strike a balance between protecting authors’ exclusive rights and ensuring access for the broader social, cultural and developmental needs of society.

Industrial designs

Unlike patent law, which emphasizes the technical or functional aspect of a product, industrial design law is a branch of intellectual property rights that emphasizes aesthetic and visual appearance. Law No. 31 of 2000 on Industrial Designs (the 2000 industrial design law) defines industrial design as a creation on the shape, configuration or the composition of lines or colours, or lines and colours, or the combination thereof in a three- or two-dimensional form which gives an aesthetic impression and can be realized in a three- or two-dimensional pattern and used to produce a product, goods or an industrial commodity and a handicraft. 

A right for industrial design can only be granted for an industrial design that is new (novel), meaning it has not been disclosed before. However, Article 3 of the 2000 industrial design law provides exceptions to what is not considered disclosure. A design may still be deemed new if, within six months before the filing date, the design:

1. Has been displayed in a national or international exhibition in Indonesia or overseas that is official or deemed to be official; or 
2. Has been used in Indonesia by the designer in an experiment for education, research or development purposes

The 2000 industrial design law defines a designer as a person or several persons who create an industrial design. This definition implies that a legal entity cannot qualify as a designer. However, a designer may assign his or her industrial design rights to a legal entity or another individual. This is a common arrangement in work-for-hire situations, as specifically regulated in Article 7 of the industrial design law. The law provides two scenarios. First is where an industrial design is created in an official relation with another party within the working environment, the right holder to the industrial design shall be the party for whom the industrial design is created, unless otherwise agreed by the parties, without prejudice to the designer’s rights if the use of the design extends beyond the official relationship. The term “official relation” here refers to employment relations between civil servants and their institutions. Second, for industrial designs created in a private context-whether a work relation or on the basis of an order-the party who created the industrial design shall be deemed as the designer and the right holder, unless otherwise agreed by both parties. 

Furthermore, an application for registration of industrial design can be filed for (a) one industrial design, or (b) several industrial designs that constitute a unity of an industrial design, or that have the same class. Similar to patents, protection for industrial designs cannot be renewed. After 10 years from the filing date, the protection expires and the design enters the public domain. 

Enforcement 

In Indonesia, IP rights can be enforced through two main pathways: civil and criminal remedies. Civil cases are handled by the Commercial Court, a specialized court within the general court system. There are five Commercial Courts located in Jakarta, Medan, Surabaya, Semarang and Makassar. Despite being part of the general system, these courts have exclusive jurisdiction over intellectual property, bankruptcy and bank liquidation, with judges specifically appointed for such matters.

Civil actions may include infringement lawsuits, where right holders seek remedies for violations of their intellectual property rights, which  can take the form of injunctions, compensation for damages and destruction of infringing goods.

Under the trademark regime, a right holder may sue parties that unlawfully use a mark identical or similar to their own for related goods and/or services. Remedies may include damages and an order to cease all acts of unauthorized use of the mark. Similarly, holders of industrial design or patent rights may seek compensation and/or cessation of infringing acts. For copyright, in addition to damages and injunctions, the claim may also include surrender of income earned from the unauthorized use, execution or performance of the copyrighted work.

In addition to infringement claims, each intellectual property regime also provides for cancellation or invalidation lawsuits, although the legal grounds differ.

For trademarks, the Commercial Court may hear cancellation actions based on Articles 20 and 21 of the 2016 trademark law and/or non-use cancellations if a mark has not been used for five consecutive years from registration or last use. The ultimate purpose of both actions is to cancel the registration of the relevant trademark in Indonesia.

For patents and industrial designs, the law permits invalidation action if the granted patent or industrial design does not meet the substantive requirement – for example, a lack of novelty and/or, in the case of patents, if the invention falls under an exclusion of non-patentability. A patent may also be invalidated if it has been granted for the same invention as an already existing patent. Industrial designs may also be invalidated if they are in contrary to prevailing laws, public order, religion or morality.

For copyrights, although registration is not required to obtain protection, the 2014 copyright law allows the copyright holder to record their works with the Directorate General of Intellectual Property. An interested party may challenge such recordation in court by filing a cancellation action.

In intellectual property matters, decisions of the Commercial Court may be challenged only through cassation directly to the Supreme Court, which serves as the final remedy. This differs from regular civil cases in the general district courts, where the losing party may first file an appeal to the High Court before seeking cassation to the Supreme Court. 

Criminal remedies are also available for IP enforcement in Indonesia. Right holders may file a criminal complaint with the Indonesian police office, who are authorized to conduct raid actions, including search and seizure of infringing goods. If sufficient evidence is gathered, the case will be handed over to the public prosecutor, who will bring the case before the court. Sanctions for IP violations may include fines and/or imprisonment. Criminal enforcement is often pursued to create a deterrent effect.

In addition to the police, the trademark, patent, industrial design and copyright laws also grant special authority to certain civil servant investigators within the Ministry of Law. These officials are empowered to receive infringement reports and act as investigators, with powers similar to the police, including the authority to conduct searches and seizures.

Although less common, IP disputes in Indonesia may also be resolved through arbitration or alternative dispute resolution, offering parties a more flexible and potentially faster means of settlement outside the courts.

Furthermore, trademark right holders and copyright holders may also involve customs authorities in enforcing their rights. Under Government Regulation No. 20 of 2017 on Import and Export Control for Goods Suspected of Infringing Intellectual Property Rights, as implemented by Minister of Finance Regulation No. 40/PMK.04/2018, trademark and copyright holders may record their rights with the Directorate General of Customs and Excise to proactively block import of counterfeit goods. Such recordation enables customs officers to take preventive measures against suspected infringing goods by notifying the recorded right holder of any such shipments. The right holder must then respond within two days to confirm whether they intend to seek a suspension order from the Commercial Court. In the event that the Commercial Court issues the suspension order, the customs office must enforce it within 10 working days of receipt, which may be extended for another 10 working days. It is important to note that a customs recordation can only be filed through an Indonesian legal entity, and one of the main challenges faced by many foreign trademark owners is the absence of such an entity or representative company in Indonesia, which makes the registration process more complex.