You are using an outdated browser and your browsing experience will not be optimal. Please update to the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Install Microsoft Edge

September 24, 2018

Implementing Regulations Provide Clarity on the Working Requirement in Indonesia

Subscribe to Updates
BRICS & Beyond

Article 20 of Indonesia’s Patent Law requires patent owners to either manufacture their patented products in Indonesia or use their patented processes in the country.  Although controversial, the purpose of this working requirement is to drive foreign technology transfer, investment and stimulate local employment opportunities within the country.

If an invention is not worked within 36 months of grant, a third party can file an application for a compulsory license pursuant to Article 82, which is reproduced below:

Article 82 

(1) A compulsory license shall constitute license to implement a patent granted by the Minister upon request by reason of: 

a. Patent holder does not fulfill the obligation to make the product or using the process in Indonesia as referred to in Article 20 (1) within a period of 36 (thirty-six) months after being granted patent; 

b. Patents have been implemented by the patent holder or licensee in the form and manner that is detrimental to the public interest; or 

c. Patent resulting from the development of a patent that has been previously granted cannot be implemented without using another party’s patent that is still under protection.

(2) An application for a compulsory license referred to in paragraph (1) is free of charge.

As discussed above, an application for a compulsory license for failure to work an invention can be filed immediately after the expiration of 36 months from grant. However, an application for a compulsory license can be filed at any time if the patent owner implements the patent in a form and manner that is detrimental to the public interest or if the development of a patented product could not be implemented without the use of another party’s patent which is still under protection. According to Article 96, any person may apply for a compulsory license.

According to Article 83, examination of an application for a compulsory license is done by a team of experts assembled ad-hoc by the Ministry of Law. Once the experts provide the results of their examination, the patent owner is given a period of time to respond. When providing its response, the patent owner is afforded an opportunity to provide its own experts. If the patent owner does not respond to the opinion of the experts, or does not do so timely, then the compulsory license will be approved.

On July 11, 2018, implementing regulations were issued by the Indonesian Patent Office to provide more clarity on the working requirement. Specifically, these regulations allow patent owners that are not yet able to work their inventions to postpone the obligation to do so for a maximum period of five years by submitting an application to the Ministry of Law along with the reason(s) for postponement. Additionally, further postponement beyond the maximum period of five years may be granted upon request. Finally, a fee may be required for filing a request for postponement.  However, whether such a fee will be required and the exact amount have not yet be announced.

Procedurally, according to Indonesian Patent Law No. 13 (2016), an initial request for postponement must be submitted by a patent owner within three years from the date of grant. Thus, because the working requirement just recently came into effect on August 26, 2016, the three-year period to submit an application for postponement would be (at the earliest) August 26, 2019. However, the Indonesian Patent Office appears to have a different opinion regarding the date for the filing of such postponements. Specifically, according to the Indonesian Patent Office, because the implementing regulations are effective from the date of promulgation (namely, July 11, 2018), a patent owner can file a request for postponement beginning July 11, 2018. What this means is that all patents having a grant date after July 11, 2015, are subject to this requirement. However, readers should be aware that the procedures for filing such a request are still under discussion.

Some suggested wording that can be used when filing a request for postponement is provided below:

  1. If the product/process of the patent has not been used at all in Indonesia: “The patented product or process needs further development.”
  2. If the product of the patent has been imported or distributed in Indonesia but has not been manufactured domestically: “The patented product has been imported and distributed in Indonesia. However, taking into consideration the value of our product sales so far, the patent owner has not been able to make investment to bring the manufacturing technology into Indonesia.”
  3. If the patent relates to a process or method: “The patent owner does not have the facilities to implement the patented process, and until now, they do not have any cooperation or agreements with any local companies that are interested in using their patented process.”

Unlike the working requirement in India where patent owners and licensees are required to submit Form 27 by the March 31st every year detailing whether a patent was worked in India, there is no requirement under Indonesian Patent Law for patent owners and licensees to provide the Indonesian Patent Office/Ministry of Law with evidence that a patent is being implemented in the country. However, a patent owner will be expected to prove that his invention has been implemented in the event that an application for a compulsory license is filed by a third party. Therefore, it is important for patent owners to keep track and docket the 36-month deadline for working and timely request postponement of this requirement if necessary.

There are other consequences for not complying with the working requirement as well. According to Article 132, a patent can be revoked for noncompliance with the working requirement. However, only a public prosecutor or “other party that represents national interests” (and no other person) can request revocation if an invention is not worked. Interestingly, it appears that not working an invention will not automatically result in a revocation. Moreover, it seems unlikely that a public prosecutor will bring a revocation action against a patent unless it is against public interest. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to watch the case law develop in this area.

This article was written by Lisa Mueller of Casmir Jones and Indah Handayani of Tilleke & Gibbins. It has also been published on Lisa’s BRICS & Beyond blog.

Related Professionals

Practices

Intellectual Property

Location

RELATED INSIGHTS​ 

June 24, 2026
Patent enablement requirements are provided under Article 102 of Vietnam’s Law on Intellectual Property (IP Law). In particular, a patent specification must “fully and clearly disclose the nature of the invention to such an extent that, based on the specification, a person having ordinary skill in the relevant art can implement the invention.” In pharmaceutical and biotechnology patents, this requirement is more complicated and subject to more rigorous assessment. The Patent Examination Guidelines (Guidelines) of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Office) were amended in March 2026 to introduce Annexes III and IV for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, in which Annex III provides detailed guidelines on the assessment of specification requirements. These amendments were made under a project for strengthening capacity in industrial property examination between the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the IP Office. Annex III provides detailed instructions on how examiners assess enablement in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology application, and offers examples of acceptable and unacceptable descriptions with regard to the enablement aspect. Enablement Requirements in Pharma and Biotech Patents Article 12.7 of Circular 10/2026/TT-BKHCN (Circular 10) adds to the requirements of Article 102 of the IP Law that the description must demonstrate the novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability of the technical solution. For pharmaceutical composition subject matters, Article 12.9 of Circular 10 sets out that the description must present the results of clinical trials and/or the pharmacological effects of the claimed pharmaceutical composition, and must include at least the following information: Substance/mixture used. Testing method (system) employed. Information on the test results. Correlation between the pharmacological effects obtained from the tests and the application of the pharmaceutical product in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases. The Guidelines note that pharmacological study results should be presented in a quantified manner, and pharmacological
Read More
June 16, 2026
Since the implementation of the Trademark Law 2019 on April 1, 2023, Myanmar has operated under a modern first-to-file trademark system that brings its registration framework closer to international practice. As the new regime continues to develop in practice, applicants are increasingly required to navigate formal examination requirements, substantive objections, and procedural deadlines with greater precision. This article provides a high-level review of the trademark examination process in Myanmar, focusing on the principal stages from initial review to approval, the types of objections commonly raised by the Intellectual Property Department (IPD), and the key considerations for responding effectively. A clear understanding of these issues is essential for applicants seeking to secure registration efficiently and to mitigate avoidable delays or refusals. Examination Process: Key Stages Trademark applications filed with the IPD undergo two stages of review. Formality Examination The IPD first verifies compliance with procedural requirements, including: Correct Nice Classification Clear mark representation Accurate applicant details Clearly defined goods or services Representative details, if the application is filed by a representative Other formality requirements cover translation and transliteration of any non-English or non-Myanmar elements in the mark, color claim details, applicable disclaimers, and payment of official fees. Deficiencies result in an office action requiring correction within 30 days, which may be extended upon request. Registrability Examination The IPD also assesses registrability. A mark may be refused if it: Lacks distinctiveness Is descriptive or generic Misleads the public or violates public order/morality Contains prohibited state symbols Only compliant applications proceed to publication. Responding to Office Actions Applicants must respond within 30 days of notification from the IPD. Depending on the nature of the objection, strategies may include submitting legal arguments for distinctiveness, providing evidence of acquired distinctiveness, filing appropriate disclaimers, clarifying descriptions such as color claims, or amending the listed goods
Read More
June 15, 2026
The surge in AI development has led to a desperate demand for large, high-quality training data. However, real-world data can be expensive to collect, difficult to access, and often subject to strict privacy and regulatory constraints. Synthetic data, which consists of artificially generated records that replicate the statistical properties of real-world data without reproducing specific individuals’ information, provides an appealing solution by generating artificial datasets at scale without relying on identifiable personal information. It combines speed, cost efficiency, and regulatory compliance, making it a sensible alternative for organizations seeking to reduce risks while maintaining data utility. When properly anonymized, synthetic datasets may fall outside the scope of laws such as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), reducing compliance burdens while still supporting high-quality model training. However, relying on synthetic data without rigorous legal due diligence could be a strategic mistake. It replaces one set of known risks (scraping, direct privacy liability) with a new set of complex liabilities. The narrative that synthetic data is a “silver bullet” for privacy and IP compliance is dangerous and could be misleading. While synthetic data addresses data scarcity, it also introduces new legal uncertainties. Legal counsel should anticipate downstream risks arising from compromised data sources. Models trained on unlawfully obtained data may need to be decommissioned, even if their outputs appear lawful. What is synthetic data? Synthetic data refers to artificially generated information created using AI techniques such as deep learning and generative models. Instead of copying real records, it reproduces the statistical patterns and relationships found in the original dataset. Synthetic data generally falls into three categories: Fully synthetic data – Entirely new data points generated from learned patterns. The model studies the structure of the original data and produces records that resemble real-world
Read More
June 10, 2026
In March 2026, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Office) issued a decision refusing a trademark application after considering an opposition based primarily on copyright grounds. The outcome is noteworthy because the foreign brand owner had neither trademark registrations nor applications in Vietnam at the time the opposition was filed, and the IP Office has historically applied a stringent approach to oppositions relying on copyright. The Opposition Maurten is a well-known Swedish sports nutrition brand recognized globally for its innovative hydrogel technology, which is designed to help endurance athletes fuel more effectively without gastrointestinal discomfort. The brand’s distinctive logo is characterized by clean lines and a bold black-and-white color scheme, and has long been associated with the company’s performance products. The brand’s logo is displayed above. An identical mark was filed for registration by a Vietnamese trademark squatter. In 2023, a Vietnamese individual filed an application for registration of an identical mark (Application No. 4-2023-38668), a practice commonly observed in Vietnam as trademark squatting. The brand owner engaged Tilleke & Gibbins to assist with strategy and filing an opposition to the mark. At the time, Maurten had no trademark rights or meaningful use in Vietnam, and global marketing data showed only modest figures without any local presence. Thus, to convince the IP Office to refuse the squatter’s application, instead of relying on trademark rights or use evidence, the opposition strategy centered on the copyright protection of the logo itself, as copyright arises automatically in Vietnam upon creation of the work and does not require registration. (It is worth noting, however, that the IP Office has traditionally been cautious in accepting copyright as a basis for refusing trademark applications.) On September 24, 2024, an opposition was filed on three main grounds: confusing similarity, copyright infringement of the artistic work,
Read More