With Laos joining the European patent validation system, Excel V. Dyquiangco explores how this strategic shift enhances IP protection for foreign patent holders while revealing enforcement gaps, legal inconsistencies and the need for early legal planning. 

 

Since April 1, 2025, European patent holders can extend their patent rights to Laos without a separate national application done through a validation agreement between the Lao Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) and the European Patent Office (EPO).  

With this move, Laos has become the sixth country globally and the second in Southeast Asia (after Cambodia) to join the European patent validation system. This streamlined procedure simplifies the process and reduces costs for businesses and innovators seeking intellectual property protection in the growing Lao market. 

“This bilateral agreement establishes a legal framework allowing European patent applications and granted European patents to be validated in Laos,” said Dino Santaniello, an independent consultant and lawyer who has many years of on-the-ground experience in Vientiane. “Once validated, these patents are treated as if they were national Lao patents, with equivalent rights and obligations. The agreement also outlines cooperation between the EPO and the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) in technical, legal and administrative matters. It includes provisions on validation requests, fees, mutual exchange of information and enforcement coordination.” 

He added that the second legal instrument is Instruction No. 0153/MOIC, published in the Lao Official Gazette on February 21, 2025. This instruction serves as the implementing regulation for the European patent validation agreement within the Lao legal system. Among other things, it: 

• Defines the procedure for validating European patents in Laos, including timelines for submitting translations and paying fees 

• Clarifies the legal effects of validated European patents, which are recognized as having the same legal status as national patents 

• Addresses issues like provisional protection, priority rights and simultaneous protection (when national and European patents cover the same invention) 

• Specifies that validated patents must comply with Lao intellectual property law and that the English version of the agreement prevails in case of ambiguity 

“Together, these two instruments provide a complete legal mechanism for applicants to extend the protection of their European patents into Laos without undergoing a separate national examination process,” said Santaniello.  

Prisna Sungwanna, a partner and director at Tilleke & Gibbins in Vientiane, added that applicants filing a European patent application may request validation in Laos by paying a validation fee to the EPO.  

“Once validated, these patents carry the same legal protection as national Lao patents under the Law on Intellectual Property and in accordance with the terms of the Agreement on the Validation of European Patents. As such, the European patent is treated as if it were granted directly under Lao law, with full enforceability and protection equivalent to a national patent,” she said. 

However, violations of patent rights in Laos are subject to criminal penalties, she said. Under the Law on Intellectual Property and the Penal Code, the patent owner is entitled to initiate legal action against infringers. If the infringement is proven and the criminal case is successful, the Lao court may impose the following penalties: 

• Fines ranging from K5 million to K20 million (US$230 to US$930) 

• Re-education without deprivation of liberty 

• Imprisonment for a term of one to three years 

• Compensation for damages to the patent owner 

Benefits and risks 

The benefits of the European patent holders in Laos are clear. “Like any other intellectual property right that requires registration to be protected, patents in Laos must be registered for the owner to enjoy the rights granted under Article 48 of the Law on Intellectual Property,” said Santaniello. “The validation system allows European patent holders to extend their geographical protection to Laos through a seamless procedure. This avoids the need to file a separate application with the DIP in Laos.” 

He continued: “Under this system, individuals or legal entities seeking patent protection in Laos can rely on the EPO’s examination process for the substantive part of the work. The Lao DIP will only verify that the patent does not conflict with Lao law. In this way, Lao examiners rely on the search and examination conducted by the more experienced EPO, which provides greater predictability and legal certainty during the validation process.” 

The patent owner has the right to stop others, without their permission, from: 

• Making, importing, offering for sale, selling or using the patented product 

• Storing the product for any of these purposes 

The owner also has the exclusive right to prevent others from: 

• Using the patented process without authorization 

• Making, selling, importing, or using any product that has been directly obtained through that process 

Patent owners may authorize individuals, companies or organizations to carry out any of the above acts within Laos. 

If someone infringes on the patent, the owner has the right to: 

• Take legal action, 

• File complaints, and 

• Claim compensation for damages. 

“Even before the patent is formally issued, the owner can take action against acts of infringement that occurred after the publication of the application, especially if the infringer had been notified. Once granted, these earlier violations can be pursued under Lao law,” said Santaniello. 

He added that no significant risks are apparent in relying on European patent validation in Laos, but a few practical considerations should be kept in mind: 

• Enforcement mechanisms, particularly outside Vientiane, may still face capacity challenges, including limited familiarity with patents. 

• Rights holders must comply strictly with local formalities, such as translation deadlines and fee payments, or risk losing protection. 

“These are minor operational issues rather than systemic risks, and they can be mitigated through proper planning and legal support,” said Santaniello. 

Sukontip Jitmongkolthong, a partner at Tilleke & Gibbins in Bangkok and Vientiane, added that the validation of a European patent offers considerable practical advantages. “It streamlines the process and reduces the significant administrative costs and time for the applicant. Moreover, the applicant can also be ensured that a validated application has been examined in accordance with the high standards of the EPO,” she said. 

She added: “Despite these advantages, certain risks remain. As Laos continues to refine its IP legal framework, foreign investors must remain agile, anticipating periodic shifts in procedural regulations and official fee schedules. Therefore, it is highly recommended that foreign investors engage experienced local counsel to safeguard their patent rights.” 

Navigating through the challenges 

According to Santaniello, enforcement remains a challenge. “Laws and regulations offering protection to intellectual property rights in Laos have increasingly provided clearer and broader rights to IP rights holders. However, enforcement remains the main challenge, particularly in the case of patents,” he said. 

“Significant progress has been made in recent years, especially in the area of trademarks, which are more frequently registered and disputed in Laos compared to patents,” he noted. “Nevertheless, the effectiveness of enforcement still varies, depending on several factors.” 

Another major challenge is the lack of a unified enforcement mechanism across the country. “There is currently no regulation that standardizes enforcement procedures, which results in differences in how IP laws are understood and applied by authorities in various provinces,” he said. “In practice, provincial authorities may interpret the IP framework differently, including the rules related to patent infringement and enforcement. This legal fragmentation undermines consistency and predictability for foreign rights holders.” 

Another is that the understanding of the IP regulatory framework may also differ from one government agency to another, which can affect how quickly an IP dispute is handled depending on which State body is involved.  

“Since the enactment of the Penal Code in 2018, IP infringement has been classified as a criminal offence, subject to fines and imprisonment. As a result, complaints may be filed with the police and/or the People’s Prosecutor Office, who are responsible for investigating the infringement before referring the case to a judge for a decision,” Santaniello said. “While officers from the DIP, who are typically involved in administrative remedies or mediations, tend to have a clear understanding of the process and timeline for resolving IP disputes, other agencies are often less familiar with IP matters. This lack of experience can affect how IP cases are evaluated and managed, ultimately slowing down the overall dispute resolution process.” 

There is also the technical complexity of patents as patents pose their own specific difficulties. “Due to their technical nature, many enforcement officers are not familiar with patent concepts or how infringement occurs. This can lead to slow decision-making and delays in taking necessary actions to stop infringing activities,” he said. “While enforcement may be more effective in Vientiane Capital, where DIP officers tend to have more training and experience, the situation is often different in remote provinces, where disputes may fall under the jurisdiction of provincial departments of the DIP.” 

Santaniello said that the DIP is aware of these enforcement challenges. To address them, it is preparing a draft regulation that will define the procedures and steps for enforcing IP rights. The goal is to assist enforcement officers across the country by providing practical guidance. There is, however, no timeline at this time of a first draft. 

This regulation is expected to include steps to address infringement, such as: 

• How to initiate and conduct raid actions 

• Measures to stop infringing activities 

• Procedures to seize goods that violate IP rights 

For Saithong Rattana, an associate at Tilleke & Gibbins in Vientiane, the protection of pharmaceutical patents is not yet available since Laos is currently classified as a Least Developed Country by the United Nations.  

“Nonetheless, the Lao DIP still accepts the filing of pharmaceutical patent applications for storing in a metaphorical mailbox to process after the expiry of transition period or upon graduation to developing country status, whichever is earlier. The applicant should consider this factor when deciding whether to designate Laos for validation, as it may impact the enforceability of patent protection in the country. Despite the exclusion of pharmaceutical patents, the validation of other European patents would significantly enhance the protection of intellectual property rights for European patent holders,” she said.   

She added: “The time limit for filing a Lao translation of claims with the DIP is three months of the publication. This requirement may pose a challenge for some foreign patent holders, particularly in sourcing qualified translation providers with technical expertise to translate from English to Lao. Early strategic planning is therefore essential to ensure the protection will be timely secured.”  

Impact on IP rights 

As the validation system only became effective on April 1, 2025, Santaniello said that it is still too early to fully assess its impact. However, he said, it is expected to make patent registration in Laos more attractive for several reasons: 

• Streamlined process. There is no need for substantive examination by the Lao DIP. 

• Faster protection. Patent rights are recognized shortly after the validation steps are completed. 

• Legal certainty. Validated patents, examined by the EPO, meet high-quality standards and are enforceable under Lao law. 

• Resource savings. Applicants avoid duplicating efforts and costs associated with the traditional national filing route. 

“Overall, the validation system offers a real alternative to the existing national procedure, which has faced significant delays and backlogs,” Santaniello said. “By allowing European patent holders to extend their protection to Laos through a proven and efficient mechanism, this new pathway could position Laos as a strategic hub in ASEAN for IP protection of European inventions.” 

“Historically, the number of patent registration applications in Laos has remained low,” he said. “The DIP hopes that the European patent validation system will help boosting the attractiveness of Laos for patent filings. A comparison can be made with Cambodia, which has seen a comparatively higher volume of applications, potentially due in part to its own adoption of the validation system.” 

Sungwanna agreed, saying: “This development represents a pivotal milestone in promoting and strengthening IP rights in Laos and enables the country to more closely align with international standards.”