Guide to Doing Business
in Aruba

Patents

A patent is a grant of a property right given by the government of Aruba to an investor to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention in Aruba or importing the invention into Aruba for a limited period of time.

An invention is, in principle, patentable if it:

  • Is new (an invention is considered new if it is not part of the state of the art on the application date);
  • Based on an inventive step; and
  • Is capable of industrial application.

A patent application must be filed with the Bureau for Intellectual Property in Aruba (BIPA). A patent provides protection within Aruba and its territorial waters but not outside Aruba. Two types of patent can be granted:

  • Small patents, of which protection lasts for six years from the filing date of the patent application, subject to the payment of maintenance fees; or
  • Normal patents, of which protection lasts for twenty years from the filing date of the patent application, subject to the payment of maintenance fees.

If there is an infringement of a patent the inventor can go to the Court of First Instance of Aruba, and the following remedies are available:

  • Injunctive relief;
  • Damages; and
  • Compensation (payment of profits).