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Article 196: Once the date of filing has been assigned, the Industrial Property Director shall
examine whether the application meets the conditions set out in Articles 190 to
193 and in the regulations, and verify that the prescribed fee has been paid.
Article 197: In the event that the Industrial Property Director notes that the conditions set out
in Articles 190 to 193 have been met, he shall publish in the Official Journal of
Burundi and on the Internet site of the Ministry responsible for trade a notice
that he is prepared to register the industrial design; publish a reference to the
registration; and give the applicant a certificate of registration for the industrial
design. Should this not be the case, he shall reject the application.
Article 198: Within a period of 90 days as from the publication of the notice referred to in
Article 197, the applicant must pay the prescribed fee, the amount of which shall
be set in such a way as to cover the costs of registration, publication and the
grant of the certificate of registration, as well as the cost of protection for a
period of five years.
If the fee is not paid within the time limit, the Industrial Property Director may
extend the time limit of 90 days if it has been established that the applicant can
provide proof of his inability to pay the fee within the prescribed time limit.
Should this not be the case, he shall reject the application. Rejected applications
may not be restored.
Article 199: Notwithstanding the provisions set out in Article 197, if a request for
postponement of publication has been submitted under Article 193, neither the
representation of the industrial design nor the file relating to the application may
be made available to the public for consultation following the registration of the
industrial design.
Should this be the case, the Industrial Property Director shall publish a notice
relating to the postponement of publication of the industrial design indicating the
identity of the holder of the registration, the date of filing of the application, the
term of the period for which postponement has been requested, and any other
required information.
Upon expiration of the postponement period, the Industrial Property Director
shall publish the registered industrial design.
Article 200: The initiation, within the period of postponement, of judicial proceedings
relating to a registered industrial design shall be subject to the proviso that the
conditions contained in the register and in the file relating to the application are
communicated to the person against whom the judicial proceedings have been
brought.
Chapter III. Priority claims
Article 201: Anyone wishing to claim priority for a prior filing must attach the following to
his application for the registration of an industrial design, at the latest within a