Operational standards for small vessels
1. Overview Small commercial vessels must follow certain codes of practice. This applies to any vessel that: is less than 24 metres long is less than 150 gross tonnes and was built before 21st July...
View ArticleRegister your boat with the coastguard’s safety scheme
Fill out an online form to register your boat’s details with the UK coastguard. This is a free service for owners and skippers of all types of leisure vessels and small craft. What you need to know...
View ArticleSeafarer skills and training
You must get training to work on a seagoing ship, yacht or other vessel. You’ll also need a certain amount of experience at sea. You’ll need to: be over the minimum age meet health and fitness...
View ArticleDesign right
Design right automatically protects your design for 10 years after the design was first sold or 15 years after it was created – whichever is earliest. You can use it to stop someone copying your...
View ArticleFind out if you need a licence to copy a creative work
You must ask the owner if you want to copy a ‘creative work’, eg a diary a photograph a film music If you don’t know who the owner is you might need an ‘orphan works licence’ to copy the work. You...
View ArticleGet an uncertified electronic copy of your patent
You can order an uncertified electronic copy of a published UK patent or patent application. You can use uncertified copies for personal reference or research. Copies cost £5. You can’t use...
View ArticleSeafarer working and living rights
1. Overview All seafarers have working and living rights that include: employment contracts accommodation food and medical care A seafarer is anyone who works on board a seagoing ship, including:...
View ArticleSmall commercial vessel registrations, surveys and inspections
You must have small commercial boats surveyed to make sure that they comply with UK safety laws. Any boat that’s not a pleasure vessel is considered to be a commercial boat. Before going to sea, the...
View ArticleGet copies of patent, trade mark or design registration documents
1. Overview You can get copies of documents if you need to prove who owns or has applied for a UK patent, trade mark or design registration. There are 2 types of copy – certified and uncertified....
View ArticleSpecial training for ratings and officers
You may need special training if you work on certain types of ship. Ratings and officers may need special training before working on: tankers high-speed craft (including hovercraft) passenger ships...
View ArticleGive notice of your intention to oppose a trade mark
Tell Intellectual Property Office you intend to oppose a trade mark application, sometimes known as giving ‘notice of threatened opposition’. This will give you one extra month to file your...
View ArticleHow copyright protects your work
1. Overview Copyright protects your work and stops others from using it without your permission. You automatically get copyright protection when you create: original literary, dramatic, musical and...
View ArticleApply for a UK patent
Use this service to apply for a UK patent through the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). You can’t use this service if your invention is military technology or could harm national security. This...
View ArticleIntellectual property and your work
1. Overview Intellectual property is something unique that you physically create – an idea alone is not intellectual property. For example, an idea for a book is not intellectual property, but the...
View ArticlePatent your invention
1. Overview A patent protects your invention and lets you take legal action against anyone who makes, uses, sells or imports your invention without your permission. You can apply for patent protection...
View ArticleRegister a design
1. Check if you can register your design You can register the look of a product you’ve designed to stop people copying or stealing it. The look of your design includes the: appearance physical shape...
View ArticleChange or update your patent
You must tell the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) if details in thepatents register are wrong or you need to change them. Change your patent To change a patented invention after it’s granted you...
View ArticleRegister a trade mark
Register your trade mark online. You can’t change your trade mark once you’ve applied. This service will be unavailable from midnight on Saturday 8 November 2014 to 6pm on Sunday 9 November. What you...
View ArticleCheck the designs journal
View details of all designs that the Intellectual Property Office have recently accepted and published in the designs journal. This service will be unavailable from midnight on Saturday 8 November...
View ArticleRenew a patent
Renew your GB patent or European patent (UK) online. When to renew You must renew your patent on the fourth anniversary of when you filed for it. You’ll then need to renew every year near the ‘due...
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