   
  
IP/N/1/SWE/6  
IP/N/1/SWE/P/4  
 
15 January 2021  
(21-0481)  Page: 1/2 
Council for Trade -Related Aspects of  
Intellectual Property Rights  Original: English  
 
 
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS  
UNDER ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT  
SWEDEN : LAW (2020: 544) AMENDING THE PLANT BREEDERS ' RIGHTS ACT (1997: 306) - 
ISSUED ON THE 17TH OF JUNE 2020  
Notifying Member  SWEDEN  
 
Details of the notified legal text  
 
Title Law (2020: 544) amending the Plant Breeders ' Rights Act (1997: 306) - 
Issued on the 17th of June 2020  
Subject matter  Patents (including plant variety protection)  
Nature of 
notification  [X] Main dedicated intellectual property law or regulation  
[  ] Other law or regulation  
Link to legal text* https://ip -documents.info/2020/IP/SWE/20_7339_00_et.pdf  
https://ip -documents.info/2020/IP/SWE/20_7339_00_x.pdf  
 
Notification status  [  ] First notification  
[X] Amendment or revision to notified legal text  
[  ] Replacement or consolidation of notified legal text(s)  
Previous 
notification(s) 
referred to  IP/N/1/SWE/P/2/Rev.1/Add.1 ; IP/N/1/SWE/P/2/Rev.1  
Brief description of the notified legal text  
 
With the amendments new levels of penalties have been introduced for intentional serious offences 
in the Swedish intellectual property acts. The applicable penalty for standard offences is a fine or 
imprisonment for up to two years. If the infringement was  committed intentionally and is considered 
serious, the penalty is imprisonment for a minimum of six months up to a maximum of six years. 
When assessing whether an infringement is serious, particular consideration has to be given to 
whether the act concern ed  
 
1. has been preceded by particular planning;  
2. was part of criminal activities conducted in an organized form;  
3. was conducted on a large scale; or  
4. was otherwise of a particularly dangerous nature.  
 
As a consequence of these amendments new cri me classifications have been introduced. 
Furthermore, the rules on when the prosecutors can initiate proceedings have been changed in all 
intellectual property acts. It is now only possible for the prosecutors to initiate proceedings under 
these acts if it  is motivated for being in the public interest.  
 IP/N/1/SWE/6 • IP/N/1/SWE/P/4  
 
- 2 - 
 
  Language(s) of 
notified legal text English, Swedish  
Entry into force  1 September 2020  
Other date    
 
Notification details  
 
Submission date 
of notification  27 November 2020  
Other information   
Agency or 
authority 
responsible  Anna Enbert  
Deputy Director at the Ministry of Justice  
anna.enbert@regeringskansliet.se  
+46(7)27157297  
 
 
* Links are provided to texts of laws and regulations notified under the TRIPS Agreement in the form 
supplied by the Member concerned; the WTO Secretariat does not endorse or revise their content.   