WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU CO:MMERCE 
ORGANIZACION MUNDIAL DEL CO:MERCIO 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights IPIN/IINORlP/3 
16 July 1996 
(96-2779) 
Original: Englishl 
anglaisl 
ingles 
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWS AND REGULATIONS 
NOTIFIED UNDER ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT 
Norway 
The present docwnent reproducesl the Act (No. 32) of 12 March 1993 Relating to Plant Breeder's 
Rights, as notified by Norway under Article 63.2 of the Agreement (see document IP/N/l/NOR/l). 
ConseiI des aspects des droits de propriete 
intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce 
PRINCIPALES LOIS ET REGLEMENTATIONS CONSACREES A LA 
PROPRIETE INTELLECTUELLE NOTIFIEES AU TITRE 
DE L'ARTICLE 63:2 DE L'ACCORD 
Norvege 
Le present document contient le texte de la Loi n° 32 du 12 mars 1993 sur les droits des 
obtenteurs de varietes vegetales l, notifiee par la Norvege au titre de l' article 63:2 de l' Accord (voir 
le document lP/NIl/NOR/I). 
Consejo de los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad 
Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio 
PRINCIPALES LEYES Y REGLAMENTOS DEDICADOS A LA 
PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL NOTIFICADOS EN VIRTUD 
DEL pARRAFO 2 DEL ARTICULO 63 DEL ACUERDO 
Noruega 
En el presente documento se reproducel la Ley N° 32, de los Derechos de los Productores 
de Obtenciones Vegetales, de 12 de marzo de 1993, notificada por Noruega en virtud del parrafo 2 
del articulo 63 del Acuerdo (vease el documento IP/N/l/NOR/l). 
lEnglish only /anglais seulement/ingles solamente. IJ?/~/1/~()1tI1?/3 
J?age 2 
NORWAY 
ACT 
of 12 March 1993 
Relating to the Plant Breeder's Right 
CHAPTER I 
GENERAL PROVISIONS 
Section 1 
The Plant Breeder's Right. Scope 
Any person who has bred a plant variety or to whom the breeder's 
right has passed (the variety owner) may upon application be granted in 
accordance with this Act the sole right to exploit the variety commercially 
as specified in Section 3 (plant breeder's right) . 
The plant breeder's right is granted in respect of plant varieties 
belonging to those plant genera or plant species to which the King has_ 
determined that the Act shall apply. 
The plant breeder's right may only be granted to variety owners who 
(a) are resident or have their registered office in this Realm or 
(b) are nationals of or are resident or have their registered office in a 
State which is a member of the International Union for the Protection of 
New varieties of Plants. 
The King may by regulations or individual decisions prescribe that 
. the plant breeder's right may be granted in cases other than those 
mentioned in the first sentence. 
Section 2 
Conditions for the Grant of the Plant Breeder's Right. Priority. 
The plant breeder's right may only be granted in respect of varieties 
(a) which can be clearly distinguished from all other varieties that were 
known before the date of application, cf. the second paragraph, 
(b) which are sufficiently uniform, IP/N/lINORlP/3 
Page 3 
(c) which are stable in the characteristics enabling the variety to be 
clearly distinguished from the other varieties specified in litra (a), when 
propagated as indicated by the variety owner, and 
(d) which have not been sold or offered for sale with the consent of the 
variety owner 
(1) in this Realm before the date of application, or 
(2) abroad more than six years before the date of application in 
the case of vines, trees and their rootstocks or more than four years 
before the date of application in the case of other plants. 
A plant variety shall be deemed to be known according to litra (a) of 
the first paragraph if materi~l thereof has been offered for sale 
commercially or otherwise marketed. A plant variety shall also be deemed 
to be known if it has been entered in an official list of varieties, 
included in a generally accessible reference collection, described in 
detail in a generally available publication, or become known to the public 
in other ways. A variety described in an application for a plant breeder's 
right, for a patent or for entry in an official list of varieties in this 
Realm or in another State shall also be deemed to be known from the date of 
application if the application results in the granting of the breeder's 
right or the patent, or entry in the list of varieties. 
If the variety owner has applied for a breeder's right or a patent 
for a variety in one or more other States which are members of the 
International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, and 
applies within twelve months from the date of filing of the first 
application for a plant breeder's right in respect of the variety in this 
Realm, the application in this Realm shall be deemed, for the purposes of 
litrae (a) and (d) of the first paragraph, if the variety owner so 
requests, as having been filed on the same date as the first application. 
The King will issue regulations laying down in detail the conditions under 
which such priority may be claimed and may prescribe by regulations that 
priority may also be claimed in cases other than those mentioned in the 
first sentence. 
Section 3 
Substance of the Plant Breeder's Right 
The plant breeder's right entails that persons other than the variety 
owner may not exploit the variety commercially, without the consent of the 
variety owner, by 
(a) producing plant material of the variety with a view to offering it 
for sale or otherwise marketing it for purposes of propagation, 
(b) importing plant material of the variety with a view to offering it 
for sale or otherwise marketing it for purposes of propagation, or 
{c} offering for sale or otherwise marketing plant material of the 
variety for purposes of propagation. 
In respect of ornamental plants, the plant breeder's right also 
entails that persons other than the variety owner may not, without the IP/N/lINORlP/3 
Page 4 
latter's consent, exploit plants or parts of plants of the variety as 
propagating material for the commercial production of cut flowers or other 
materials for ornamental purposes. 
The consent of the variety owner shall not be required for the use of 
a protected variety in the breeding of a new variety or for the 
exploitation of the new variety. The consent of the variety owner shall be 
required, however, if repeated use of the protected variety is necessary in 
the commercial production of the new variety. 
The consent of the variety owner shall not be required for 
exploitation within the meaning of litrae (b) and (c) of the first 
paragraph of plant material which has been placed on the market in the 
European Economic Area by the variety owner or with his consent. 
CHAPTER II 
APPLICATIONS FOR A PLANT BREEDER'S RIGHT AND 
THE PROCESSING OF APPLICATIONS 
Section 4 
Applications 
The application for the granting of a plant breeder's right in 
respect of a variety shall be submitted in writing to the Plant Variety 
Board. 
The application must contain a description of the variety, specifying 
the characteristics which distinguish it from other varieties. The 
application must contain a proposed variety denomination. The breeder's 
name and address shall be stated. If the applicant is not the breeder, the 
basis for his title to the variety shall be stated. 
The application must disclose such prior exploitation of the variety 
as may be an obstacle to the granting of the plant breeder's right under 
litra (d) of the first paragraph of Section 2, or state that the variety 
has not been so exploited. 
The Plant Variety Board may order the applicant to provide, within a 
prescribed period, the plant material and give the information necessary 
for the examination of the variety according to Section 9. An applicant 
who claims priority according to the third paragraph of Section 2 may not 
be ordered to do this in connection with his application, and may not be 
ordered to do it earlier than four years after the expiry of the period of 
priority unless the application on which the priority is based has been 
rejected or withdrawn. 
The applicant shall pay the application fee prescribed by 
regulations. 
Each application may only relate to the protection of one variety. Section 5 
Variety Denomination IP/N/lINORIP/3 
Page 5 
The variety denomination shall enable the variety to be distinguished 
from other varieties. 
A designation may not be used as a variety denomination 
(a) if it consists solely of figures, except where this is an established 
practice for denominating varieties of the same kind, 
(b) if it may be misleading, 
(c) if it is contrary to the law or to public order, or is likely to 
cause offence, 
(d) if it can be confused with a designation entered or proposed for 
entry in the Register of Plant Varieties or entered in a register of 
protected varieties in another State as the denomination of another variety 
of the same or a closely related species, or already used as the 
denomination of a variety or for the propagating material of a variety of 
the same or a closely related species, 
(e) if it can be confused with a trademark, name, company name or other 
distinguishing mark for which a person other than the applicant enjoys 
protection of a kind which prevents the designation from being registered 
as a trademark for plant material or similar kinds of goods, or 
(f) if it can be confused with a trademark for plant material or similar 
kinds of goods for which the applicant enjoys protection. 
If the applicant has applied for the protection of the variety in a 
foreign State which is a member of the International Union for the 
Protection of New Varieties of Plants, the same variety denomination shall 
be used in this Realm as in the foreign State, unless the denomination used 
in the foreign State is contrary to the first or second paragraph or is 
unsuitable for some other reason as the denomination of the variety in this 
Realm. 
Section 6 
Provisional Examination of the Application 
If the application and the variety denomination fail to satisfy 
Sections 4 and 5, or if the application points to some other obstacle to 
its acceptance, the applicant shall be invited to submit comments or to 
make corrections within a prescribed time limit. 
If the applicant fails, within the time limit, to submit comments or 
to correct a defect which has been notified, the application shall be 
shelved. However, the processing of the application shall be resumed if, 
within four months from the expiration of the said time limit, the 
applicant submits comments or makes the corrections and also pays the fee 
for resumption of the processing prescribed by regulations. IP/N/l/NOR/P/3 
Page 6 
If, after the applicant has submitted comments or made corrections, 
an obstacle remains to the acceptance of the application on which the 
applicant has had the opportunity to comment, the application shall be 
rejected unless the Plant Variety Board finds that the applicant should be 
given a further opportunity. 
Section 7 
Publication of the Application 
If the application and the variety denomination satisfy Sections 4 
and 5 and the application does not point to any obstacle to its acceptance, 
the Plant variety Board shall publish a notice concerning the application. 
Section 8 
Transfer of Applications 
If anyone shows to the satisfaction of the Plant Variety Board that 
he, and not the applicant, is entitled to the variety, the Board shall, 
upon his request, transfer the application to him. The transferee shall 
pay a new application fee. 
Until a request for transfer has been finally decided, both the 
applicant and the person requesting the transfer shall be allowed to take 
whatever action is necessary to prevent the application from being shelved 
or rejected. Public notices relating to the case shall state that a 
transfer has been requested. 
Section 9 
Examination of the Variety 
The Plant Variety Board shall ensure that the variety is examined in 
order to establish whether it meets the conditions specified in litrae (a) 
to (c) of the first paragraph of Section 2. The Board may decide to forgo 
the examination in full or in part if the variety has already been examined 
in connection with an application for a plant breeder's right abroad or in 
any other way. 
The applicant shall pay for the examination in accordance with the 
rules prescribed by regulations. 
section 10 
Further Processing. Registration and Announcement of the 
Plant Breeder's Right 
When the examination of the variety has been completed, the 
processing of the application shall be resumed. Section 6 shall apply. 
The Plant Variety Board may order the applicant to state whether the 
variety is protected or protection has been applied for in other States, 
and if so to give full details of what the plant breeder's right authority IP/N/lINORlP/3 
Page 7 
of the State in question has notified the applicant concerning the 
consideration of the application. 
If a plant breeder's right is granted, the variety shall be entered 
in the Register of Plant varieties. The decision to grant the right shall 
be published, together with a notice that objections to the granting of the 
right may be lodged within a prescribed time limit. 
If an application is shelved or rejected after it has been published 
in accordance with Section 7, a notice to that effect shall be published 
once the decision is final. The same shall apply where an application is 
withdrawn after having been published. 
Section 11 
Reconsideration 
If an objection to the granting of a plant breeder's right is 
submitted in writing to the Plant Variety Board within the time limit 
prescribed pursuant to the second paragraph of Section 10, the application 
shall be reconsidered with a view to deciding on the objection. Section 6 
shall apply. The reconsideration of the application shall be announced and 
registered in the Register of Plant Varieties. The decision, once final, 
shall be announced and registered. 
Section 12 
Appeal and Legal Proceedings 
If the final decision of the Plant Variety Board is adverse to him, 
the applicant may appeal against the decision to the Board of Appeals of 
the Norwegian Patent Office. If the application is granted following 
reconsideration, the person who raised the objection may appeal against the 
decision. Any decision of the Plant Variety Board concerning a request for 
the transfer of an application may also be the subject of an appeal to the 
Board of Appeals of the Patent Office. The appeal must be lodged with the 
Plant Variety Board within two months from the date on which notification 
of the decision was sent to the person concerned. The appellant must pay 
the appeal fee prescribed by regulations. 
If the Board of Appeals of the Patent Office rejects an application 
upon appeal, the applicant may institute legal proceedings concerning such 
rejection within two months from the date on which notification of the 
rejection was sent to him. 
CHAPTER III 
DURATION OF THE PLANT BREEDER'S RIGHT. ANNUAL FEES 
Section 13 
Duration of the Plant Breeder's Right IP INIl INORIP 13 
Page 8 
The plant breeder's right may be maintained until the end of the 
twentieth calendar year after the year in which it was granted. For trees 
and vines, the plant breeder's right may be maintained until the 
twenty-fifth year. 
For the plant breeder's right to be maintained for the calendar year 
following the year in which it was granted, the annual fee prescribed by 
regulations must be paid. 
Section 14 
Payment of Annual Fee 
The due date for payment of an annual fee shall be the first working 
day of the calendar year to which the fee applies. The annual fee may not 
be paid before the 1st of July of the preceding year. The annual fee for 
the first calendar year following the year in which the plant breeder's 
right was granted shall fall due at the earliest two months after 
notification of the granting of the right was sent to the variety owner. 
Upon payment of an additional fee presecribed by regulations, annual 
fees may be paid within six months after the due date. 
The King may by regulations make provisions concerning extension of 
time to payor exemption from annual fees. 
CHAPTER IV 
TERMINATION OF THE PLANT BREEDER'S RIGHT, ETC. 
Section 15 
Renunciation 
If the variety owner renounces his plant breeder's right in writing 
to the Plant Variety Board, the Board shall declare the right terminated. 
If a request for a transfer has not been finally decided, or if legal 
proceedings have been instituted concerning a transfer or the plant 
breeder's right has been attached, the said right shall not be declared to 
be terminated until the question of the transfer has been finally decided 
or the attachment has ceased to apply. 
Section 16 
Non-payment of the Annual Fee 
If an annual fee has not been paid in accordance with Sections 13 and 
14, the plant breeder's right shall lapse as from the beginning of the 
calendar year for which the fee has not been paid. Section 17 IP/~/1/~()FtnP/3 
Page 9 
Invalidity or Transfer Following Legal Proceedings 
A plant breeder's right granted contrary to Section 1 or litra (a) 
or (d) of the first paragraph of Section 2 shall be adjudged invalid by a 
court of law. 
Legal proceedings on the ground that a plant breeder's right is 
invalid because it was granted. to someone other than the person entitled to 
the variety may only be instituted by the person who claims to be so 
entitled. The court may, instead of declaring it invalid, transfer the 
plant breeder's right to the person entitled, upon his request. 
Section 18 
Termination by Decision of the Plant Variety Board 
The Plant variety Board shall decide to terminate a plant breeder's 
right if 
(a) the variety owner is no longer able to supply the Plant Variety Board 
with propagating material of the variety with the characteristics which the 
variety was stated to have when the plant breeder's right was granted, or 
(b) the variety owner fails to supply within the prescribed time limit 
the propagating material or the documents or information needed by the 
Plant Variety Board for verifying the maintenance of the variety. 
Sections 6 and 12 shall apply mutatis mutandis. 
Section 19 
Announcement and Registration of Termination, etc. 
When a plant breeder's right is finally terminated or adjudged 
invalid pursuant to Sections 15 to 18, the Plant Variety Board shall 
publish a notice to that effect and note the termination in the Register of 
Plant varieties. The same shall apply to the transfer of a plant breeder's 
right. 
CHAPTER V 
THE USE, ALTERATION AND CANCELLATION OF 
VARIETY DENOMINATIONS 
Section 20 
Use of the Variety Denomination 
Anyone who commercially offers propagating material of a protected 
variety for sale or otherwise markets it shall apply the registered variety IP IN Il/NORJP 13 
Page 10 
denomination to the variety. The registered variety denomination shall 
also be used after the termination of protection. 
The variety denomination registered for a particular variety shall 
not be used to designate another variety of the same or a closely related 
species, or propagating material of such a variety. The same shall apply 
to designations which can be confused with the registered variety 
denomination. 
Section 21 
Alteration and Cancellation of Variety Denominations 
If a variety denomination has been registered contrary to Section 5 
and the error has not been corrected, the Plant Variety Board shall, on the 
basis of a proposal from the variety owner, announce and register a new 
variety denomination. The same shall apply where a variety denomination no 
longer satisfies litrae (b) and (c) of the second paragraph of Section 5. 
The Plant Variety Board may decide that a registered variety 
denomination which is no longer in use shall be struck from the Register of 
Plant Varieties if the breeder's right has been terminated and the breeder 
so requests or there are other reasons for doing so. 
CHAPTER VI 
LEGAL PROTECTION 
Section 22 
Penalties 
Any person who wilfully infringes the sole right conferred by a plant 
breeder's right, or who is accessory thereto, shall be liable to fines or a 
term of imprisonment not exceeding three months. 
Any person who wilfully or through gross negligence violates the 
provisions of Section 20 governing the use of variety denominations, or who 
is accessory thereto, shall be liable to fines. 
Public prosecution shall only take place at the request of the 
aggrieved person. 
Section 23 
Damages 
Any person who wilfully or negligently infringes a plant breeder's 
right shall be liable to pay compensation for the exploitation of the 
variety and compensation for any further damage caused by the infringement. 
The compensation may be reduced when the infringer is only slightyly to 
blame. If the infringer has acted with care and in good faith, the court IP/N/lINORlP/3 
Page 11 
may, to the extent found reasonable, order the infringer to pay 
compensation for the losses caused by the exploitation. 
Any person who wilfully or negligently violates the provisions of 
Section 20 relating to variety denominations shall be liable to compensate 
for the losses caused by the violation. The compensation may be reduced 
when the infringer is only slightly to blame. 
Section 24 
Surrender and Destruction of Plant Material 
In order to prevent further infringement, the court may, upon request 
and to the extent found reasonable, decide that the plant material to which 
the infringement relates shall be surrendered to the aggrieved party, in 
return for payment, or that the plant material shall be destroyed. 
The first paragraph may not be applied to a person who has acquired 
the plant material with due care and in good faith and has not himself 
committed an infringement. 
Section 25 
Temporary Legal Protection 
Insofar as an application results in the granting of a plant 
breeder's right, the provisions of Section 3 relating to the sole right of 
the variety owner and the provisions of Section 23 relating to compensation 
for infringement shall also apply to the period between the publication of 
the application in accordance with Section 7 and the granting of the plant 
breeder's right. 
CHAPTER VII 
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
Section 26 
The plant Variety Board and the Register of Plant Varieties 
The composition of the Plant variety Board, its registered office, 
and its right to delegate decision-making powers, etc. shall be laid down 
by the King. Further provisions governing applications for a plant 
breeder's right, their processing, the availability to the public of the 
documents in each case, and reinstatement in the case of non-compliance 
with a time limit, etc. shall be made in regulations. 
The Register of Plant varieties shall be kept by the Plant Variety 
Board. The Register shall be public. Any person may request certified 
transcripts thereof. Concerning annotations in the Register and the effect 
of annotations, Section 44 of the Patents Act shall apply mutatis mutandis. 
Further provisions concerning the Register and the fees for transcripts 
and annotations shall be made in regulations. IP/N/I/NORlP/3 
Page 12 
Section 27 
Agent 
Any applicant who is not resident or does not have his registered 
office in this Realm shall have an agent who is resident or has his 
registered office in this Realm and is empowered to represent him in all 
matters relating to the application. The holder of a plant breeder's right 
who is not resident or does not have his registered office in this Realm 
shall have an agent who is resident or has his registered office in this 
Realm and who is empowered to receive on his behalf notifications from the 
Plant Variety Board, announcements and other procedural communications. 
Exceptions from the obligation for foreign variety owners to have a 
Norwegian agent may be made in regulations. 
Section 28 
Compulsory Licences 
Where the variety owner fails to make arrangements for propagating 
material of the protected variety to be offered for sale or otherwise 
marketed on reasonable terms and to the extent necessary to meet the 
requirements of national food supply or other important considerations of 
public interest, any person who wishes to exploit the variety may sue for 
and obtain a compulsory licence for that purpose, provided that there is no 
legitimate reason for the failure. Sections 49 and 50 of the Patents Act 
shall apply mutatis mutandis. The court may order the variety owner to 
supply the holder of the compulsory licence with the necessary propagating 
material of the variety. 
Section 29 
Provisions on Legal Proceedings 
Actions concerning the right to a plant variety for which a plant 
breeder's right has been applied, actions concerning the transfer of a 
plant breeder's right, and actions under the second paragraph of Section 
12, Section 17, the second paragraph of Section 18 cf. the second paragraph 
of Section 12, and Section 28 shall be brought before the City Court of 
Oslo. 
The City Court of Oslo shall be the venue for applicants and holders 
of plant breeders' rights who have no place of residence or registered 
office in this Realm. 
Sections 64 to 66 of the Patents Act shall apply mutatis mutandis. 
Section 30 
Entry into Force, etc. ]]>/~/1/~()1tnP/3 
Page 13 
The Storting consents to Norway's accession to the International 
Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants adopted on 2 
December 1961, and amended on 10 November 1972, and 23 October 1978. 
This Act shall enter into force on such date as the King shall 
decide. The first paragraph of Section 30 shall nevertheless enter into 
force immediately. 
As from the date on which this Act enters into force, other Acts 
shall be amended as follows: 
(1) Act No. 7 of 2 July, 1910, relating to the Norwegian Patent Office 
shall be amended as follows: 
In the first paragraph of Section 2, a new third sentence shall read: 
liThe Board of Appeals shall also decide on appeals against decisions 
by the Plant Variety Board as mentioned in Section 12 and Section 18, cf. 
Section 12 of the Act relating to Plant Breeders' Rights." 
The present third sentence shall become the fourth sentence. 
The second sentence of the first paragraph of Section 5 shall read: 
"Of the members, three shall be technical, commercial or agricultural 
experts and two shall be legal experts." 
The second and third paragraphs of Section 5 shall read: 
"The decisions taken by the Board of Appeals shall not be bound by 
the facts which were available when the decision was taken in the first 
instance." 
"Where a fact is adduced which was not considered in the first 
instance, the Board of Appeals may refer the matter to the first instance 
for reconsideration." 
(2) Subsection 5 of Section 273 of Act No. 6 of 13 August 1915, the Civil 
Procedure Act, shall read: 
"actions relating to patents, circuit diagrams for integrated 
circuits, plant breeders' rights, trademarks and designs," 
(3) Litra (b) of the second paragraph of Section 3-4 of Act No. 2 of 8 
February 1980, the Liens Act, shall read: 
"rights to trademarks, patents, designs, circuit diagrams for 
integrated circuits and plant breeders' rights, and acquired copyrights 
including rights to the performance of works by performing artists." 