New Zealand
The Commissioner
Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ)
Plant Variety Rights
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
P.O. Box 9241
Marion Square
Wellington 6141
New Zealand
Tel. Tel. (64 3) 962 2607
Contact page: https://www.iponz.govt.nz/contact-us/
Website: http://www.iponz.govt.nz/
E-mail: info@pvr.govt.nz
To allow the UPOV PRISMA application to be uploaded into the
New Zealand case management system, the applicant or their New Zealand agent must be a registered user with the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ). Information on registering as a user is at https://www.iponz.govt.nz/support/become-a-registered-user/
All applications are required to provide a New Zealand or Australian address for service.
The IPONZ registered user will receive the letter of application acceptance or a request for additional information to enable acceptance via the New Zealand online system. All communication is only with the IPONZ registered user.
(See Agent/Local Representative/Address for service below)
For certain prescribed seed propagated species, there is a requirement to supply a seed sample at application. Seed must be supplied, post quarantine, before the application can be accepted. New Zealand Plant Variety Rights Office (NZPVRO) will allow a reasonable time between receiving an application and confirmation that the seed sample has been supplied. The application will be accepted only when all application requirements are met, which includes the supply of seed.
See: https://www.iponz.govt.nz/about-ip/pvr/apply/
For all other species, there is no requirement to provide plant material at the time of application and access to material will be managed after the application is accepted.
Information is available at https://www.iponz.govt.nz/get-ip/pvr/technical-guidance/2022-act-guidance/availability-and-supply-of-plant-material-for-pvr-purposes/
An overview of PVP fee is provided at: https://www.iponz.govt.nz/get-ip/pvr/fees/
IPONZ will issue an invoice for payment of the application fee once IPONZ receives the application data via UPOV PRISMA. The invoice will only be sent to the designated contact email address provided in the application. Where the applicant is resident in New Zealand the fee will also include a 15% goods and services tax (GST). Payment is to be made by electronic bank transfer to the account shown on the invoice. The payment transferred to the account must be the full amount in NZ dollars. Bank transfer fees or losses resulting from exchange rates must be paid by the applicant.
Confirmation of the receipt of payment is not usually provided. However, payment of the New Zealand application fee is a filing requirement. The applicant (IPONZ designated contact) will receive the acceptance letter, which confirms filing, when all filing requirements have been met.
It is a requirement that every application designates an address for service in New Zealand or Australia. IPONZ does not have an accredited list of agents and is unable to provide any recommendation with respect to an agent/address for service.
The filing date of the application is the date when all requirements for acceptance of the application have been met. The date is not necessarily the date when the UPOV PRISMA application data is submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) (See Payment section above).
Payment of the New Zealand application fee via the invoice sent to the Designated Contact email is a filing requirement. The invoice is issued at the time of submission of the UPOV PRISMA data. The invoice issue date may be the filing date, depending on when all requirements are met e.g. supply of seed (see Plant Material section, above).
UPOV PRISMA Disclaimer: The authority entrusted with the task of granting breeders’ rights (PBR authority) retains full responsibility in relation to the requirements concerning the filing date of applications in accordance with the legislation of the member of the Union concerned.
Annual Closing dates apply for the following species:
Summer sown Forage Brassicas - 1 January
White and Red Clover - 15 January
Grasses - 1 February
Roses - 31 March
Winter and Alternate Cereals - 15 April
Grass endophytes - 1 July
Spring Cereals and Peas - 1 August
Potatoes - 1 August
Spring sown Forage Brassicas - 1 September
These dates apply to the submission of applications for varieties of those species. Applications accepted within the dates will have those varieties included in the next DUS testing season. The dates for submission are primarily used to allow organisation of growing trials for the next growing season.
Further information about Plant Variety Rights in New Zealand: