Key Benefits:
2 September 2015 (State 1 Er January 2017)
This order regulates the registration of appellations of origin and geographical indications of goods, with the exception of agricultural products, processed agricultural products, wines, silvicultural products and silvicultural products Processed.
For the purposes of this order:
1 Any group of producers representative of a product may file an application for registration with the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI).
2 A group of producers applying for the registration of an appellation of origin shall be deemed to be representative of the product concerned if it meets the following criteria:
3 A grouping of producers applying for the registration of a geographical indication shall be deemed to be representative of the product concerned if it meets the following criteria:
4 A person may be treated as a group when the following conditions are met:
5 The application for registration of a foreign name may be filed with the IPI by:
6 In the case of a name designating a cross-border geographical area or a traditional name linked to a cross-border geographical area, several groups or competent authorities may file an application Joint registration.
1 The application for registration must show that the conditions laid down in this order for the registration of the appellation of origin or the geographical indication are fulfilled.
2 It contains in particular:
3 For foreign names, the file must be completed by the following:
4 The application for registration must be addressed to the IPI in an official language of the Confederation or accompanied by a certified translation into one of the official languages.
5 Where the original language of the name does not use the Latin characters, the Latin characters shall be accompanied by a transcript in Latin characters.
1 The specifications include:
2 It may also include:
1 The IPI may take the opinion of experts.
2 It invites the relevant federal authorities and the cantons to give their opinion.
1 The IPI rules on the conformity of the application for registration with art. 2 to 6 taking into account the opinions issued during the consultation.
2 The registration decision may include practical conditions within the meaning of s. 3, para. 2, or specify that protection is not granted for certain elements of the name concerned.
3 The IPI publishes:
4 The IPI determines the publishing body.
1 May be opposed to registration:
2 The opposition must be sent in writing to the IPI within three months of the publication of the registration.
3 The following grounds of opposition may be invoked in particular:
4 The IPI rules on the opposition.
1 Requests for amendment of the specification are subject to the same procedure as applications for registration.
2 In the following cases, the IPI shall act without following all the steps of the registration procedure:
1 The IPI shall keep the register of appellations of origin and geographical indications within the meaning of this order.
2 The register may be kept in electronic form.
3 The IPI shall record in the Register the names it has accepted when the following conditions are met:
4 The registry contains:
5 Errors in registration are corrected:
6 The amendments relating to the name and address of the group are not subject to the registration procedure.
7 Anyone may consult the register and obtain extracts from the register.
The registration of a name in the Register shall be unlimited, subject to cancellation within the meaning of Art. 13.
1 The IPI shall cancel the registration of a name:
2 In advance, it shall consult the federal authorities and the cantons concerned, if it is a Swiss name, or the competent authority for the country of origin, if it is a foreign denomination. It shall hear the parties in accordance with the procedure laid down in Art. 30 A Of the Federal Act of 20 December 1968 on administrative procedure 1 .
3 It shall notify the parties of the cancellation decision and shall publish it.
1 Any person who uses a Swiss appellation of origin or a Swiss geographical indication registered in accordance with this order shall entrust to one or more certification bodies defined in the specification the control of the Compliance of its products.
2 Certification bodies must be accredited in accordance with the order of 17 June 1996 on accreditation and designation 1 For each denomination for which they certify.
3 Control procedures are defined in a manual developed for each denomination by the certification body (s).
4 The control manual applicable to each registered name shall be filed with the IPI.
5 The certification body (s) shall submit an annual report to the IPI for each registered name. This includes:
6 The certification bodies report to the IPI, the cantons concerned and the grouping of the major irregularities found during the checks.
1 The certification body shall:
2 For producers putting the final product on the market, it controls at least every two years the flow of goods, the traceability and the conditions to which the production processes must satisfy. For producers involved in the other stages of production defined by the specification of an appellation of origin, it shall carry out periodic checks on a representative sample of the producers concerned.
3 The final product evaluation takes place at least once a year for each producer putting the final product on the market.
1 A traceability mark is an authentication element that identifies the producer and guarantees the origin of the products and their conformity with the specifications.
2 It must be affixed to each final product or integrated into it.
3 Where the nature of the product is not suitable, it shall be affixed to the distinctive and non-reusable packaging of the final product.
1 The verification of compliance with the specifications of an appellation of foreign origin or of a foreign geographical indication registered in accordance with this order may be ensured, before the products are placed on the market, by the The following agencies or authorities, depending on the country of origin regulation concerned:
2 The grouping shall inform the IPI of any change in the bodies and authorities referred to in para. 1.
1 Any commercial use of a name registered in accordance with this order is prohibited:
2 L' al. 1 applies in particular in the following cases:
3 By imitation or evocation of a name within the meaning of para. 2, let. A, include:
1 The terms "protected designation of origin" or "protected geographical indication" or their acronyms "PDO" or "PGI" must appear in an official language of the Confederation on the labelling of products for which the protected designation Shall be registered in accordance with this Ordinance and shall be used in accordance with the relevant specifications.
2 The particulars referred to in para. 1 may appear on the labelling of products for which the foreign protected name is used in accordance with the corresponding specifications.
3 The use of the references referred to in para. 1 or any similar or confusing statement shall be prohibited for products for which the name has not been registered in accordance with this order or for products which do not comply with the specifications of the Name registered in accordance with this order, including for products benefiting from transitional periods within the meaning of s. 21.
1 Products which do not comply with the conditions governing the use of an appellation of origin or a registered geographical indication but which were marketed lawfully and in good faith under that name at least five years before The filing of the application for registration may still be conditioned and labelled with that name for two years from the date of publication of the registration and still be marketed under that name for three years. From that date.
2 Where the specification of a name is amended in accordance with Art. 10, products complying with the old specification may be packaged, labelled and marketed under the old specification for two years from the date of publication of the amendment.
1 RS 232.11
2 RS 172.010.31