Patent protection in Uruguay

Questions about patents in Uruguay

How much does a patent cost in Uruguay?

Our estimate is about US$3,922 to take a PCT application to grant in Uruguay. That is about US$1,500 in official fees and US$2,422 in attorney fees. By stage: filing US$1,464, search US$300, examination request US$738, office action response US$887 and grant / issuance / publication US$534 (one office action response included). Renewal fees over the patent's life add an estimated US$8,669. These are estimates only, for a standard application (10 claims, 30 pages, a company applicant): the actual cost depends on the law firm and the application. Request a quote from a law firm on this site for an exact price.

What is the PCT national phase deadline for Uruguay, and which routes are there?

The PCT national phase for Uruguay must be entered within 30 months of the earliest priority date.

In which technologies is Uruguay an important patent market?

Uruguay's 4 largest fields of technology by patent publications are basic materials chemistry (91 a year), pharmaceuticals (87 a year), organic fine chemistry (80 a year) and biotechnology (50 a year). Within its region, it stands out for basic materials chemistry (#5 in Latin America and the Caribbean), organic fine chemistry (#7 in Latin America and the Caribbean), biotechnology (#7 in Latin America and the Caribbean) and pharmaceuticals (#8 in Latin America and the Caribbean). Publications are growing fastest in organic fine chemistry (17% a year), pharmaceuticals (6% a year) and biotechnology (3% a year).

What does Uruguay's economy make and export?

Uruguay's GDP is US$85.3bn, of which services US$55.6bn, industry US$14.4bn (of which manufacturing US$8.5bn) and agriculture US$5.4bn. Spending a year: households US$52.2bn and health care US$7.0bn. Uruguay's exports of goods came to US$12.3bn in 2024. Its 10 largest exports were wood pulp (US$2.8bn, 23% of its exports, #7 in the world), frozen beef (US$1.5bn, 13% of its exports, #7 in the world), milk powder and condensed milk (US$606m, 5% of its exports, #8 in the world), rice (US$583m, 5% of its exports, #11 in the world), meat of bovine animals (US$467m, 4% of its exports, #17 in the world), soya beans (US$459m, 4% of its exports, #7 in the world), trucks (US$440m, 4% of its exports, #28 in the world), wheat (US$345m, 3% of its exports, #20 in the world), malt (US$290m, 2% of its exports, #8 in the world) and bovine animals (US$258m, 2% of its exports, #13 in the world). Where products are made, a patent there can stop infringing copies being made, not only being sold.