REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9168
AN ACT TO PROVIDE PROTECTION TO NEW PLANT VARIETIES, ESTABLISHING A NATIONAL PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION BOARD AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
TITLE I
Preliminary Title
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known and cited as the “Philippine Plant Variety Protection Act of 2002.”
SECTION 2. Statement of Policies. –
a) The State recognizes that an effective intellectual property system in general and the development of new plant variety in particular is vital in attaining food security for the country. To this end, it shall protect and secure the exclusive rights of breeders with respect to their new plant variety particularly when beneficial to the people for such periods as provided for in this Act.
b) The use of intellectual property bears a socio-economic function. To this end, the State shall promote the diffusion of technology and information for the promotion of national development and progress for the common good.
c) The State recognizes the indispensable role of the private sector, encourages the participation of private enterprises and provides incentives to needed investments in the development of new plant varieties.
d) The State recognizes that science and technology are essential for national development and promotes the adaptation of technology and knowledge from all sources for the national benefit. The State also recognizes the need to protect and secure the exclusive rights of scientists and other gifted citizens to their intellectual property and creations.
e) The State, while recognizing intellectual property rights in the field of agriculture, does so in a manner supportive of and not inconsistent with its obligation to maintain a healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature.
TITLE II
Definitions
SECTION 3. Definitions. –
a) “Applicant” means the breeder who applies for the grant of a Certificate of Plant Variety Protection.
b) “Board” means the National Plant Variety Protection Board created by this Act. It shall also refer to the National Seed Industry Council during the transition period from the effectivity of this Act up to the time the said Board has been organized and operating.
c) “Breeder” means:
1. The person who bred, or discovered and developed a new plant variety; or
2. The person who is the employer of the aforementioned person or who has commissioned the work; or
3. The successors-in-interest of the foregoing persons as the case may be; or
4. The holder of the Certificate of Plant Variety Protection.
d) “Certificate of Plant Variety Protection” means the document issued by the Board pursuant to this Act for the protection of a new plant variety.
e) “Commission” means to engage the services of a person to develop new plant varieties in exchange for monetary or any material consideration.
f) “Harvested material” means any part of a plant with potential economic value or any product made directly therefrom in proper cases.
g) “Holder” means a person who has been granted a Certificate of Plant Variety Protection or his successors-in-interest.
h) “Person” includes natural persons and juridical persons.
i) “Plant” includes terrestrial and aquatic flora.
j) “Plant Variety Protection (PVP)” means the rights of breeders over their new plant variety as defined in this Act.
k) “Propagating material” means any part of the plant that can be used to reproduce the protected variety.
l) “Regulations” mean the rules and regulations promulgated by the Board for the purpose of implementing the provisions of this Act.
m) “Variety” means a plant grouping within a single botanical taxon of the lowest known rank, that without regard to whether the conditions for plant variety protection are fully met, can be defined by the expression of the characteristics resulting from a given genotype or combination of genotypes, distinguished from any other plant groupings by the expression of at least one (1) characteristic, and considered as a unit with regard to the suitability for being propagated unchanged. A variety may be represented by seed, transplants, plants, tubers, tissue culture plantlets, and other forms.
TITLE III
Conditions for the Grant of the Plant Variety Protection
SECTION 4. The Certificate of Plant Variety Protection shall be granted for varieties that are:
a) New;
b) Distinct;
c) Uniform; and
d) Stable.
SECTION 5. Newness. – A variety shall be deemed new if the propagating or harvested material of the variety has not been sold, offered for sale or otherwise disposed of to others, by or with the consent of the breeder, for purposes of exploitation of the variety;
a) In the Philippines for more than one (1) year before the date of filing of an application for plant variety protection; or
b) In other countries or territories in which the application has been filed, for more than four (4) years or, in the case of vines or trees, more than six (6) years before the date of filing of an application for Plant Variety Protection.
However, the requirement of novelty provided for in this Act shall not apply to varieties sold, offered for sale or disposed of to others for a period of five (5) years before the approval of this Act: Provided, That application for PVP shall be filed within one (1) year from the approval of this Act.
SECTION 6. Distinctness. – A variety shall be deemed distinct if it is clearly distinguishable from any commonly known variety. The filing of an application for the granting of a plant variety protection or for the entering of a new variety in an official register of variety in the Philippines or in any country, shall render the said variety a matter of public knowledge from the date of the said application: Provided, That the application leads to the granting of a Certificate of Plant Variety Protection or the entering of the said other variety in the official register of variety as the case may be.
SECTION 7. Uniformity. – The variety shall be deemed uniform if, subject to the variation that may be expected from the particular features of its propagation, it is sufficiently uniform in its relevant characteristics.
SECTION 8. Stability. – The variety shall be deemed stable if its relevant characteristics remain unchanged after repeated propagation or, in the case of a particular cycle of propagation, at the end of each such cycle.
