Plant Breeders' Rights Act, 1976 (Act No. 15 of 1976)RegulationsRegulations relating to Plant Breeders' Rights4. Priority of applications |
| (1) | If more than one application for the grant of a plant breeder's right in respect of the same variety is received by the registrar, the registrar shall subject to the provisions of section 8(2) of the Act, give priority to the application first received. |
| (2) | A claim to give priority in terms of section 8(2) of the Act to an application for the grant of a plant breeder's right in respect of a variety which is preceded by an application by or on behalf of the same applicant for the protection of the rights in the same variety in a convention country or an agreement country, and which has been deposited in accordance with the laws in force in that country shall— |
| (a) | be lodged with the registrar on a form which is obtainable from the offices of the registrar in Pretoria for this purpose; |
| (b) | be lodged within 12 months from the date on which the application for the protection of the rights in the same variety was duly deposited in a convention country or an agreement country; and |
| (c) | be accompanied by the fee specified in item 2 of Table 2. |
| (3) | Such claim for priority shall within six months from the date on which it was lodged to the registrar, be confirmed by submitting to the registrar a copy, certified as correct by the appropriate authority in the convention country or agreement country in question, of each document which constitutes the relevant preceding application. |
| (4) | The period referred to in section 8(4) of the Act, within which an application thus given priority shall be confirmed by supplementing it in any respect necessary in order to comply with the requirements of the Act shall be four years: Provided that if the preceding application in a convention country or an agreement country is withdrawn or rejected, the registrar may require that such supplementation be completed at an earlier date. |