INPI

What INPI does

INPI — Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial, I.P. — is the Portuguese national industrial property office, operating as a public institute (Instituto Público) under the Ministry of Justice. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Lisbon, INPI holds the statutory mandate to grant and register industrial property rights in Portugal, including patents, trademarks, designs, utility models, and geographical indications and designations of origin. The institute employs between 501 and 1,000 staff and is led by President Ana Bandeira.

The organization's core operations revolve around examining applications, maintaining national IP registers, publishing the Industrial Property Bulletin (continuous since 2004), and providing information services to inventors, businesses, legal practitioners, and the general public. Beyond registration, INPI delivers advisory services such as IP Scan Enforcement, conducts outreach and education initiatives (including cooperation with WIPO on Portuguese-language IP materials), and represents Portugal in multilateral fora.

INPI's business model is that of a publicly funded administrative body rather than a commercial enterprise. Operating budgets are sourced from the Portuguese State Budget and fees charged for registration acts, with no equity, VC, or commercial revenue component. The institute also acts as the national gateway for EU-funded SME support instruments, most prominently the EU SME Fund administered jointly with EUIPO, through which it disburses vouchers (including Voucher 5 for Geographical Indications launched in February 2026) to Portuguese SMEs seeking IP protection. As a state entity, INPI is integrated into the international IP ecosystem via cooperation with EUIPO, the European Patent Organisation, and WIPO, and participates in the Lusophone IP Portal initiative alongside other Portuguese-speaking jurisdictions.

Name

INPI

Legal name

Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial, I.P.

Website

https://inpi.justica.gov.pt

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Portugal's national industrial property office, operating under the Ministry of Justice since 1976, granting and registering patents, trademarks, designs, and geographical indications for Portuguese inventors, SMEs, and legal practitioners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Property Registration Services

NAICS

Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (926150)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAMAL

Standards-Essential Patents (SEP) & FRAND Advisory

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Intellectual Property (IP) & Patent Services

Keywords

• Industrial property registration
• Trademark registration services
• Patent filing services
• Design registration
• Intellectual property office

Headquarters

HQ city

Lisbon

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

INPI is the Portuguese National Institute of Industrial Property, a public institute under the Ministry of Justice that administers the registration and protection of industrial property rights in Portugal. It processes national trademark, patent, utility model, design, geographical indication, and plant variety filings, serves as the national gateway for European (EPO) and international (WIPO Madrid/Hague) IP filings, and operates SME advisory services (IP Scan and IP Scan Enforcement) plus the EU SME Fund voucher scheme in partnership with EUIPO.

Product overview

INPI (Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial) is Portugal's National Institute of Industrial Property, operating under the Ministry of Justice. It functions as a regulatory and administrative body rather than a commercial software company. The organization offers a portfolio of intellectual property registration and management services including national, European, and international trademark registration; patent applications (national and European via EPO); design registration; utility models; and geographical indications. Supporting services include IP Scan (pre-diagnostic advisory) and IP Scan Enforcement (infringement advisory) within the EU-funded SME Fund program. Additional offerings comprise the Academy of Industrial Property for training, the daily Industrial Property Bulletin for published decisions, and IP Observatory research publications. The services are accessed through the INPI.justica.gov.pt portal and are designed for citizens, businesses, and IP professionals seeking to protect industrial property rights.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• National Trademark Registration Registration and management of national trademarks in Portugal, including logotype registration, collective marks, certification marks, and guarantee marks. Used by businesses, brand owners, and IP professionals to secure exclusive commercial sign rights in the Portuguese market.
• National Patent Application Filing and examination services for national patents and utility models in Portugal, including provisional patent applications, divisionary requests, and complementary protection certificates. Used by inventors, R&D-driven companies, and IP attorneys to protect inventions in Portugal.
• European Patent Application Gateway Gateway service for filing European patent applications through INPI to the European Patent Office (EPO), including participation in the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) fast-track programme. Used by Portuguese applicants seeking patent protection across EPO member states.
• Design Registration Registration of industrial designs and models in Portugal, including deferral of publication, partial renewal, and rectification services. Used by designers, manufacturers, and brand owners to protect the visual appearance of products.
• Geographical Indication Registration Registration of denominations of origin and geographical indications for products with specific qualities linked to their geographical origin. Used by producer associations and regional bodies to protect regional product names and qualities.
• International Trademark Registration (Madrid System) Registration of international trademarks through the WIPO Madrid System, allowing trademark protection in multiple countries through a single application filed via INPI. Used by Portuguese brand owners seeking multi-jurisdiction trademark protection.
• IP Scan Service Pre-diagnostic advisory service advising SMEs on the potential of intellectual property to develop their businesses, identifying valuable IP assets to protect and exploitation opportunities for already-protected IP. Delivered by INPI experts and partially reimbursed (up to 90%) under the EU SME Fund Voucher 1.
• IP Scan Enforcement Service Advisory service for SMEs facing intellectual property infringement, accused of infringement, or requiring preventive enforcement actions covering patents, trademarks, designs, utility models, plant varieties, geographical indications, trade secrets, copyrights, and unregistered designs.
• SME Fund (EU Fund for IP Rights Protection) European Commission financial support programme implemented by EUIPO in collaboration with INPI, providing vouchers for SMEs covering IP pre-diagnostics (IP Scan), trademarks, designs, patents, plant varieties, and geographical indications. Reimbursement rates range from 50% to 90% of qualifying costs.
• Academy of Industrial Property Training programmes and professional development on industrial property matters for IP agents, businesses, and the public, including international academies and training-needs diagnostics. Includes partnership with COTEC Portugal for IP management handbooks.

Quantifiable outcome

• Industrial Property Bulletin published daily (except weekends/holidays) since January 2004
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerINPI collaborates closely with EUIPO on pan-European trademark and design registration systems (EUTM), the SME Fund programme, the European Observatory on IP Infringements, and the EUIPNetwork. EUIPO implements the EU SME Fund in collaboration with national IP offices including INPI. INPI also publishes EUIPO studies in Portuguese and participates in EUIPO training and harmonisation initiatives.
• EPO (European Patent Office)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerINPI processes European patent applications filed at the national level and forwards them to the EPO for examination. INPI participates in the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) programme with EPO, which accelerates patent examination. The EPO contributes studies on patents and innovation published through INPI's Observatory.
• WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerINPI serves as the national office for WIPO's international registration systems: the Madrid System for international trademarks and the Hague System for international industrial designs. INPI also contributes to the Lusophone IP Portal (Portal da Propriedade Industrial da Lusofonia).
• COTEC PortugalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerINPI publishes IP management handbooks in partnership with COTEC Portugal, including 'Manual para a protecção, gestão e valorização da Propriedade Intelectual' and 'Valorização Activos Intangíveis'. These publications help businesses understand and leverage their IP assets.
• OMPI (Organização Mundial da Propriedade Intelectual)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWIPO translated its comic book materials on trademarks and patents into Portuguese through collaboration with INPI, which also created an additional edition on design in partnership with Portuguese designers. These 'IP for Young People' materials are made available on INPI's website.
• Portuguese Ministry of JusticecoreOthersINPI is a public institute under the Ministry of Justice (Ministério da Justiça), operating under the legal framework of the Código da Propriedade Industrial (CPI 2018) and Decree-Law establishing its governance structure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office): EU-level IP office administering EU trademarks and registered designs. Directly comparable as the supranational counterpart to INPI's national registration role, with which it co-administers the SME Fund.
• INPI France (Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle): France's national industrial property institute. Most analogous peer — same statutory mandate, similar service portfolio (trademarks, patents, designs), same EU regulatory context, with comparable employee scale.
• UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO): UK's national IP office. Comparable as a national IP registration authority handling trademarks, patents, and designs under a similar statutory framework within Europe.
• DPMA (German Patent and Trade Mark Office): Germany's national IP office. Comparable as one of Europe's largest national IP authorities, offering the same trademark, patent, and design registration services as INPI.
• WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization): UN agency administering international IP systems (Madrid, Hague, PCT). Directly comparable as INPI's international counterpart and the operator of the systems through which INPI channels international filings.
• JPO (Japan Patent Office): Japan's national IP office. Comparable as a major non-EU national IP authority handling patent and trademark registration with a similar statutory mandate.
• European Patent Office (EPO): European patent granting authority. Directly comparable as INPI's upstream counterpart for European patent applications, with which INPI collaborates via the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH).
• USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office): US national IP office. Comparable as the largest national IP authority, performing the same statutory registration and examination functions for trademarks and patents.

Broad incumbents

• Anaqua: Commercial IP management software and services provider serving corporate IP departments. Adjacent rather than directly comparable, but illustrates private-sector platforms serving IP portfolio management needs that INPI's filers also depend on.
• Clarivate (CompuMark / Derwent): Commercial IP intelligence and trademark search/clearance provider. Comparable as a participant in the broader IP ecosystem that complements national office registration services, particularly for search and analytics used by INPI's customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inpi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about INPI