A new Industrial Property Code entered into force on 10 January 2017. The new Industrial Property Code brings many changes in the Turkish patent system, such as the abolition of 'patents without examination' and the evolvement of exhaustion right from 'national' to 'international'.

There is a set of rules for pending applications regarding to 'applicable law'.

National applications filed before the new Industrial Property Code will be finalised within the scope of legal text in force at the moment of application.

The legal text in force at the moment of the main patent application will be applied on request for an additional patent application or its conversion into an independent patent even after it is granted.

Legal text in force at the moment of application will be applied:

• for conversion between patent and utility models;

• for conversion of patent granted without examination into a patent granted with examination; and

• for annulment of patent and utility model.

Legal text in force at the moment of nationalisation will be applied for nationalised patent and utility model applications filed through international or regional treaties.