Turkey: Regulating the calculation of compensation for employee inventions

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Turkey: Regulating the calculation of compensation for employee inventions

The decree law pertaining to the protection of patent rights was in force between 1995 and 2017. As per to decree law the rules on how to determine the amount of compensation to be paid to an employee in case of full or partial claim on invention was to be regulated by a regulation. However this regulation was never prepared or enacted.

The Industrial Property Law numbered 6769 dated January 10 2017 rules employee invention and compensation matters in detail and finally provides a Regulation on Employee Inventions, Inventions Realized within Higher Education Institutions and Inventions Arisen From Projects Supported by Public Authorities. It regulates the method to determine the amount of compensation of an employee, and was entered into force on September 29 2017.

As per the Regulation, in the case the employer demands a full or partial right on the invention of an employee, a reasonable compensation and an award should be paid to the employee. The regulation provides rules about the methods to calculate the reasonable employee award. The amount of the award that will be paid in addition to the compensation should not be less than net minimum wage.

In principle the amount of compensation shall be determined by the parties via an agreement to be signed between parties, following a full or partial claim. In case of a dispute, especially if the revenue of the invention cannot be determined, compensation can be determined by comparison or as per a determinable profit of enterprise from invention or as per the reasonable amount that employer would pay, if he/she wanted to purchase the invention. In addition, the revenue of the invention can be considered equal to revenue earned from granting a licence or to revenue received from the sale of the invention or to the amount of profit received from the set off of the invention.

An important point is that the IP Law rules that after claiming a right on the work-related invention, the employer cannot refuse paying the inventor's compensation with the argument that the invention is not worth protecting. However in case an invalidation action filed against the patent is accepted by the competent Court, the employee cannot demand for compensation over his invention. The lack of clarity in the second sentence of this provision led some employers to have third parties file invalidation actions against the patent in order to get rid of the employee compensation. However the relevant rule of the Regulation clarified the issue by stating that the period until the finalisation of the invalidation action will be taken into consideration for the calculation of the employee compensation and award. Before the Regulation was enacted, some tactical invalidation actions were filed by some well known pharmaceutical companies in Turkey. All of these actions have become useless thanks to clarifying provisions of the Regulation.

erciyas.jpg

Selin Sinem Erciyas

Özge Atılgan Karakulak

Gün + Partners

Kore Şehitleri Cad. 17

Zincirlikuyu 34394

İstanbul, Turkey

Tel: + (90) (212) 354 00 00

Fax: + (90) (212) 274 20 95

gun@gun.av.tr

gun.av.tr

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Andrea Stone explains how her in-house experience gives her a unique perspective, and why Ballard Spahr’s combination with Lane Powell made it an ideal time to join
The pair had been fighting in multiple jurisdictions but have agreed to settle all litigation
Law firms may try to relate PTAB briefs to broader economic concerns in response to the USPTO’s latest guidance
IP Inclusive’s 10-year celebration provides reasons to be positive in the face of troubling attacks against DEI initiatives
Microsoft allegedly uses the HEVC technology in a range of products and offers an extension as an add-on
A group of five lawyers who joined Cleary Gottlieb say they want to help expand the firm’s IP litigation practice
As we build up to another busy year for the IP STARS rankings and our Managing IP Awards, we assess some of the major IP firms and trends in Germany
Florina Firaru discusses making new connections, the art of flower arranging, and the biggest misconception about IP
The firm, which appointed three IP partners from A&O Shearman, wants to develop a tier one practice in Europe
The England and Wales appeals court handed down its judgment just seven working days after hearing the trademark dispute involving pharma company Merck
Gift this article