Start-ups and micro-enterprises will be able to obtain economic support for the purchase of professional services with the ‘3-level Vouchers – Invest in Innovation”. Said vouchers will be rendered exclusively by lawyers and industrial property consultants, for the patenting of industrial inventions. The criteria for granting the support are contained in the 8 August 2024 decree adopted by the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, in agreement with the Minister of Economy and Finance, published in the Official Gazette of 4 September. A subsequent directorial decree of the Ministry of Enterprise will set an opening date for the submission of applications, which will be managed by Invitalia.
The measure has a 9 million euros budget for the 2023-2024 period. The involved businesses must choose the professionals to whom turn to from the lists managed by the National Forensic Council and the Order of Industrial Property Consultants. In particular, the services that can be requested are: verification of the patentability of the invention and prior anteriorities; drafting of the patent application and filing with the Italian Patent and Trademark Office; filing abroad of an application claiming priority to a previous national patent application.
The vouchers will be granted under the ‘de minimis’ regime, in three ‘tiers’: 1000, 3000 or 4000 euros + VAT.