An AOPI (Official Industrial Property Agent) is a professional recognized by examination and publicly invested by the Official Body (INPI – Portuguese Institute of Industrial Property ) that protects Industrial Property rights.

The profession of AOPI is one of the regulated professions in the area of Justice (under the tutelage of the Ministry of Justice), along with lawyers, notaries and solicitors (Ordinance no. 89/2012 of March 30).

AOPI can provide all the specialized services necessary to obtain the granting of your IP rights. The law that regulates IP in Portugal (Industrial Property Code) and the agreements and regulations of the international bodies to which Portugal has joined are a complex matter and require a great deal of knowledge and capacity to adequately and successfully manage the various stages of the application processes for IP rights. The route up to the granting and the challenges after the granting present various difficulties that are known to these professionals. Companies should not take risks when their most valuable assets are at stake. The support of an AOPI is fundamental to obtain and maintain these assets.

As professionals with recognized competence, the AOPIs of RCF maintain a close working relationship with the company’s clients that allows them to identify which are the best forms of registration, as Industrial Property rights, that ensure the proper protection of their interests with regard to third parties, creating exclusive rights that contribute to the valorization of the activity developed. The AOPI advises, suggests, and informs about the whole administrative process leading to the registration of rights, anticipating and avoiding official actions or oppositions that not only delay the process but also increase its costs.

Choosing to have the support of an OIPA will certainly be the best option for those who want to protect and maintain Industrial Property rights.

This is, moreover, advice present on the web pages and documents prepared by various Institutes and Organizations that grant IP rights:

Source: Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas, available at
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(page 18, slides 3 and 4)

Source: The United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office, available at
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Source: European Patent Office, available at:
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In addition to the role of the national AOPI, RCF, streamlines processes / requests in other countries, in which there may be an interest in protecting rights, before processes of expansion and internationalization of the activity, through its network of offices and international partners.