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About us

Centre of intellectual property protection

The German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) is the centre of expertise in the field of industrial property protection in Germany. Protection of intellectual property is our statutory duty. Just under 2,800 staff work at our offices in Munich, Jena and Berlin. We examine inventions, grant patents, register trade marks, utility models and designs, administer IP rights and provide IP information to the public.

The DPMA is the largest national IP office in Europe and the fifth largest national patent office in the world. As a higher federal authority, we operate within the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Justice. Our headquarters are located in Munich. We are a partner in a network of national, European and international industrial property systems.

Founded in Berlin, in 1877, as Imperial Patent Office, the DPMA looks back on 140 years of history. Today we are a modern service provider, offering effective protection of technical inventions, trade marks and product designs. Small and medium enterprises, the large corporate groups, research institutions and inventors receive tools to defend their intellectual property from unwanted copying.

Information on existing IP rights is also gaining increasing importance today and in itself is becoming a factor of innovation as this knowledge can influence business decisions. On this website, we provide extensive IP information and offer online search services.

Picture: iStock.com/BrianAJackson

Last updated: 9 December 2021