Patent filing by startups in the Inova Simples regime
Startups. Inova Simples. Patents. INPI.
This paper addresses the analysis of patents filed by startups that opted for the Inova Simples regime, tracing a history of legislative developments and their incorporation within the administrative scope of the INPI. Based on normative analysis, a comparison was made between what is determined by Complementary Laws No. 167/19 and No. 182/21 and the INPI rules on Inova Simples, in order to assess the incorporation of legislative texts within the administrative scope of the federal agency. Likewise, the work addresses an analysis of statistical data within the scope of the INPI regarding patents filed by startups that declared themselves as "simple innovation companies," using a time frame between 2021 and 2025. This paper found that there is a disconnect between the legislative intent to promote innovation and the administrative implementation by the INPI, resulting in low regime adoption and an insignificant number of patents filed by these companies (0.41% of the total in 2025), with the lack of institutional support being the main barrier identified. Finally, it presents an analysis of the context of startups in Rio Grande do Sul and their patent submissions to the INPI, in order to verify whether there is an Inova Simples regime for purposes of protecting the technological product developed by them.