The request for exemption referred to in 3° of Article L. 422-12 shall be sent to the Minister responsible for industrial property or, by delegation, to the Director of the National Institute of Industrial Property by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt or delivered against receipt. It shall state the purpose of the waiver, where appropriate the desired duration and the reasons for which it is requested. It shall be accompanied by a copy of the company’s articles of association and, where the company has been in business for at least one year, a copy of the latest balance sheet.
The competent authority shall decide on the application for exemption after obtaining the opinion of the Compagnie nationale des conseils en propriété industrielle. The company shall notify its opinion within one month of its referral. Failing this, it is deemed to have given its opinion.