Presidency of the Republic
Chief of Staff
Leadership for Legal Matters
Law No 10.973, December 2nd, 2004.
Rules on incentives to innovation and
scientific and technologic research in the
production environment, and specifies other
provisions
THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC I make it known that the National Congress decrees
and I sanction the following Law:
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY DISPOSITIONS
Art. 1 – This Law establishes measures of incentive to innovation and scientific and
technologic research in the production environment, aimed at qualifying and reaching technologic
autonomy and industrial development of the Country, according to articles 218 and 219 of the
Constitution.
Art. 2 – For the effects of this Law, one should consider:
I – fomentation agency: department or institution of public or private nature that has among
its objectives financing of actions aimed at inciting and promoting development of science,
technology and innovation;
II - creation: invention, utility model, industrial design, computer program, integrated circuit
topography, new variety or variety essentially derived and other technological development that
creates or may create a new product, process or incremental enhancement, obtained by one or
more creators;
III – creator: researcher who is the inventor, obtainer or author of the creation;
IV – innovation: introduction of novelty or enhancement in the productive or social
environment resulting in new products, processes or services;
V – Scientific and Technologic Institution - ICT: department or entity of public administration
having as institutional mission, among others, to execute basic or applied research activities of
scientific or technologic nature;
VI – nucleus of technologic innovation: nucleus or agency constituted by one or more ICTs
aimed at managing its innovation policy;
VII – support institution: institutions created under the support of Law # 8.958, dated
December 20, 1994 aimed at supporting projects of research, education and extension and
institutional, scientific and technologic development.
VIII – public researcher: person occupying permanent position, military position or public
employment performing basic or applied research of scientific or technologic nature; and
IX – independent inventor: individual, not occupying permanent position, military position or
public employment, who is the inventor, obtainer or author of creation.
CHAPTER II
ON INCENTIVE TO CREATION OF SPECIALIZED AND COOPERATIVE ENVIRONMENTS
FOR INNOVATION
Art. 3 – The Union, States, the Federal District, the Municipalities and the corresponding
fomentation agencies may promote and support the constitution of strategic alliances and
development of cooperation projects involving national companies, ICT and privately constituted
non-profit organizations geared towards activities of research and development aimed at
generating innovative products and processes.
Sole Paragraph. The support described in this article may contemplate international
networks and projects of technologic research, as well as actions of technologic entrepreneurship
and creation of innovation environments, including incubators and technologic assets.
Art. 4 – The ICTs may, in return for compensation and during specified terms, under
contracts or pacts:
I – share their laboratories, equipment, instruments, material and other installations with
micro companies and small-size companies in activities geared towards technologic innovation,
for performing activities of incubation, without prejudice to their end activity;
II – allow usage of its laboratories, equipment, instruments, material and other installations
existing in their own locations by national companies and privately constituted non-profit
organizations geared towards research activities, as long as such allowance does not directly
interfere with their end activity, nor conflicts with it.
Sole paragraph. The allowance and sharing mentioned in items I and II of the heading of this
article will comply with priorities, criteria and requirements approved and communicated by the
superior ICT agency, observing the corresponding availabilities and ensuring equal opportunity to
the interested companies and organizations.
Art 5 – The Union and its entities are authorized to participate in minority in the capital of
specific purpose private company aimed at developing scientific or technologic projects for
obtaining innovative product or process.
Sole Paragraph. The intellectual property of the results obtained will belong to the
institutions that own the capital, in the proportion of their corresponding participation.
CHAPTER III
ON INCENTIVE TO PARTICIPATION OF ICTs IN THE INNOVATION PROCESS
Art. 6 – The ICT is allowed to celebrate contracts of technology transfer and licensing for
granting rights of use or exploitation of the creation it developed.
§ 1 – Contracting with exclusivity clause, for the purposes specified in the heading of this
article, must be preceded by publication of a bid invitation.
§ 2 – When the recipient of technology or licensee is not granted exclusivity, the contracts
specified in the heading of this article may be executed directly, for the purposes of exploitation of
creation they govern, according to regulation.
§ 3 – The company detaining the exclusive right of exploiting the protected creation will
automatically loose this right if it does not market the creation within the term and conditions
defined in the contract, and ICT in that case may conduct another licensing.
§ 4 – Licensing for exploitation of the creation whose object is of national defense interest
must observe the disposition of § 3 of art. 75 of Law # 9.279, dated May 14, 1996.
§ 5 – Transfer of technology and licensing for exploitation of creation recognized, in act of
the Executive Power, as being of relevant public interest can only be performed in non-exclusive
mode.
Art. 7 – ICT may obtain the right of use or right of exploitation of protected creation.
Art. 8 – ICT may provide to public or private institutions services compatible with the
objectives of this Law, in activities geared towards innovation and scientific and technologic
research in the production environment.
§ 1 – Provision of services specified in the heading of this article will be dependent on
approval by ICT's agency or highest authority.
§ 2 – The public servant, military or public employee involved in providing the service
specified in the heading of this article may receive monetary retribution, directly from ICT or from
institution with which it has executed agreement, always as variable supplement and provided it is
funded solely with resources collected in the scope of the contracted activity.
§ 3 – The value of the variable supplement specified in § 2 of this article is subject to taxes
and contributions applicable to the funds. Incorporation of it to the compensation, as well as
reference to it as base of calculation for any benefit, additional or collective or personal
advantage is prohibited.
§ 4 – The variable supplement covered in this article constitutes incidental income, for the
purposes of art. 28 of Law # 8.212, dated July 24, 1991.
Art. 9 – ICT may celebrate partnership agreements with public and private institutions for
performing joint activities of scientific and technologic research and development of technology,
product or process.
§ 1 The public servant, military or public employee of ICT involved in performing activities
specified in the heading of this article may receive an innovation incentive grant directly from a
support institution or fomentation agency.
§ 2 – The parties should specify, in the contract, the title of intellectual property and
participation in results from exploitation of creations resulting from the partnership, ensuring to the
signatories the licensing rights, observing the provisions of §§ 4 and 5 of art. 6 of this Law.
§ 3 – Intellectual property and participation in results referenced in § 2 of this article are
ensured, as long as provided in the contract, in the proportion equivalent to the amount of
knowledge aggregated value already existent in the beginning of the partnership and the human,
financial and material resources allocated by the contracting parties.
Art. 10 – The agreements and contracts executed between ICT, the support institutions,
fomentation agencies and national non-profit entities of private law geared towards research
activities, whose object is compatible with the objective of this Law, may forecast resources to
cover operational and administrative expenses incurred in the execution of these agreements and
contracts, observing the regulation criteria.
Art. 11 – ICT may assign its rights on the creation without charges, through express and
grounded manifestation, in the cases and conditions defined in the regulation, for the
corresponding creator to exercise them in his own name and under its sole responsibility, in the
terms of the relevant legislation.
Sole Paragraph. The manifestation specified in the heading of this article must be exercised
by the agency or highest authority of the institution, after hearing the technological innovation
nucleus, within the term specified by regulation.
Art. 12 – A Manager, creator or any public servant, military, employee or ICT service
provider is prohibited from disseminating, communicating or publishing any aspect of creations of
whose development he has directly participated or acquired knowledge due to his activities,
without obtaining prior ICT express authorization.
Art. 13– The creator is ensured a minimum 5% (five per cent) and maximum 1/3 (one third)
participation in the economic gains obtained by ICT resulting from contracts of technology
transfer and licensing for granting right of use or exploitation of the protected creation of which he
was the inventor, obtainer or author. As applicable, the dispositions of the sole paragraph of art.
93 of Law # 9.279, from 1996 will apply.
§ 1 – Participation as specified in the heading of this article may be shared by ICT among
the members of the research and technologic development team who have contributed to the
creation.
§ 2 – Economic gains are construed as any kind of royalties, compensation or any financial
benefits resulting from direct or third party exploitation, after deducting expenses, charges and
legal obligations arising from intellectual property protection.
§ 3 – Participation specified in the heading of this article will comply with the dispositions of
§§ 3 and 4 of art. 8.
§ 4 – Participation specified in the heading of this article will be paid by ICT in up to one (1)
year from the receipt of income on which it is based.
Art. 14. For the execution of the dispositions of this Law, the public researcher is allowed to
transfer to provide collaboration to another ICT, under the terms of item II of art. 93 of Law #
8.112, dated December 11, 1990, observing the convenience of the ICT of origin.
§ 1 – The activities developed by the public researcher, in the destination institution, should
be compatible with the nature of the permanent position, military position or public employment
he exercises at the institution of origin, as specified in the regulations.
§ 2 – During the period of removal covered by the heading of this article, the public
researcher is assured of his permanent position income, his military position pay or his public
employee salary in the institution of origin, complemented by permanent monetary advantages
established by law, as well as career progress and benefits of the social pension plan to which he
is attached.
§ 3 – Specific bonuses for exercising teaching positions will be ensured, in the form of § 2 of
this article, if the public researcher maintains the teaching activity in scientific and technologic
institution.
§ 4 – In the case of public researcher of a military institution, his removal will be dependent
on authorization of the Commander of the Force to which the military institution he is attached to
is subordinated.
Art. 15. At the discretion of public administration, according to regulations, the public
researcher, provided he is not going through probative period, may be granted a leave without
pay for constituting company aimed at developing business activities related to the innovation.
§ 1 - The leave referenced in the heading of this article will have a duration of up to three (3)
consecutive years, renewable for equal duration.
§ 2 – The disposition of item X of art. 117 of Law # 8.112, from 1990 does not apply to the
public researcher who has constituted company according to this article during the term of the
leave.
§ 3 – If the absence of the licensed public servant hinders the activities of the ICT belonging
to direct administration or constituted in the form of autarchy or foundation, a temporary hiring as
governed by Law # 8.745, dated December 9, 1993, may be executed, without specific
authorization being required.
Art. 16 – ICT should have a nucleus of technologic innovation of its own or in association
with other ICTs, aimed at managing its innovation policy.
Sole Paragraph. The minimum competencies of the nucleus of technologic innovation are:
I – care for the maintenance of institutional policy of encouraging protection of creations,
licensing, innovation and other forms of technology transfer;
II – assess and classify the results arising from research activities and projects for meeting
the dispositions of this Law;
III – evaluate request of the independent inventor for adoption of the invention in the form of
art. 22;
IV – advise on the convenience and promote the protection of creations developed in the
institution;
V – advise on the convenience of communicating the creations developed in the institution,
subject to intellectual protection;
VI – monitor the processing of requests and maintenance of intellectual property titles of the
institution.
Art. 17. ICT, through the Ministry or agency to which it is subordinated or attached, will
maintain the Ministry of Science and Technology appraised as to:
I – the institution's policy on intellectual property;
II – the creations developed in the scope of the institution;
III – the protections requested and granted; and
IV – the licensing or technology transfer contracts executed.
Sole Paragraph. The information covered in this article should be provided in a consolidated
manner, with annual periodicity, for the purpose of its dissemination, with the exception of
confidential information.
Art. 18. The ICTs, when creating and executing their budgets, will adopt the applicable
measures for administering and managing their innovation policy in order to allow receipt of
revenues and payment of expenses arising from application of arts. 4, 6, 8 and 9, payment of
expenses for protecting intellectual property and payments due to creators and potential
collaborators.
Sole Paragraph. The financial resources covered in the heading of this article, received by
ICTs, constitute own revenue, and should be applied solely in research, development and
innovation institutional objectives.
CHAPTER IV
ON ENCOURAGING INNOVATION IN COMPANIES
Art. 19 – The Union, ICTs and the fomentation agencies will promote and encourage
development of innovative products and processes among national companies and national
private law non-profit organizations geared towards research activities, through concession of
financial or human resources, materials or infrastructure, to be agreed in specific covenants or
contracts, aimed at supporting research and development activities for complying with the
priorities of the national industrial and technologic policy.
§ 1 – The priorities of the national industrial and technologic policy covered by the heading
of this article will be established in regulation.
§ 2 – The concession of financial resources, under the form of economic subsidy, financing
or society participation aimed at developing innovative products or processes will be preceded by
approval of the project by the conceding agency or entity.
§ 3 – Concession of economic subsidy specified in § 1 of this article implies mandatorily in
the beneficiary company assuming counterpart obligations, as established in the specific
adjustment instruments.
§ 4 – The Executive Power will regulate the economic subsidy covered in this article,
ensuring the destination of a minimal percentage of the resources from the National Fund of
Scientific and Technologic Development – FNDCT.
§ 5 – The resources covered in § 4 of this article will be the object of budget plan in specific
category of FNDCT, and its application in the sector of origin destination is not mandatory,
without prejudice to assignment of other FNDCT resources aimed at economic subsidy.
Art. 20. The public administration agencies and entities, in matters of public interest, may
hire a company, consortium of companies and national non-profit entities of private law geared
towards research activities, of recognized technologic qualification in the sector, aimed at
performing research and development activities involving technologic risk, for solving specific
technical problem or obtaining innovative product or process.
§ 1 – An intellectual creation pertinent to the object of a contract as referenced in the
heading of this article will be considered developed under the effect of that contract when its
protection is requested by the contracted company up to two (2) years after its termination.
§ 2 – If the contract expires without meeting in full, or meeting partially the desired objective,
the contracting agency or entity, at its sole discretion, may, after technical and financial audit,
extend its term or create final report considering it terminated.
§ 3 – Payment derived from the contracting specified in the heading of this article will be
made proportionally to the result obtained in the agreed research and development activities.
Art. 21. The fomentation agencies should promote, through specific programs, actions for
encouraging innovation in micro and small companies, including the use of technologic extension
performed by ICTs.
CHAPTER V
ON INCENTIVE TO THE INDEPENDENT INVENTOR
Art. 22. The independent inventor who proves he entered with an application for a patent is
allowed to request the adoption of his creation by ICT, which will freely decide on the
convenience and opportunity of the request, aiming at developing a project geared towards its
evaluation for future development, incubation, use and industrialization by the production sector.
§ 1 The ICT technological innovation nucleus will evaluate the invention, its affinity with the
corresponding area of operation and the interest in its development.
§ 2 The nucleus will inform the independent inventor, within up to six (6) months, its decision
regarding the adoption referenced in the heading of this article.
§ 3 - If an ICT adopts the invention, the independent inventor will pledge by contract to share
the economic gains obtained from the industrial exploitation of the protected invention.
CHAPTER VI
ON INVESTMENT FUNDS
Art. 23 - It is hereby authorized the creation of mutual investment funds in companies whose
main activity is innovation, characterized by sharing resources collected through the system of
securities and exchange distribution, as described in Law # 6.385, dated September 7, 1976,
aimed at investing on a diversified portfolio of titles issued by such companies.
Sole paragraph. The Securities and Exchange Commission will issue complementary rules
on the creation, operation and administration of the funds, within ninety (90) days of the date of
publication of this Law.
CHAPTER VII
FINAL DISPOSITIONS
Art. 24. The Law # 8.745, dated November 9, 1993, is henceforth in effect with the following
modifications:
"Art. 2o ...................................................................
...................................................................
VII – hiring of substitute professor, researcher and technology
practitioner to provide for the absence of professor, researcher
or technology practitioner occupying a permanent position, said
absence due to leave for exercising business activity related to
the innovation.
..................................................................." (NR)
"Art. 4o ...................................................................
...................................................................
IV – Three (3) years, in the cases of clauses VI, item “h”, and VII
of art. 2;
...................................................................
Sole paragraph. ...................................................................
...................................................................
V – in the case of clause VII of art. 2, as long as the total term
does not exceed six (6) years.” (NR)
Art. 25. Art. 24 of Law #8.666, dated July 21st, 1993 is henceforth in effect with the addition
of the following item:
"Art. 24. ...................................................................
...................................................................
XXV – in hiring performed by the Scientific and Technological
Institution – ICT or by fomentation agency for transfer of
technology and licensing of the right to use or exploit the
protected creation.
..................................................................." (NR)
Art. 26. The ICTs that include teaching among their main activities must mandatorily
associate the application of the disposition of this Law to human resource development activities
under their responsibility.
Art. 27. In the execution of the disposition of this Law, the following guidelines will be
followed:
I – prioritize, in the less developed regions of the country and in the Amazon area, actions
aimed at providing better human resources and technological qualification to research and the
regional production system;
II – tend to programs and projects that promote innovation in the industry of national defense
and that expand the exploitation and development of the Exclusive Economic Zone (ZEE) and the
Continental Platform;
III – ensure privileged treatment to small-size companies; and
IV – offer in the acquisition of goods and services by the Public Administration preferred
treatment to companies that invest in research and technological development in the country.
Art. 28. The Union will foster innovation in the company through concession of tax incentives
aimed at the attainment of the objectives established in this Law.
Sole paragraph. The Executive Power, within up to hundred and twenty (120) days counted
from the publication of this Law, will send to the National Congress a legislative bill to provide for
the specification of the heading of this article.
Art. 29 – This Law is effective on its publication date.
Brasília, December 2nd, 2004; 183rd of Independence and 116th of the Republic.
LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA
Antonio Palocci Filho
Luiz Fernando Furlan
Eduardo Campos
José Dirceu de Oliveira e Silva
This text does not replace the one published in the Federal journal (D.O.U) of 12.3.2004
***