Selected year snapshot
For 2024, the active event in this file is Código da Propriedade Intelectual (Decreto-Lei n.º 23/2016).
0%
Current rationale
In 2016, São Tomé and Príncipe enacted a new Intellectual Property Code (Decreto-Lei No. 23/2016), which is confirmed by WIPO Lex and the IP Country Fiche. The available text of this Code (accessed via the HSE/WIPO Lex linked PDF) primarily covers industrial property provisions (patents, trademarks). The copyright exceptions and limitations provisions of this Code could not be fully verified from the available online text. The portions of the Code that are accessible deal with industrial property (Articles 100, 186, etc.). The IP Country Fiche from the European Commission confirms this is the governing IP legislation. Based on the structure of the Code and the legal tradition of São Tomé and Príncipe (Portuguese-influenced civil law), the copyright exceptions are expected to follow the pattern of the prior Portuguese-origin code, permitting only quotation and reproduction of short excerpts for private use, without a general fair use/fair dealing clause, without a research-specific full-work exception, and without a TDM exception. The classification remains RED because no verifiable provision in the accessible text permits full-work reproduction for research purposes. The verbatim text of the copyright exceptions chapters could not be extracted from the available sources.
Exceptions considered
Quotation/citation of short passages for criticism, discussion, or teaching — continuation of Portuguese legal tradition
Private reproduction of short excerpts — continuation of Portuguese legal tradition
Law changes
Código do Direito de Autor (Decreto-Lei n.º 46 980, de 27 de Abril de 1966, tornado extensivo ao ultramar pela Portaria n.º 679/71)
Baseline · Effective 1990-01-01
0%
Relevant section: Artigos 189.º–195.º (Utilizações lícitas)
Dates: Effective 1990-01-01 · Enacted 1966-04-27
Why this score
The copyright law in force in São Tomé and Príncipe on 1990-01-01 was the Portuguese Código do Direito de Autor (Decree-Law No. 46 980 of 27 April 1966), extended to the overseas territories by Portaria No. 679/71 of 7 December 1971. The WIPO Lex PDF for São Tomé and Príncipe (st005pt.pdf) confirms this extension. The 1966 Portuguese Copyright Code's exceptions and limitations provisions (Articles 189–195 in the original numbering) permitted only quotation/citation of short passages ('pequenos trechos') for purposes of criticism, discussion, or teaching, and reproduction of short excerpts for private use. There was no general fair use or fair dealing clause, no research-specific exception permitting full-work reproduction, no library/institutional exception for research copies, and no TDM exception. The most permissive research-relevant provision was the private reproduction of short excerpts ('pequenos trechos'), which caps reproduction at excerpts rather than full works. This maps to RED: no provision permits full-work reproduction for research for any type of work. The verbatim text could not be fully extracted from the PDF due to OCR/encoding issues in the WIPO Lex document, but the structure and content of the exceptions are verifiable from the document.
Exceptions considered
Quotation of short passages ('pequenos trechos') for criticism, discussion, or teaching purposes
Reproduction of short excerpts for private use of the copier, limited to 'pequenos trechos'
Source links
Código da Propriedade Intelectual (Decreto-Lei n.º 23/2016)
Relevant update · Effective 2016-01-01
0%
Relevant section: Artigos pertinentes às excepções e limitações ao direito de autor
Dates: Effective 2016-01-01 · Enacted 2016-01-01
Why this score
In 2016, São Tomé and Príncipe enacted a new Intellectual Property Code (Decreto-Lei No. 23/2016), which is confirmed by WIPO Lex and the IP Country Fiche. The available text of this Code (accessed via the HSE/WIPO Lex linked PDF) primarily covers industrial property provisions (patents, trademarks). The copyright exceptions and limitations provisions of this Code could not be fully verified from the available online text. The portions of the Code that are accessible deal with industrial property (Articles 100, 186, etc.). The IP Country Fiche from the European Commission confirms this is the governing IP legislation. Based on the structure of the Code and the legal tradition of São Tomé and Príncipe (Portuguese-influenced civil law), the copyright exceptions are expected to follow the pattern of the prior Portuguese-origin code, permitting only quotation and reproduction of short excerpts for private use, without a general fair use/fair dealing clause, without a research-specific full-work exception, and without a TDM exception. The classification remains RED because no verifiable provision in the accessible text permits full-work reproduction for research purposes. The verbatim text of the copyright exceptions chapters could not be extracted from the available sources.
Exceptions considered
Quotation/citation of short passages for criticism, discussion, or teaching — continuation of Portuguese legal tradition
Private reproduction of short excerpts — continuation of Portuguese legal tradition
Source links
Código da Propriedade Intelectual (Decreto-Lei n.º 23/2016)
Current law confirmation · Effective 2025-01-01
0%
Dates: Effective 2025-01-01
Why this score
As of 2025, the governing copyright law in São Tomé and Príncipe is the Intellectual Property Code approved by Decreto-Lei No. 23/2016. This is confirmed by the WIPO Lex record and the European Commission IP Country Fiche (dated February 2025). The IP Country Fiche lists the international agreements to which São Tomé and Príncipe is party (Berne Convention, WIPO Copyright Treaty, WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, etc.) but does not describe the domestic copyright exceptions in detail. No subsequent amendment to the copyright exceptions has been identified. The classification remains RED based on the Portuguese civil law tradition governing the exceptions: the law permits only quotation of short passages and reproduction of short excerpts ('pequenos trechos') for private use. No general fair use or fair dealing clause, no research-specific full-work reproduction exception, no library/institutional exception for research, and no TDM exception have been identified in the accessible portions of the law. The non-commercial restriction, copy limits, and remuneration factors were not considered in the color classification per the instructions.
Exceptions considered
Quotation/citation of short passages for criticism, discussion, or teaching
Private reproduction of short excerpts for private use