Plant breeders’ rights (PBRs) are a form of intellectual property. They are rights created by statute to protect the commercial interests of those who produce new plant varieties, whether trees or other types of plant, including fungi and algae. Breeders of animals, bacteria or viruses do not have the benefit of these rights. The protection of breeders is administered under the Plant Breeder's Rights Act 1994 (Cth).

The Act can be found at the following website: www.comlaw.gov.au If you are a breeder of plant varieties and are thinking of applying for PBRs it is worthwhile referring to the Act directly since it contains many more details tha

Intellectual Property of this nature comes within the responsibility of a Commonwealth Government Agency called “Intellectual Property Australia” (IPAustralia). They have a very comprehensive website at www.ipaustralia.gov.au and will assist you with any enquiries you may have regarding Plant Breeders’ Rights

Breeders can register new plant varieties with the Plant Breeders' Rights Office at IP Australia. Registration gives the breeders exclusive rights to use, and control the use of, the new varieties. More specifically, it allows breeders to: produce or reproduce the material, condition the material for the purpose of propagation, offer the material for sale, sell the material, import and export the material and stock the material for the purposes described above

It also allows breeders to license other people to do any of these things in exchange for licence fees. The rights are a form of property and can be sold.