Haiti lacks a comprehensive regime for the protection of trade secrets.

It is reported that there is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in the country to deliver telecom services to end users and that passive sharing is practiced in the mobile sector and in the fixed sector based on commercial agreements. The obligation has not been found in the law, although Art. 12 of the Decree-Law of 12 October 1977 states that, in order to obtain maximum efficiency and output for the provision of services, agreements can be concluded for the distribution of networks, equipment and buildings between public services of the same or different nature, subject to of the approval of the State Secretariat of Public Works, and Transport and Communications.

Haiti has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Haiti has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Haiti has a copyright regime under the Decree on Copyright. However, the exceptions do not follow the fair use or fair dealing model, therefore limiting the lawful use of copyrighted work by others. Art 46 lists the exceptions, which include: (i) reporting of current events, provided that only short-term fragments of a performance, phonogram, or broadcast are used; (ii) reproduction solely for scientific research purposes; (iii) reproduction in the context of teaching activities, except where the performance or phonograms have been published as material intended for teaching; among others.

It is reported that Haiti lacks the capacity to prevent piracy and counterfeit distribution. As a result, theft and infringement of intellectual property rights is reported to be common practice.

Haiti is not a signatory of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Some complains are reported regarding the fact that the laws on intellectual property rights in Haiti are outdated, because these laws rely on a century-old industrial law (Law of 14 December 1922), rather than any specific law governing industrial property. Moreover, it is reported that Haiti has weak enforcement mechanisms, ineffective courts, and limited knowledge of commercial law by judges, which compromise the effectiveness of legal protections.

It is reported that it usually takes about four years for the Intellectual Property Service in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to process an application for patent registration.

It is reported that the investment in “sensitive” sectors, including the telecom sector, require a Haitian government concession as well as authorization from the appropriate governmental agency.

According to Art. 58 of the Public Procurement Law of Haiti, when awarding a public contract preference may be given to the offer presented by small and medium-sized Haitian businesses or nationals of member countries of the same economic community of States. This preference must be quantified as a percentage of the offer amount that cannot exceed 15%. The preference cannot be invoked if it has not been provided for in the tender documents.

Haiti is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), nor does it have observer status.

Haiti is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II).

Guatemala has adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Signatures.