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For more specific legal questions relating to the Chinese patent system, please contact International_legal_affairs@epo.org.
In China, industrial property rights include invention patents, utility model patents, design patents and trade marks.
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The term for invention patents in China is 20 years from the filing date. The term for utility model patents is 10 years from the filing date.
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According to Articles 5 and 25 of the Chinese Patent Law, the following items are not patentable in China:
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Computer programs as such cannot be patented, but they may be protected under the Regulations on Computers Software Protection, formulated in accordance with the Copyright Law. An invention containing a computer program may be patentable if the combination of software and hardware as a whole can actually improve the prior art, bring about technical results and constitute a complete technical solution.
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In China, a service invention is an invention made by an employee of a company in the performance of his duties. In such cases, the right to apply for a patent belongs to the company, which will also be the patent holder after grant. Non-service inventions are those made by individual inventors.
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Yes. China became a Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) contracting state on 1 January 1994. Since then it has been possible to designate China in international patent applications filed via the PCT route.
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Yes. If a foreign applicant, enterprise or organisation does not have a residential or business address in China, they must appoint a legally established patent agent to represent them in the patent prosecution procedure in China.
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Any document submitted under the Chinese Patent Law and its Implementing Regulations must be in Chinese. Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications can be filed in either Chinese or English. However, you must submit a Chinese translation of the application within 30 months of the priority date (extendible to 32 months subject to payment of a surcharge).
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Yes. The priority term is 12 months from the earliest claimed priority. Multiple priorities are possible. Domestic priorities can be claimed within 12 months from the date of first filing in China. If a later application claiming domestic priority is filed, the earlier application is deemed to have been withdrawn.
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It is not possible at present to file a provisional application in order to get an early filing date in China.
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Yes. Where an application contains two or more inventions, applicants may submit a divisional application on their own initiative or in accordance with an office action from an examiner. Divisional applications must be submitted on the basis of the initial application, no later than two months from the date of receipt of the notification of grant.
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Applications for patents for invention are subject to substantive examination (novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability). Utility model applications undergo a formal examination only. However, in infringement disputes relating to utility model patents, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) will on request examine conformity with the relevant provisions and produce an evaluation report.
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You must submit a request for examination within three years of the filing date or, if priority is claimed, within three years of the priority date. If no request is filed within this time limit, the application is deemed to be withdrawn.
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Yes, you can. The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) will conduct a preliminary examination and publish the application immediately afterwards (provided it is not rejected).
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Yes, you can withdraw your application at any time before grant. Where the request for withdrawal is submitted after the preparations for publication have been completed, the document will be published as scheduled, and the withdrawal will be published in the next issue of the patent gazette.
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Yes. China has a similar third-party observations system to that of the European Patent Convention (EPC). Any person may submit observations on the lack of conformity of an application with the provisions of the patent law to the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA). This can be done at any time from the date of publication of the application to the announcement of the decision to grant.
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Yes, you can request extensions of time limits specified by examiners at the Chinese Patent Office if you are unable to perform a certain act or procedure within the time limit concerned. You must explain the reasons why you are asking for an extension and pay a fee. However, there are certain time limits which may not be extended.
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In the substantive examination procedure, the time limit for responding to the first office action is four months. The usual time limit specified by examiners in their various notifications is two months. For less complicated actions, a period of one month or less may apply. The time limit is calculated from the date on which the party concerned is presumed to have received the notification.
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Yes, it is possible to file invention and utility model applications in parallel to obtain early protection in China. The applications must be filed by the same applicant, on the same day. They must relate to the same invention, and the fact that both applications were filed must be stated. Upon notification of grant of the patent, the utility model must be abandoned.
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Utility models cannot be converted into invention patents in China. However, the dual filing of applications for invention patents and utility models is possible to obtain early protection. Upon notification of grant of the patent, the utility model must be abandoned.
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The annual fee for the year in which the patent is granted must be paid at registration. Subsequent annual fees are payable yearly in advance.
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If you miss the deadline for payment of the annual fees, there is a six-month grace period. If you do not pay them (plus surcharge) within this period, the patent lapses.
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In China you can request restoration of a patent within two months from the date of receipt of the notification of lapse. You must give reasons for your request and pay a restoration fee. Under certain conditions of force majeure, restoration may be requested up to two years from the date of expiry of the time limit for payment.
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No. In China the 20-year term for invention patents cannot be extended. The Chinese Patent Law does not include any provisions on patent term extensions or supplementary protection certificates (SPCs).
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The opposition system was abolished in China in 2001. The only way to a challenge a granted patent is through the invalidation procedure. Requests for invalidation can be filed at any time, even after the patent has expired.
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The English website of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) offers a free search engine for Chinese patent information (Patent Search and Service System).
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You can find English abstracts of Chinese invention patents (manually translated) and utility models in the Patent Search and Service System on the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) website.
The EPO's Espacenet database includes English abstracts of Chinese invention patents and utility models (also manually translated).
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The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) offers English machine translations of Chinese documents via the Patent Search and Services System on its English website.
In addition, the PatentTranslate function in the EPO’s Espacenet also covers Chinese documents.
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You can find English legal status information on Chinese invention patents free of charge in the EPO's Espacenet database and CNIPA’s Patent Search and Service System.
Note: There is a time delay of three months for legal status information in English in Espacenet. You should therefore cross-check your results with the corresponding information in Chinese. You can find a step-by-step guide on how to do a legal status search in Chinese on our website.
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Fee payments for specific applications can be checked in CNIPA’s “China and Global Patent Examination Information Inquiry” database. An English language search interface is available. Should you have any questions on how to access this source, please contact us.
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Yes. The EPO’s Global Dossier includes the office actions in the original language and English translations for Chinese patent applications. It can be accessed via Espacenet and via the European Patent Register.
Furthermore, CNIPA's “China and Global Patent Examination Information Inquiry” provides online access to this data. Should you have any questions on how to access this source, please contact us.
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The website of the All-China Patent Agents Association (ACPAA) contains a list in English of the names and addresses of Chinese patent agents.
A worldwide directory of patent agents, which can be searched by country, can be found on the Pipers Patent Attorneys website.
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You can find information about patents in Macao on the Macao Special Administrative Region Economic Service website
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You can find information about patents in Hong Kong on the website of the Intellectual Property Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.
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