How to apply for a patent abroad?

There are two ways to apply for overseas patents: one is the Paris Convention. Where a patent has been applied for in China, the priority date shall be the filing date, and the application shall be submitted to other countries within 12 months (invention or utility model) or 6 months (design) from the priority date; One is the pct method, which submits an application to the PCT Office of the Chinese Intellectual Property Office or the International Bureau within 12 months from the priority date.

legal ground

Article 29 of the patent law

An applicant who applies for a patent for invention or utility model for the first time in a foreign country within 12 months, or for a patent for design for the first time in a foreign country within 6 months, and applies for a patent on the same subject in China, may enjoy the priority according to the agreement signed by the foreign country and China or the international treaties to which they are both parties, or according to the principle of mutual recognition of priority.

Applicants who file a patent application for invention or utility model for the first time in China within 12 months, or apply for a patent for design for the first time in China within 6 months may enjoy priority.