The substantive examination of the invention patent takes three years. According to the relevant laws and regulations, within three years from the date of application for a patent for invention, the administrative department for patent in the State Council may, on the basis of the applicant's application, decide to conduct substantive examination of the application for a patent for invention according to law.
The substantive examination of invention patents takes about three years. According to the relevant laws and regulations, the period of preliminary examination of patent application is eighteen months, and the time of substantive examination is three years from the date of application, and it shall be conducted at any time at the request of the applicant.
Article 26 of the Patent Law Where an applicant applies for a patent for invention or utility model, he shall submit a written request, a specification and its abstract, a patent claim and other documents. Article 34 After receiving an application for a patent for invention, the administrative department for patent in the State Council, after preliminary examination, finds that it conforms to the provisions of this Law, and shall publish it after 18 months from the date of filing. The patent administration department of the State Council may publish its application at an early date upon the request of the applicant.
Legal basis: People's Republic of China (PRC) Patent Law.
Article 35 Within 3 years from the date of filing, the administrative department for patent in the State Council may, upon the request of the applicant at any time, make a substantive examination of the application; If the applicant fails to request substantive examination within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. The patent administrative department of the State Council may, when it deems it necessary, examine the application for a patent for invention on its own.
Article 36 When requesting substantive examination, an applicant for a patent for invention shall submit reference materials related to his invention before the date of application. Where an application for a patent for invention is filed in a foreign country, the patent administration department of the State Council may require the applicant to submit the information retrieved during the examination of his application in that country or the information on the examination results within a specified time limit; If the application is not submitted within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.