Are applications for new plant variety rights the same as applications for invention patents?

No. Article 25 of the Patent Law stipulates that patent rights cannot be granted for animal and plant varieties, but patent rights can be granted for methods of cultivating animal and plant varieties. New plant variety protection is a type of intellectual property protection that protects breeders' rights related to the varieties they cultivate. In different countries, the specific forms of protection are not entirely consistent. In China, new plant varieties are protected in the form of new plant variety rights.