To apply for a patent for invention, the applicant shall submit a request, a specification and its abstract, a patent claim and other documents.
Date and priority of application
The date when the patent administrative department of the State Council receives the patent application documents is the filing date.
An application for a patent for invention generally needs to go through two stages: preliminary examination and substantive examination.
(1) Preliminary review
After accepting an application for a patent for invention, the administrative department for patent in the State Council shall conduct a preliminary examination before publishing the application. The task of preliminary examination is to examine whether the adjusted application documents of the applicant conform to the provisions of the Patent Law and its implementing rules, and whether other documents related to the patent application submitted by the applicant at the same time or later conform to the provisions of the Patent Law and its implementing rules.
(2) Release the application program
After receiving an application for a patent for invention, the administrative department for patent in the State Council, after preliminary examination, considers that it conforms to the provisions of the Patent Law, and shall publish it 18 months after the date of application. The patent administration department of the State Council may publish its application at an early date upon the request of the applicant.
(3) Substantive review
Within three years from the date of application, the patent administrative department of the State Council may at any time conduct substantive examination of the application; If the applicant fails to conduct substantive examination within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.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.
If the application for a patent for invention is rejected after substantive examination, the administrative department for patent in the State Council shall make a decision to grant a patent for invention, issue a patent certificate for invention, and register and announce it at the same time. The invention patent right shall take effect as of the date of announcement.