Article 1 These Measures are formulated in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) in order to implement the requirements of Several Opinions of the State Council on Accelerating the Construction of a Powerful Country with Intellectual Property Rights under the New Situation (Guo Fa [2015] No.71).
Article 2 The patent applicant or patentee may request the reduction or exemption of the following patent fees:
(1) Application fee (excluding publication printing fee and application surcharge);
(2) the substantive examination fee for an application for a patent for invention;
(3) Annual fee (annual fee within six years from the year when the patent right is granted);
(4) review fee.
Article 3 Where the patent applicant or patentee meets one of the following conditions, he may request China National Intellectual Property Administration to reduce or exempt the above fees:
(1) Individuals whose average monthly income in the previous year was less than 3,500 yuan (42,000 yuan per year);
(2) Enterprises with taxable income of less than 300,000 yuan in the previous year;
(3) Institutions, social organizations and non-profit scientific research institutions.
Where two or more individuals or units are the same patent applicant or patentee, they shall abide by the provisions of the preceding paragraph respectively.
Article 4 Where the patent applicant or patentee is an individual or entity, the fees stipulated in Article 2 of these Measures shall be reduced by 85%.
Where two or more individuals or units are the same patent applicant or patentee, the fees specified in Article 2 of these Measures shall be reduced by 70%.
Article 5 The patent applicant or patentee can only request to reduce the unexpired fees. The request to reduce the application fee shall be filed at the same time as the patent application, and the request to reduce other fees may be filed at the same time as the patent application, or two and a half months before the expiration of the relevant fee payment period. If the request for reduction of payment is not submitted within the prescribed time limit, it will not be reduced.
Article 6 Where a patent applicant or patentee requests to reduce the patent fee, it shall submit a request for reduction and relevant supporting materials. If a patent applicant or patentee submits a patent fee waiver request through the patent affairs service system and it is approved for filing after examination, it only needs to submit the fee waiver request again within a natural year without submitting relevant certification materials.
Article 7 Where an individual requests to reduce or exempt patent fees, he shall truthfully fill in the income of the previous year in the request for fee reduction, and submit the income certificate of the previous year issued by his unit; If there is no fixed job, submit the certificate issued by the civil affairs department at the county level or the township people's government (street office) where the household registration is located.
Where an enterprise requests to reduce or exempt patent fees, it shall truthfully fill in the financial difficulties in the request for fee reduction and exemption, and submit a copy of the enterprise income tax return for the previous year. During the settlement period, the enterprise shall submit a copy of the annual enterprise income tax return for the previous year.
If a public institution, social organization or non-profit scientific research institution requests to reduce or exempt patent fees, it shall submit a copy of the legal person certification materials.
Article 8 After receiving the request for fee reduction, China National Intellectual Property Administration shall examine it, make a decision on whether to approve the request for fee reduction, and notify the patent applicant or patentee.
Article 9 In any of the following circumstances, the patent fee reduction request shall not be approved:
(a) did not use the fee reduction request made by China National Intellectual Property Administration;
(two) the request for fee reduction is not signed or sealed;
(3) The request for fee reduction does not conform to the provisions of Article 2 or Article 3 of these Measures;
(four) the individual or unit requesting fee reduction fails to provide the certification materials that meet the provisions of Article 7 of these Measures;
(5) The name of the patent applicant or patentee or the name of the invention-creation in the request for fee reduction is inconsistent with the corresponding contents in the patent application or patent register.
Article 10 For the request for fee reduction approved by China National Intellectual Property Administration, the patent applicant or patentee shall pay the patent fee according to the approved amount within the prescribed time limit. If the patent applicant or patentee changes after the request for fee reduction is approved, the changed patent applicant or patentee shall resubmit the request for fee reduction for unpaid fees.
Article 11 After the decision on the examination and approval of the patent fee waiver request is made, if China National Intellectual Property Administration finds that the decision is wrong, it shall correct it and notify the patent applicant or patentee of the correction decision in time.
If the patent applicant or patentee provides false information or false certification materials when requesting the reduction or exemption of patent fees, China National Intellectual Property Administration will cancel the decision on the reduction or exemption of patent fees after verification, notify the patent applicant or patentee to pay the reduced fees within a time limit, and cancel its qualification for fee reduction or exemption within five years from this year. If the payment is not due or the payment amount is insufficient, it shall be dealt with accordingly according to law.
Where a patent agency or patent agent helps, instigates or induces a patent applicant or patentee to commit the above acts, it shall be handled in accordance with the relevant provisions.
Article 12 These Measures shall come into force on September 1 day, 2065. Where the relevant provisions are inconsistent with these Measures, these Measures shall prevail.