What is patent examination?

After receiving the patent application, the Patent Office will examine it. If the conditions for acceptance are met, the Patent Office shall determine the date of application, give the application number, and after checking the list of documents, issue an acceptance notice to inform the applicant. If the accepted patent application pays the application fee in accordance with the regulations, it will automatically enter the preliminary examination stage. Before the preliminary examination, the application for a patent for invention must be examined in confidentiality, and if confidentiality is required, it shall be handled in accordance with the confidentiality procedures. The application for a patent for invention has entered the publication stage since the issuance of the notice of preliminary examination. If the applicant does not make a request for early publication, it will not enter the public preparation procedure until 15 months after the application date. After the publication of the application for a patent for invention, if the applicant makes a request for substantive examination and it has taken effect, the applicant will enter the actual trial procedure. If the applicant fails to make a request for real trial since the date of application, or the request for real trial has not taken effect, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. If the application for a patent for utility model or design is not found to be rejected after preliminary examination, and the application for a patent for invention has been substantially examined, the examiner will make a notice of authorization and apply for authorization to register. The Patent Office examines the legal effect and completeness of the authorized text, proofreads and modifies the description items of the patent application, and then issues a notice of authorization and a notice of registration. After receiving the notice, the applicant shall go through the registration formalities in accordance with the requirements of the notice and pay the prescribed fees within 2 months. If the registration formalities are completed on schedule, the Patent Office will grant a patent right, issue a patent certificate, record it in the patent register, and announce it in the patent bulletin two months later. Failure to go through the registration formalities in accordance with the provisions shall be regarded as giving up the right to obtain the patent right. Patent reexamination procedure is a kind of remedy for the applicant when the patent application is rejected. According to Article 41 of the Patent Law, the Patent Reexamination Board accepts and examines the request for reexamination and makes a decision.