Effective December 19, 2019, Hong Kong will launch a new patent system that includes a new “original grant patent” (OGP), substantive examination for short term patents (STPs), and maintains the current re-registration system based on patents from China (CN), the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Patent Office (EPO) that designate the United Kingdom. The new patent system is based on the Patents (Amendment) Ordinance 2016 passed on June 10, 2016 and Patents (General) (Amendment) Rules 2019 issued on March …
Category: New Law, Rule or Implementing Regulation
China National IP Administration (CNIPA) Extends Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Program with Iceland and Egypt
CNIPA has extended the PPH pilot program with both Iceland and Egypt for 5 years each through June 30 2024. The China-Iceland PPH pilot was launched on July 1, 2014 and was extended for the first time on July 1, 2016 for a period of three years until June 30, 2019 while the China-Egypt PPH pilot was launched on July 1, 2017 for a period of two years until June 30, 2019. While the US has a PPH with Iceland, …