Chinese and German Offices Extend Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot until January 22, 2018

View: 1557     Date: 2016-01-23 08:52

Since January 23, 2012, with the introduction of Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot program between the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) and the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China (SIPO), Germany and Chinese patent applicants have been able to request accelerated examination of their applications. But this program has expired on January 22, 2016.

However, this would not be a problem because this option will continue to be available. The DPMA and SIPO have extended the pilot program's duration by a further two years until January 22, 2018. And the related requirements and procedures will remain the same.

The PPH allows the applicant to file a request for accelerated examination as soon as at least one patent claim has been found to be patentable by the partner office. SIPO or the DPMA will then carry out an independent search on the basis of the partner office's work results. The applicant benefits from the sharing of work results between the offices. This can even further expand prior art search.

More information on the PPH program with SIPO is available here.

Source From: the DPMA and SIPO