A grace period is a period of time before the date of filing a patent application during which certain kinds of disclosure of the creation would be excluded when determining the novelty and inventive step of the creation. The duration is 12 months for invention or utility model, and 6…

The citizens or residents of the member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) may enjoy the benefits of a priority right based on the first application filed in any WTO member if the ROC patent application is filed no later than 12 months after filing the first application. With respect…

If you file a patent application for invention and a patent application for utility model for the same creation on the same date, before an approval decision on the patent application for invention is rendered, TIPO will require you to make a selection to avoid double patenting. Once the invention…

An invention patent application will not be examined unless a “Request for Substantive Examination” has been received by TIPO. If a “Request for Substantive Examination” is not submitted within three years of the filing date of the invention patent application, the invention patent application is deemed to have been withdrawn.

The Chinese translations of those foreign language documents must be provided within 4 months for invention and design patent application, and 2 months for utility model patent application from the date of submitting the foreign language documents. Prior to the expiration of the time period, the applicant may make a…

Whenever a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, national holiday or any other statutory holiday of ROC, the deadline will become the next working day that TIPO is open.

For adding a further inventor, the applicant must submit a written request, accompanied by documents of proof with respect to the consent from each designated inventor (newly added inventor(s) included). For deleting an inventor, the applicant must submit a written request, accompanied by a statement from the deleted inventor declaring…

A “trademark” is a sign that is used to distinguish one’s goods or services from those provided by others. As the economy, culture, and the market diversify, the types of trademarks may now include a packaging design, three-dimensional object, sound, or even a scent. In the Republic of China, a…

A certification mark is a sign that serves to certify a particular quality, accuracy, material, mode of manufacture, place of origin or other matters of another person’s goods or services by the proprietor of the certification mark and distinguish the goods or services from those that are not certified, e.g.,…