The European Patent Office (EPO) has once again decided that it will increase its official fees as of 1 April 2024.While some fees are staying the same, there are increases of around 4% for the common fees, and substantial increases in some early renewal fees.   In particular, the search fee is due to increase from €1460 to €1520, the examination fee from €1840 to €1915, the designation fee from €660 to €690 and the grant fee from €1040 to €1080.The most significant changes are in the renewal fees for the 3rd to 5th year. The 3rd year fee increases from €530 to €690 (an increase of approximately 30%), the 4th year fee from €660 to €845 (an increase of approximately 28%), and the 5th year fee from €925 to €1000 (an increase of approximately 8%). The 6th year fee decreases slightly, from €1180 to €1155 (an decrease of approximately 2%). The remaining renewal fees for the 7th to 9th years have increased only slightly, while the fee for the 10th year onwards remains the same.   As in previous years, applicants should once again consider paying fees before 1 April 2024, in particular the payment of the 3rd to 5th year renewal fees, where it is possible to do so to save the money.The maintenance fees for European patent applications can be paid up to 3 months in advance of their due date, except for the first fee (for the 3rd year) which can be paid up to 6 months in advance.   Source: Venner Shipley

South Korea's patent priority examination ushered in major adjustments: (1) Until now, the applicant may use the prior art search report issued by the specialized agency for prior art search designated by the KIPO to file a request for priority examination of Korean patent and trademark applications, but the KIPO announced on December 19, 2023 that the priority examination in this way will no longer be carried out from January 1, 2024; (2) From November 1, 2023,applications for inventions and utility models related to display technology may be submitted for priority examination for a period of one year.   According to the current Enforcement Order of the Korean IP Act, the KIPO may conduct priority examination if an application falls into a specific category, which includes: (i) an invention patent application filed under the Patent Examination Highway (PPH); (ii) patent applications for inventions that claim protection in respect of inventions that are in continuous use by third parties; (iii) an application for a patent for an invention that claims protection in respect of an invention that the applicant is implementing or preparing to implement; And (iv) patent applications for inventions for prior art search conducted by a specialized agency for prior art search designated by the KIPO. (The utility models, designs and trademarks also have corresponding examination provisions.)   However, with the increase in the number of priority examination applications, the examination burden of the KIPO has become more and more heavy, and in order to improve the quality and efficiency of the examination level, the KIPO announced on December 19, 2023 that the relevant provisions of the Korean IP Law will be revised. In the new regulations, the above type of (iv) applications, i.e., applications for prior art search conducted by prior art search agencies designated by the KIPO, will no longer be subject to priority examination, so that the examination resources will be more focused on cutting-edge technology areas (e.g., semiconductors, secondary batteries, biology, etc.), so as to provide more efficient and rapid examination services.   Correlatively, the KIPO has also announced that since November 1, the patent applications relevant to the display field developed or produced in South Korea will be included in the priority examination object, and the implementation period is tentatively set for one year. This policy is based on the Enforcement Decree of the IP Law revised in November last year, and the director of the KIPO announced the scope of cutting-edge technologies that can be subject to priority examination and the deadline for requesting. In the context of increasingly intense patent disputes in the global display field, the move is aimed at supporting the related companies to obtain patents quickly, and the scope of priority examination has been extended to the display field. In particular, priority examination is given to the applications that are directly related to materials, parts, equipment, manufacturing or design techniques that can be applied to the display field, as well as applications from companies that produce or prepare to produce display-related products and equipment in Korea, or applications for national research and development projects in display technology conducted by the Korean government.   Given that the average examination time for the priority examination applications in the semiconductor sector, implemented last year, was only 1.9 months, the new policy is expected to significantly reduce the time required for patent examination related to the display-related companies and research and development institutions in South Korea.   Source: KIM&CHANG

According to the Philippines Trademark Law, the holder of trademark is required to notarize the DECLARATION OF ACTUAL USE (DAU) in the prescribed form within a specified period of time, along with evidence(s) of actual use of the trademark.   The Philippine IP Office (IPO) shall not issue any notice, and it is completely submitted by the applicant, so an agent must be entrusted to monitor the deadlines of the DAU. If the holder of the trademark fails to file the DAU in due time, the trademark shall be directly cancelled by the IPO, resulting in the trademark is completely invalid. If the holder still wants to own the trademark again,refiling is the only way to regain the exclusive right to the trademark. However, if there is an earlier similar application by then, it is likely to lose the trademark.   A trademark registration is in force for 10 years in the the Philippines but, to maintain it, the DAU of the mark, with accompanying evidence of its use, must be filed with the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines according to the following schedule:   1. DAU must be filed within three (3) years from the filing date of the trademark application; A single extension of six months can be requested to file for the 3rd Year DAU, provided the request was made before the three-year period expired, and upon payment of the necessary fees   2. DAU must be filed within one (1) year from the fifth anniversary of the registration / within one (1) year from the fifth anniversary of the renewal of registration. A single extension of six months can be requested to file for the 3rd Year DAU, provided the request was made before the three-year period expired, and upon payment of the necessary fees   3. DAU must be filed within one (1) year from the date of renewal of registration   Note: The holder of an international registration with an extension of protection to the Philippines under the Madrid Protocol must timely file the DAU referenced above directly with the Philippines IP Office, within 3 years from the filing date and between the 5th and 6th years after the registration date.

According to the Memorandum of Understanding on the Payment of Fees for the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) signed by the China Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the CNIPA collects fees for the international phase of the PCT application on behalf of the International Bureau of WIPO according to the RMB standard published by the WIPO. 1. RMB standard to be implemented from November 1, 2023. According to the RMB standard for the international phase fee of PCT application, which will be implemented from November 1, 2023, published by the WIPO, the CNIPA will charge the international phase fee of PCT application according to the following standard. Standard for the PCT International Phase Fee ( currency: RMB) (1) Application fees for international phase collected on behalf of the International Bureau 1. No more than 30 sheets 10920 2. Each sheet in excess of 30 120 3. Reduced fee for electronic filing (PDF format) 1640 4. Reduced fee for electronic filing (XML format) 2460   (2) Processing fees collected on behalf of the International Bureau RMB1640 If the exchange rate fluctuation is too large and other reasons to adjust the standard will be announced separately. 2. Scope of application This standard applies to the international application fee and processing fee for PCT applications submitted to the CNIPA with a date of receipt after 1 November 2023 (inclusive).   In addition to the fees charged on behalf of the International Bureau, the fees charged by the CNIPA, such as international search fees, remain unchanged, as detailed in the "Patent Fees, Layout Design Fees for Integrated Circuits" published on the website of the CNIPA.   Source: CNIPA

CNIPA: Obvious lack of inventive step shall be a part of scope of preliminary examination of utility models   Recently, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) issued a reply to the Fifth Session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) Recommendation No. 8842. It is mentioned that the CNIPA shall promote the examination of inventive step for the utility models and improve the quality of granting. At present, China adopts the examination system of preliminary examination plus evaluation report for the utility models. In the preliminary examination, the examiner may examine whether the applied-for utility models obviously do not involve inventive step on the basis of information obtained from the prior arts or the conflicting applications. For further improving the quality of granting of the utility models, the CNIPA actively promotes the reform of system of the utility models. In the draft amendment of the Rules for the implementation of the Patent Law, obviously does not involve inventive step shall be a part of scope of utility models preliminary examination, amend the Patent Examination Guide accordingly, and further perfect the relevant examination standards.