Procedures for Obtaining an Invention Patent
(1)Filing an Application
Any creation of technical concepts by utilizing the rules of nature may file for an invention patent。
Documents for filing an invention patent application:
a). Application, including title of the invention, name of the inventor, name of the assignee (depends), and claiming priority (depends)
b). specification and drawings (you can submit a non-Chinese specification in filing, but you have to submit a Chinese translation in a given period)TOP
(2)Procedural Examination
An application document submitted to the TIPO will be checked to see whether it fulfills the necessary procedural and formal requirements. TIPO will ask you to correct while the application does not fulfill the requirements. Failure to submit a correction within a given period, the filing date will change to the date you submit the correction.TOP
(3)Publication
After the application passes the formality examination, TIPO will publish your patent application after a period of eighteen (18) months from the filing date. The patent application will not be published only under some legal circumstances, such as: you withdraws the application within fifteen (15) months from the filing date.TOP
(4)Request for Examination
Any person may, within three (3) years from the filing date of an invention patent application, apply to the TIPO for a substantive examination.TOP
(5)No Request for Examination
If substantive examination is not applied within the legal period, the patent application shall be deemed withdrawn.TOP
(6)Substantive Examination
TIPO will assign an examiner to examine patentability of the claimed subject matter of your application, including:
1. Industrial applicability;
2. Novelty; and
3. Inventive step.TOP
(7)Allowance
Where the examination result reveals no reason to deny the patentability of an invention, such invention shall be patented, and a notice of allowance will be rendered to you. TOP
(8)Issue
The granted patent will be published and a certificate will be issued only after the issue fee and the first year annual fee have been paid within three (3) months after you receive the notice of allowance; if the foregoing fees have not been paid upon expiry of the above-given deadline, no publication shall be made, and the patent right for said invention shall not exist ab initio.
You have to pay the annual fee every year to maintain your right.TOP
(9)Rejection
A first rejection decision will be rendered to you when the examiner found your application is not patentable, and you may respond the rejection decision by a statement of reasons. TOP
(10).Re-examination
When the examiner does not accept your reasons, you may, within sixty (60) days from the date the rejection decision is served, apply for re-examination by submitting a statement of reasons.TOP
(11).Appeal
TIPO will submit a final rejection decision when the examiner does not accept your reasons of re-examination, and you may, within thirty (30) days from the date the final rejection decision is served, apply for an appeal.TOP
(12).Intellectual Property Court
If you dissatisfied with the appeal decision, you may appeal to the Intellectual Property Court. TOP
(13)End of the right
The term of an invention patent right shall ends with twenty (20) years from the filing date of the patent application.TOP
(14)Invalidation
Any person may file an invalidation action together with evidence to TIPO against the patentability of a granted patent.
While an invalidation action against a granted patent is sustained, the patent is revoked and the patent right shall become non-existing ab initio.TOP | 
