TIME LIMITS FOR HANDLING PATENT-RELATED AND IC LAYOUT APPLICATIONS

07/01/2004

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Article 51 of the Administrative Procedures Act requires that any administrative agency set and announce the time period for processing each type of applications filed in accordance with laws, unless it is otherwise prescribed by laws or rules. If an agency fails to set a processing time period, such time period shall be deemed to be a period of two months.

To comply with the implementation of the amended Patent Act, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) recently announced the processing time periods for various patent-related applica-tions, as listed below.

No.	Type of Application	Processing  Time Period
1	Examination of invention patent application (application for substantive examination)	18 months
2	Early laying-open of invention patent application	8 months
3	Expedited examination of invention patent application	10 months
4	Reexamination of applications in fields of "electromechanical" and "chemical engineering"	15 months
5	Reexamination cases in the fields of "mechanical engineering" and "daily-use articles"	12 months
6	Compulsory licensing of invention patent	24 months
7	Termination of compulsory licensing of invention patent	18 months
8	Determination of compensation for compulsory licensing of invention patent	6 months
9	Extension of invention patent term	12 months
10	New utility model patent application	6 months
11	New utility model patent technical report	12 months
12	New utility model patent technical report (if the utility model has been commercially exploited by a 3rd party)	6 months
13	Examination of new design patent application	12 months
14	Examination of associated new design patent application	16 months
15	Reexamination of new design patent application	12 months
16	Reexamination of associated new design patent application	16 months
17	Opposition action	10 months
18	Cancellation action	12 months
19	Expedited examination of cancellation action	6 months
20	Correction to claims, specification, or drawings	6 months
21	Divisional application of a granted patent (not available after new Patent Act enters force)	3 months

The IPO also announced the processing time periods for handling various applications related to the registration of integrated circuit layouts, as listed below.

No.	Type of Application	Processing  Time Period
1	IC layout registration	3 months
2	Revocation of IC layout registration	12 months
3	Compulsory licensing of IC layout registration right	24 months
4	Termination of compulsory licensing of IC layout registration right	18 months
5	Assessment of IC layout rights	24 months
6	Mediation of disputes over IC layout registration right	6 months

Each of the time periods set forth in the above tables starts to run from the date on which the IPO receives the relevant documents. However, the time period for notifying the applicant to submit amendments or supplements and/or file a response, the time period for filing a defense, or the time period for suspend the processing for other proper reasons are not included.