Implementing Rules of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China (Revised in 2010)

Order of the State Council No.569

January 9, 2010

(Promulgated by Order of the State Council No.306 on June 15, 2001, amended in accordance with the Decision of the State Council on the Revision of the Implementing Rules of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China, and further amended in accordance with the Decision of the State Council on the Revision of the Implementing Rules of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of Chinaon January 9, 2010, and to come into effect on February 1, 2010.)

Chapter I General Provisions
　
Article 1 These Rules have been formulated in accordance with the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the "Patent Law").
　
Article 2 All kinds of procedures stipulated in the Patent Law and these Rules shall be completed in writing or in another form prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
　
Article 3 All documents submitted in accordance with the Patent Law and these Rules shall be in Chinese. Where the State has prescribed unified scientific and technical terminology, the standard terms shall be used. If there is no unified Chinese translation for the name of a foreign person or place or a foreign scientific or technical term, the original term shall be used.
If any certificate or supporting document submitted in accordance with the Patent Law and these Rules is in a foreign language, the patent administrative authority under the State Council may require the party concerned to supply a Chinese translation within a prescribed time limit if it considers this to be necessary. If the translation is not supplied within the time limit, such certificate or supporting document shall be deemed not to have been submitted.
　
Article 4 The postmark date of any document mailed to the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall be deemed to be the date of submission. If the postmark date is unclear, the date on which the patent administrative authority under the State Council receives the document shall be deemed to be the date of submission unless the party concerned can supply evidence regarding the date of mailing.
Documents of the patent administrative authority under the State Council may be served on the party concerned by mail, direct delivery or otherwise. If the party has appointed a patent agency, such documents shall be delivered to the patent agency. If the party has not appointed a patent agency, such documents shall be delivered to the contact person designated in the claim letter.
Documents mailed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall be assumed to have been received by the party concerned 15 days after the date of sending.
The date of service of documents that regulations of the patent administrative authority under the State Council require to be delivered directly shall be the date of delivery.
If the address to which a document is to be sent is unclear and the document cannot be mailed, the document may be served on the party concerned by public announcement. Such document shall be deemed to have been served one month after the date of the announcement.

　
Article 5 The first day of any time limit stipulated in the Patent Law or these Rules shall not be included as part of the time limit when calculating the same. If a time limit is calculated in years or months, the corresponding day of the last month of such time limit shall be the expiry date. If there is no corresponding day in such month, the last day of that month shall be the expiry date. If the expiry date for a time limit is a statutory holiday, the first working day following the holiday shall be the expiry date.
　
Article 6 Where a party fails to observe a time limit stipulated in the Patent Law or these Rules or a time limit prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council due to an event of force majeure, and consequently forfeits his rights, he may, within two months of the date the relevant obstacle has been eliminated, but no later than two years after the expiry date for the time limit, request that the patent administrative authority under the State Council restore his rights. Such request shall contain an explanation of the reasons and be accompanied by relevant supporting documents.
Where a party fails to observe a time limit stipulated in the Patent Law or these Rules or a time limit prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council for legitimate reasons and consequently forfeits his rights, he may, within two months of the date on which he receives a notice from the patent administrative authority under the State Council, request that such authority restore his rights. Such request shall contain an explanation of the reasons.
Where the party concerned requests that his rights be restored in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 1 or Paragraph 2 of this Article, a rights restoration request shall be submitted along with explanatory reasons and, when necessary, relevant certification documents, and the corresponding formalities that should have been gone through before he was deprived of his rights shall be completed; where the party concerned requests that his rights be restored in accordance with Paragraph 2 of this Article, a rights restoration request fee shall be paid.
If a party requests an extension of a time limit prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council, he shall explain the reasons to the patent administrative authority under the State Council and go through the relevant procedure prior to the expiration of the time limit.
The provisions of the first and second paragraphs of this Article shall not apply to the time limits stipulated in Articles 24, 29, 42 and 68 of the Patent Law.


　
Article 7 Where the patent application involves national defense interests and thus needs to remain confidential, the application shall be accepted by and subject to the examination of the national defense patent institution; where the patent application accepted by the patent administrative department under the State Council involves national defense interests, the application shall be transferred to the national defense patent institution for examination in a timely manner. Where the national defense patent institution finds no grounds for rejection in the course of its examination, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall make a decision to grant a national defense patent right.
Where the patent administrative department under the State Council finds that a patent application for an invention or utility model involves national security or a major interest other than national defense and thus needs to remain confidential, a decision to handle the application as a secret patent application shall be made in a timely manner and the applicant concerned shall be notified. Provisions on the examination and reexamination of secret patent applications and special procedures for declaring secret patents invalid shall be formulated by the patent administrative department under the State Council.
　
Article 8 The term "invention or utility model completed in China" as used in Article 20 of the Patent Law refers to an invention or utility model for which the substantive part of the technical solution is completed within China.
Where any entity or individual files a patent application in a foreign country for an invention or utility model completed in China, a request shall be made to the patent administrative department under the State Council to carry out a confidentiality examination in accordance with any of the following methods:
1. where the patent application is filed directly in a foreign country or an international patent application is submitted directly to the relevant foreign institution, a request shall be made to the patent administrative department under the State Council in advance and the technical solution shall be explained;
2. where it is proposed that a patent application be filed in a foreign country or that an international patent application be submitted to the relevant foreign institution after a patent application has been filed with the patent administrative department under the State Council, a request shall be made to the patent administrative department under the State Council prior to filing the patent application in the foreign country concerned or submitting the international patent application with the relevant foreign institution.
Where an international patent application is submitted to the patent administrative department under the State Council, a request for a confidentiality examination shall be deemed to have been made at the same time.
　
Article 9 Where the patent administrative department under the State Council, after receiving a request submitted in accordance with Article 8 of these Rules and upon examination thereof, finds that the invention or utility model concerned might involve national security or another major interest and thus needs to remain confidential, a confidentiality examination notice shall be forwarded to the applicant in a timely manner; where no confidentiality examination notice is received within four months of the application date, the applicant may file a patent application in a foreign country or submit an international patent application to the relevant foreign institution for such invention or utility model.
Where the patent administrative department under the State Council carries out a confidentiality examination in accordance with the preceding paragraph, a decision on whether confidentiality is required shall be made in a timely manner and the applicant shall be notified. Where no confidentiality examination notice is received within six months of the application date, the applicant may file a patent application in a foreign country or submit an international patent application to the relevant foreign institution for such invention or utility model.
　
Article 10 For the purposes of Article 5 of the Patent Law, inventions or creations that violate State law do not include inventions or creations only the implementation of which is prohibited under State law.
　
Article 11 For the purposes of the Patent Law, other than in the circumstances stipulated in Articles 28 and 42 thereof, the term "application date", if the application has priority, shall mean the priority date.
For the purposes of these Rules, the term "application date" shall mean the application date specified in Article 28 of the Patent Law unless otherwise specified.
　
Article 12 The phrase "a service invention or creation completed in executing a task at one's work unit" as used in Article 6 of the Patent Law shall mean an invention or creation made:
1. in the course of one's job;
2. in the performance of a task assigned by one's work unit other than in the course of one's job; or
3. any invention or innovation that is made within one year of the individual's retirement, transfer from the previous entity, or the termination of labor relations or personnel relations, in connection with his/her own duties or tasks assigned by his/her previous entity.
The term "one's work unit" as used in Article 6 of the Patent Law shall include a work unit for which one works on a temporary basis. The phrase "material and technical conditions of one's work unit" shall refer to the work unit's funds, equipment, components, raw materials, or technical information not made public, etc.
　
Article 13 The term "inventor" or "designer" shall mean a person that makes a creative contribution to the essential features of an invention or creation. Persons that are responsible only for organizing such work, who facilitate only the use of materials and technical conditions, or who engage solely in other support work during the course of the completion of an invention or creation are not inventors or designers.
　
Article 14 Where a patent right is transferred other than according to Article 10 of the Patent Law, the parties shall go through the procedure for a change in patentee with the patent administrative authority under the State Council on the strength of the relevant supporting document or legal instrument.
A patent licensing contract concluded by the patentee and the other party shall be submitted to the patent administrative authority under the State Council for the record within three months of the date on which the contract comes into effect.
Where a patent is pledged, the pledgor and the pledgee shall jointly register the pledge at the patent administrative department under the State Council.


Chapter II Patent Applications
　
Article 15 When a patent application is made in writing, the application documents shall be filed with the patent administrative authority under the State Council in duplicate.
When a patent application is made in another form specified by the patent administrative authority under the State Council, such application shall comply with the requirements specified.
If an applicant has appointed a patent agency to apply to the patent administrative authority under the State Council for a patent and handle other patent matters, the power of attorney specifying the scope of the powers entrusted shall be submitted at the same time.
If there are two or more applicants and they have not appointed a patent agency, the first applicant indicated in the claim letter shall be their representative unless otherwise stated in the claim letter.

　
Article 16 The claim letter for an invention, utility model or design patent shall indicate the following matters:
1. the name of the invention, utility model or design;
2. where that the applicant is a Chinese entity or individual, its title or his/her name, address, postal code, organization code or resident identity card number; where the applicant is a foreigner, a foreign enterprise or another foreign entity, his/her name or its title, nationality or registered country or region;
3. the name of the inventor or designer;
4. where the applicant has instructed a patent agency, the name and organization code of the agency instructed and the name, registered number and telephone number of the patent agent;
5. where a priority right is claimed, the date and number of the application and the title of the original authority that accepted the application when it was first filed (hereinafter referred to as the "prior application");
6. the signature or seal of the applicant or patent agency;
7. a list of the application documents;
8. a list of the attached documents;
9. other relevant matters to be indicated.
　
Article 17 The specification for an invention or utility model in a patent application shall indicate the name of the invention or utility model, which shall be consistent with the name stated in the claim letter. The specification shall include the following particulars:
1. technical field: the technical field to which the technical solution for which protection is requested pertains shall be specified;
2. background art: the background art useful for understanding, searching and examining the invention or utility model shall be specified and, where possible, documents reflecting such background art shall be cited;
3. details of the invention: the technical problem(s) to be solved by the invention or utility model, the technical solution adopted to resolve such technical problem(s) and the advantageous effects of the invention or utility model in comparison with prior art shall be specified;
4. a description of the drawings: if the specification contains drawings, a brief description shall accompany each drawing; and
5. the specific mode for implementing the invention or utility model: a detailed description of the best mode contemplated by the applicant for implementing the invention or utility model shall be indicated; where appropriate, such description shall be given by offering examples with reference to drawings, if any.
Applicants for invention or utility model patents shall write a specification in the manner and sequence provided above, with each part thereof preceded by a heading unless, due to the nature of the invention or utility model, a different manner or different sequence will reduce the length of the specification and enable others to understand accurately the invention or utility model.
The specification for an invention or utility model shall be worded in standard Chinese and be written clearly, and may not include references such as "as described in claim..." or include commercial advertising terms.
If an invention patent application includes one or more nucleotide or amino acid sequences, the specification shall include a sequence listing that complies with the regulations of the patent administrative authority under the State Council. The applicant shall submit such sequence listing as a separate part of the specification and a duplicate of such sequence listing in computer readable form in accordance with the regulations of the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
The specification for a utility model patent application shall include attached drawings which indicate the need to protect the shape or structure of the product or a combination of the two.
　
Article 18 Where two or more drawings of an invention or utility model are submitted, they may be drawn on one sheet of paper and shall be arranged in numerical order as "Figure 1, Figure 2, ...".
Reference characters that are not mentioned in the text of the invention or utility model specification may not appear in the drawings and reference characters that do not appear in the drawings may not be mentioned in the text of the specification. Reference characters used in the application documents that refer to the same constituent elements shall be consistent.
Drawings shall not contain any explanatory notes other than indispensable wording.
　
Article 19 Claims shall describe the technical characteristics of the invention or utility model and clearly and concisely define the scope of the request for protection.
If a claim letter contains two or more claims, the claims shall be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals.
The technical terminology used in a claim letter shall be consistent with that used in the specification. Claim letters may contain chemical or mathematical formulas, but no illustrations. Unless absolutely necessary, the phrases "as described in part ... of the specification", or "as illustrated in Figure ..." may not be used.
In setting forth technical features in claims, appropriate references in the specification's drawings may be cited. Such references shall be placed in brackets after the corresponding technical feature to aid understanding of the claim. Reference characters may not be interpreted as restrictions of the claim.
　
Article 20 Claim letters shall include an independent claim and may also include dependent claims.
The independent claim shall reflect the entire technical solution that an invention or utility model offers and record the technical features necessary for resolving the technical problem.
Dependent claims shall further restrict the claims cited by using additional technical features.

　
Article 21 Independent claims for an invention or utility model shall include a preamble and a features section written in accordance with the following provisions:
1. preamble: specifying the title of the subject matter of the technical solution offered by the invention or utility model for which protection is requested and the necessary technical features of the subject matter of the invention or utility model that it has in common with the prior art to which it is most closely related;
2. features section: specifying the technical features of the invention or utility model that differ from the prior art to which it is most closely related by using the expression "it is characterized by ......" or similar expressions; taken together, these features and those described in the preamble shall define the scope of protection requested for the invention or utility model.
If, owing to its nature, it is inappropriate to describe an invention or utility model in the above manner, an independent claim for it may be written in another form.
Only one independent claim shall be made for the same invention or utility model. Such claim shall precede any dependent claim for the same invention or utility model.
　
Article 22 Dependent claims for an invention or utility model shall contain a reference portion and a limitation portion written in accordance with the following provisions:
1. reference portion: specifying the serial number(s) of the claim(s) referred to and the title(s) of its (their) subject matter;
2. limitation portion: specifying additional technical features of the invention or utility model.
Dependent claims may refer only to the preceding claim(s). A multiple dependent claim that refers to two or more claims may refer to the preceding claims in the alternative only and may not serve as the basis for any other multiple dependent claim.
　
Article 23 A specification abstract shall consist of a summary of the details included in the patent application for the invention or utility model, i.e., it shall specify the name of the invention or utility model and the technical field to which it pertains, and clearly reflect the technical problem to be resolved, the gist of the technical solution to such problem, and the principal use(s) of the invention or utility model.
Specification abstracts may include the chemical formula that best characterizes the invention. For a patent application with drawings, the drawing that best characterizes the technical features of the invention or utility model shall also be provided. The scale and clarity of the drawings shall be such as to ensure that all details of the drawings are still clearly distinguishable when the drawings are reduced in size to 4 cm x 6 cm. The textual portion of the abstract may not exceed 300 Chinese characters. No commercial advertising terminology may be used in the abstract.
　
Article 24 If an invention for which a patent application is made involves a new biological material that is not available to the public and cannot be described in such a manner as to enable the invention to be implemented by a person skilled in the art, the application shall comply with the relevant provisions of the Patent Law and these Rules and, in addition, the applicant shall go through the following procedure:
1. to deposit, prior to the application date or at the latest on the application date (if he has priority, the application date shall be the priority date), a sample of the biological material with the depositary institution designated by the patent administrative authority under the State Council and submit, at the time of application or at the latest within four months of the application date, the certificate of deposit and certificate of survival issued by the depositary institution; if the certificates are not submitted within the time limit, no sample shall be deemed to have been deposited;
2. to provide, in the application documents, information on the characteristics of the biological material; and
3. if the patent application involves the deposit of a sample of the biological material, to specify in the claim letter and the specification the taxonomic description (indicating the Latin name) of said biological material, the name and address of the institution with which the sample of the biological material has been deposited, the date of deposit and the serial number of the deposit; if such particulars are not specified at the time of application, they shall be supplied within four months of the application date; if they are not supplied within the time limit, no sample shall be deemed to have been deposited.

　
Article 25 Where an invention patent applicant deposits a sample of a biological material according to Article 24 hereof, any work unit or individual that needs to use the biological material involved in the patent application for experimental purposes after publication of the patent application shall submit a request to the patent administrative authority under the State Council specifying the following matters:
1. the name and address of the work unit or individual making the request;
2. an undertaking not to supply said biological material to any other person; and
3. an undertaking to use the biological material only for experimental purposes prior to the grant of the patent right.

　
Article 26 The term "genetic resources" as used in the Patent Law refers to any material derived from the human body, animals, plants, micro-biotic organisms, etc., which contain units with a hereditary function and have actual or potential value; the term "inventions or innovations based on genetic resources" as used in the Patent Law refers to inventions and creations based on the utilization of genetic resources for their hereditary function.
Where a patent application is filed for an invention or creation based on genetic resources, the applicant shall given an explanation in the claim letter and complete the forms formulated by the patent administrative department under the State Council.
　
Article 27 When a design patent application also requests protection of color, color drawings or photographs shall be submitted in duplicate.
The applicant shall submit relevant drawings or photographs concerning the details of each design product that require protection. Such drawings or photographs shall clearly show the subject matter for which protection is requested.
　
Article 28 The brief explanation of the design shall indicate the title, use and design features of the patented design product and a picture or photograph which best shows the design features shall be specified. Where the design is omitted or a color protection request is made, the brief explanation shall refer to the same.
Where a design patent application is filed in relation to two or more similar designs based on the same product, one of the designs shall be designated as the basic design in the brief explanation.
No commercial advertising or instructions on product functions shall be included in the brief explanation.
　
Article 29 When the patent administrative authority under the State Council considers it necessary, it may require that the applicant for a design patent submit samples or models of products incorporating the design. The size of a sample or model may not exceed 30 cm * 30 cm * 30 cm and its weight may not exceed 15 kg. Articles that are perishable, easily damaged or dangerous may not be submitted as samples or models.
　
Article 30 The term "international exhibitions recognized by the Chinese Government" as used in Item 1 of Article 24 of the Patent Law refers to international exhibitions registered with the Bureau of International Exhibitions or recognized by the BIE in accordance with the Convention on International Exhibitions.
The terms "academic meetings" or "technological meetings" as used in Item 2 of Article 24 of the Patent Law shall mean academic or technological meetings convened by relevant competent departments under the State Council or by national academic organizations.
If an invention or creation for which a patent application is made falls under the provisions of Item (i) or Item (ii) of Article 24 of the Patent Law, the applicant shall declare the same when filing the application and, within two months of the application date, submit a document issued by the organizer of the relevant international exhibition or academic or technological meeting attesting that the invention or creation has been exhibited or published and attesting to the date of exhibition or publication.
Where an invention or creation for which a patent application is made falls under Item 3 of Article 24 of the Patent Law, the patent administrative authority under the State Council may require the applicant to submit supporting documents within a prescribed period of time if it considers such documents necessary.
Where the applicant fails to submit a declaration or supporting documents in accordance with the second paragraph hereof or fails to submit the supporting documents within the prescribed time limit in accordance with the third paragraph hereof, the provisions of Article 24 of the Patent Law shall not apply to his application.
　
Article 31 Where the applicant claims a foreign priority in accordance with Article 30 of the Patent Law, the copies of the prior application documents submitted by the applicant shall be certified by the original acceptance authorities. Where, according to the agreement signed between the patent administrative department under the State Council and the accepting authority concerned, the patent administrative department under the State Council obtains copies of the prior application documents by means such as electronic exchange, the copies of the prior application documents shall be deemed to have been submitted by the applicant. Where a domestic priority right is claimed and the applicant records the date and number of the prior application in the claim letter, copies of the prior application documents shall be deemed to have been submitted.
Where a priority right is claimed, but one or two items such as the date or number of the application or the title of the original acceptance authority are left out or recorded in error in the claim letter, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall notify the applicant that it must rectify the request within a specific time limit; where the request has not been rectified when the time limit expires, it shall be deemed that no claim for a priority right has been made.
Where the name or title of the applicant claiming a priority right is inconsistent with that of the applicant recorded in the copies of the prior application documents, certified documents on the assignment of property rights shall be submitted; where no certified documents are submitted, it shall be deemed that no claim for a priority right has been made.
Where the applicant for a design patent claims a foreign priority right, a brief explanation of the design was not included in the prior application, and the applicant then submits a brief explanation in accordance with Article 28 of these Rules which does not go beyond the scope indicated by the picture or photograph in the prior application documents, the applicant's enjoyment of the priority right shall not be prejudiced.

　
Article 32 Applicants may claim one or more priorities in the same patent application. If two or more priorities are claimed, the priority term of the application shall be calculated from the date of the earliest priority.
If an applicant claims a domestic priority and the Earlier Application is an application for an invention patent, an application for an invention or utility model patent may be filed regarding the same subject matter. If the Earlier Application is an application for a utility model patent, an application for a utility model or invention patent may be filed regarding the same subject matter. However, if the subject matter of such Earlier Application is characterized by any of the circumstances set forth below when the later application is filed, the Earlier Application may not be taken as the basis for a claim for domestic priority:
1. foreign or domestic priority has already been claimed;
2. a patent right has already been granted; or
3. the Earlier Application is a divisional application filed in accordance with regulations.
When an applicant claims domestic priority, his Earlier Application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn on the date on which the later application is filed.
　
Article 33 If an applicant without a habitual residence or place of business in China applies for a patent or claims foreign priority, the patent administrative authority under the State Council may, where it considers it necessary, require the applicant to provide the following documents:
1. proof of nationality;
2. if the applicant is an enterprise or other type of organization, a certificate concerning the location of its place of business or head office;
3. a certificate from the applicant's home country confirming that work units and individuals from China are entitled to patent rights, priority and other patent-related rights in such country on the same conditions as are the nationals of such country.
　
Article 34 Two or more inventions or utility models relating to the same general invention concept that may be submitted as one patent application under the first paragraph of Article 31 of the Patent Law shall be technically interrelated and share one or more identical or corresponding specific technical features, in which context the term "specific technical features" refers to the technical features of the contribution that each invention or utility model, as a whole, makes to the prior art.
　
Article 35 In accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 31 of the Patent Law, where a design patent application is filed for two or more similar designs with respect to the same product, the other designs for the product shall resemble the basic design designated in the brief explanation. Similar designs included in the same design patent application shall not exceed ten pages.
The term "two ore more designs for the same category of products sold or used in sets" as used in Paragraph 2 of Article 31 of the Patent Law refers to products in the same category of the classification table which are customarily sold or used at the same time and share the same design concept.
Where two or more designs are filed as one application, the number of each design shall be recorded in sequence before the title of the picture or photograph of the product incorporating the design.
　
Article 36 If an applicant withdraws a patent application, he must declare such withdrawal in writing to the patent administrative authority under the State Council, specifying the name, application number and application date of the invention or creation.
If the application withdrawal declaration is submitted after the patent administrative authority under the State Council has completed the printing preparations for publication of the application documents, the application documents shall still be published. However, the application withdrawal declaration shall be published in the subsequent Patent Bulletin.

Chapter III Examination and Approval of Patent Applications
　
Article 37 Any person conducting an examination or hearing during the procedure for preliminary examination, substantive examination, reexamination or declaration of invalidity shall recuse himself or may be challenged by a party or another interested person:
1. if he is a close relative of a party or of a party's agent;
2. if he has a material interest in the patent application or patent right;
3. if he has another relationship with a party or a party's agent that may affect the impartiality of the examination or hearing; or
4. if he is a member of the Patent Reexamination Board and participated in the examination of the original application.
　
Article 38 Following receipt of the claim letter, specification (that, for a utility model, must contain drawings) and rights request in respect of an application for an invention or utility model patent, or following receipt of the claim letter and drawings or photographs of the design in respect of an application for a design patent, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall determine the application date, assign an application number and notify the applicant.
　
Article 39 The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall not accept patent application documents and shall notify the applicant:
1. if the application for an invention or utility model patent lacks a claim letter, a specification (or, in the case of a utility model, the specification lacks drawings) or a rights request, or the application for a design patent lacks a claim letter, drawings or photographs;
2. if the documents are not in Chinese;
3. if the documents do not conform to the first paragraph of Article 121 hereof;
4. if the claim letter lacks the name and address of the applicant;
5. if the documents clearly do not conform to Article 18 or the first paragraph of Article 19 of the Patent Law; or
6. if the category (invention, utility model or design) of the patent application is unclear or difficult to determine.
　
Article 40 If a specification contains an explanation of drawings but there are no drawings or some of the drawings are missing, the applicant shall submit the drawings or declare that the explanation of the drawings has been cancelled within the time limit prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council. If the applicant submits the drawings, the application date shall be the date on which the drawings are submitted or mailed to the patent administrative authority under the State Council. If the applicant cancels the explanation of the drawings, the original application date shall be retained.
　
Article 41 Where two or more applicants respectively file a patent application for an identical invention or creation on the same day (i.e. the application date, or where a priority right applies, the priority date), the identity of the applicant shall be determined through negotiations between said applicants after notices have been received from the patent administrative department under the State Council.
Where the same applicant files patent applications for a utility model and an invention with respect to the same invention or innovation on the same day (i.e. the application date), when the applications are filed, statements of having filed another patent application with respect to the same invention or innovation shall be respectively made; where no such statement is made, the application shall be dealt with in accordance with Paragraph 1, Article 9 of the Patent Law under which only one patent shall be granted for the same invention or innovation.
Where the patent administrative department under the State Council announces that a patent right for a utility model has been granted, the statement shall announce that the applicant has simultaneously applied for an invention patent in accordance with Paragraph 2 of this Article.
Where no grounds for rejecting an invention patent application are found in the course of an examination, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall notify the applicant that it must declare within a specified period that the utility model patent has been surrendered. Where the applicant makes a surrender declaration, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall make a decision to grant an invention patent and make an announcement stating that the applicant has surrendered its utility model patent when announcing that the invention patent has been granted. Where the applicant refuses to surrender the utility model patent, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall reject the invention patent application; where the applicant has not replied when the time limit expires, the invention patent application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.
The utility model patent shall be terminated on the date of the announcement that the invention patent has been granted.
　
Article 42 If one patent application covers two or more inventions, utility models or designs, the applicant may file a divisional application with the patent administrative authority under the State Council before the time limit prescribed in the first paragraph of Article 54 hereof expires. However, a divisional application may not be filed if a patent application has already been rejected, withdrawn or deemed to have been withdrawn.
If the patent administrative authority under the State Council considers that a patent application does not conform to Article 31 of the Patent Law or Article 34 or 35 hereof, it shall notify the applicant that it must amend the application within a prescribed time limit. If the applicant does not reply within the time limit, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.
No divisional application may change the category of the parent application.
　
Article 43 Divisional applications filed in accordance with Article 42 hereof may retain the original application date. If they have a priority right, the date of the priority right may be retained. However, the scope of the disclosure made in the parent application may not be exceeded.
The relevant procedures for divisional applications shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Law and of these Rules.
The request for a divisional application shall specify the application number and application date of the parent application. When filing a divisional application, the applicant shall submit copies of the parent application documents. If the parent application had a priority right, copies of the priority right documents for the parent application shall also be submitted.
　
Article 44 The term "preliminary examination" as used in Article 34 and Article 40 of the Patent Law refers to the examination of a patent application to assess whether or not it includes the documents required by Article 26 and Article 27 of the Patent Law and any other necessary documents, whether or not such documents conform to the specified format, and examination of the following:
1. for an invention patent application, whether it clearly falls within the circumstances stipulated in Article 5 and Article 25 of the Patent Law, does not conform with the provisions of Article 18, Paragraph 1 of Article 19, and Paragraph 1 of Article 20 of the Patent Law or with Article 16 and Paragraph 2 of Article 26 of these Rules, or is clearly inconsistent with the provisions of Paragraph 2 of Article 2, Paragraph 5 of Article 26, Paragraph 1 of Article 31, and Article 33 of the Patent Law or with Article 17 to Article 21 of these Rules;
2. for a utility model patent application, whether it clearly falls within the circumstances stipulated in Article 5 and Article 25 of the Patent Law, does not conform with the provisions of Article 18, Paragraph 1 of Article 19, and Paragraph 1 of Article 20 of the Patent Law, or with Article 16 to Article 19 and Article 21 to Article 23 of these Rules, is clearly inconsistent with the provisions of Paragraph 3 of Article 2, Paragraphs 2 and 4 of Article 22, Paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 26, Paragraph 1 of Article 31, and Article 33 of the Patent Law or Article 20 and Paragraph 1 of Article 43 of these Rules, or does not entitle the applicant to a patent right in accordance with Article 9 of the Patent Law;
3. for a design patent application, whether it clearly falls within the circumstances stipulated in Article 5 and Item 6, Paragraph 1 of Article 25 of the Patent Law, does not conform with the provisions of Article 18 and Paragraph 1 of Article 19 of the Patent Law or with Article 16, Article 27, and Article 28 of these Rules, is clearly inconsistent with the provisions of Paragraph 4 of Article 2, Paragraph 1 of Article 23, Paragraph 2 of Article 27, Paragraph 2 of Article 31, and Article 33 of the Patent Law or with Paragraph 1 of Article 43 of these Rules, or does not entitle the applicant to a patent right in accordance with Article 9 of the Patent Law;
4. whether or not the application documents conform with Article 2 and Article 3 of these Rules.
The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall notify the applicant of its opinion formed upon examination and request that the applicant make any submissions or corrections within a prescribed time limit. If the applicant does not reply within the time limit, his application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. If, after the applicant makes submissions or corrections, the patent administrative authority under the State Council still considers that the application does not conform to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the application shall be rejected.

　
Article 45 With the exception of patent application documents, documents relevant to a patent application that an applicant submits to the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall be deemed not to have been submitted:
1. if the documents are not in the prescribed format or have not been completed in accordance with regulations; or
2. if evidence is not submitted according to regulations.
The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall notify the applicant if its opinion formed upon examination is that the documents are deemed not to have been submitted.
　
Article 46 If an applicant requests early publication of his application for an invention patent, he shall declare the same to the patent administrative authority under the State Council. The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall publish the application immediately after its preliminary examination unless it rejects the application.
　
Article 47 When an applicant specifies the product incorporating a design and the class it belongs to in accordance with Article 27 of the Patent Law, reference shall be made to the classification of design products published by the patent administrative authority under the State Council. If the class to which a product incorporating a design belongs is not specified or the class specified is inaccurate, the patent administrative authority under the State Council may supply or amend the class.
　
Article 48 Any person may make submissions and give an explanation of the reasons for such submissions to the patent administrative authority under the State Council regarding an application for an invention patent that does not conform to the provisions of the Patent Law from the date of publication of such patent application until the date of the public announcement that a patent right has been granted.
　
Article 49 If an applicant for an invention patent cannot submit search information or information on the examination result as prescribed in Article 36 of the Patent Law for any legitimate reason, he shall declare the same to the patent administrative authority under the State Council and submit the relevant information once obtained.
　
Article 50 If the patent administrative authority under the State Council examines a patent application of its own motion according to the second paragraph of Article 35 of the Patent Law, it shall notify the applicant.
　
Article 51 At the time an applicant for an invention patent submits a request for a substantive examination and within three months of the date of receipt of the notice issued by the patent administrative authority under the State Council stating that the invention patent application has entered the substantive examination stage, he may amend the patent application on his own initiative.
Applicants for utility model or design patents may amend their applications on their own initiative during the two-month period following the application date.
If an applicant amends his patent application documents after receiving a notice giving the examination opinion issued by the patent administrative authority under the State Council, he shall do so in accordance with the requirements of the notice.
The patent administrative authority under the State Council may correct obvious typographical and symbol errors in patent application documents itself. If the patent administrative authority under the State Council makes such corrections itself, it shall notify the applicant thereof.

　
Article 52 Replacement pages shall be submitted in the prescribed format for the amended portions of specifications or claims made in applications for invention or utility model patents, other than in the case of amendments, insertions or deletions of individual words. Replacement pages for amendments to drawings or photographs included in applications for design patents shall be submitted in accordance with regulations.
　
Article 53 In accordance with Article 38 of the Patent Law, the circumstances under which applications for invention patents shall be rejected following a substantive examination shall be as follows:
1. the application comes under Article 5 or 25 of the Patent Law, or is not patentable pursuant to Article 9 of the Patent Law;
2. the application does not conform to the second paragraph of Article 2, the first paragraph of Article 20, Article 22, the third, fourth or fifth paragraph of Article 26 or the first paragraph of Article 31 of the Patent Law or the second paragraph of Article 20 hereof;
3. an amendment to the application does not conform to Article 33 of the Patent Law or a divisional application does not conform to the first paragraph of Article 43 hereof.
　
Article 54 After the patent administrative authority under the State Council issues a notice that a patent right has been granted, the applicant shall go through the registration procedures within two months from the date of receipt of the notice. If the applicant goes through registration procedures within the time limit, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall grant the patent right, issue a patent certificate and gazette the same.
If the applicant does not go through registration procedures within the time limit, he shall be deemed to have renounced the right to obtain the patent.
　
Article 55 Where no grounds are found for rejecting a confidential patent application in the course of an examination, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall make a decision to grant a confidential patent right, issue the confidential patent certificate and register the matters relating to the confidential patent right.
　
Article 56 After announcing the decision to grant a utility model or design patent right, the patent holder or any other stakeholder referred to in Article 60 of the Patent Law may request that the patent administrative department under the State Council prepare an appraisal report for the patent right.
Where a request is made for an appraisal report on the patent right, a written request for a patent right appraisal report shall be submitted and the patent number shall be indicated. Each request shall be limited to one patent right.
Where the written request for a patent right appraisal report does not conform with applicable provisions, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall notify the applicant that it must rectify the request within a specified time limit; where the request has not been rectified when the time limit expires, it shall be deemed that no request has been made.
　
Article 57 The patent administrative department under the State Council shall prepare a patent right appraisal report within two months of receiving a request for the same. Where more than one claimant requests a patent right appraisal report for the patent right for the same utility model or industrial design, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall prepare only one patent right appraisal report. Any entity or individual may view or copy such patent right appraisal report.
　
Article 58 The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall correct errors in the Patent Bulletin and patent documents as soon as they are discovered and gazette the corrections it makes.

Chapter IV Reexamination of Patent Applications and Invalidation of Patent Rights
　
Article 59 The Patent Reexamination Board shall be composed of technical and legal experts designated by the patent administrative authority under the State Council. The person in charge of the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall concurrently serve as the chairman of the Patent Reexamination Board.
　
Article 60 To submit a request for reexamination to the Patent Reexamination Board in accordance with Article 41 of the Patent Law, a written request for reexamination, stating the reasons for the request shall be submitted accompanied, if necessary, by the relevant evidence.
Where the patent reexamination request is inconsistent with the provisions of Paragraph 1 of Article 19 or Paragraph 1 of Article 41 of the Patent Law, the Patent Reexamination Board shall not accept the request and shall send a written notice to the person requesting the reexamination with explanatory reasons.
If a reexamination request is not in the prescribed format, the party requesting the reexamination shall correct it within the time limit prescribed by the Patent Reexamination Board. If no correction is made within the time limit, no reexamination request shall be deemed to have been submitted.
　
Article 61 When submitting the request for reexamination or responding to the reexamination notice issued by the Patent Reexamination Board, the party making the request may amend his patent application documents provided the amendments are limited to eliminating the defects indicated in the rejection decision or reexamination notice.
The amended patent application documents shall be submitted in duplicate.
　
Article 62 The Patent Reexamination Board shall forward requests accepted for reexamination to the original examination department of the patent administrative authority under the State Council for examination. If the original examination department agrees to cancel the original decision on the basis of the reexamination request, the Patent Reexamination Board shall make a corresponding decision upon reexamination and notify the requesting party.
　
Article 63 If, after a reexamination, the Patent Reexamination Board considers that a reexamination request does not conform to the relevant provisions of the Patent Law and these Rules, it shall notify the requesting party and require him to make submissions within a prescribed time limit. If no response is made within the time limit, the reexamination request shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. If, after submissions or amendments have been made, the Patent Reexamination Board still considers that the reexamination request does not conform to the relevant provisions of the Patent Law and these Rules, it shall make a reexamination decision confirming its original rejection decision.
If, after a reexamination, the Patent Reexamination Board considers that the original rejection decision does not conform to the relevant provisions of the Patent Law and these Rules or that the amendments made to the patent application documents have eliminated the defects indicated in the original rejection decision, it shall revoke the original rejection decision and the original examination authority shall continue the examination procedure.
　
Article 64 Any party that requests a reexamination may withdraw such request before the Patent Reexamination Board renders its decision.
The reexamination procedure shall be terminated if the party requesting a reexamination withdraws its request before the Patent Reexamination Board renders its decision.
　
Article 65 To request that a patent right be invalidated or partially invalidated according to Article 45 of the Patent Law, a written request for invalidation of the patent right and the necessary evidence shall be submitted in duplicate to the Patent Reexamination Board. The request for invalidation of the patent shall integrate all the evidence submitted therewith, explain the specific reasons for the invalidation request, and state the evidence on which each reason is based.
The term "reason for an invalidation request" as used in the preceding paragraph means that a patented invention or creation does not comply with the provisions of Article 2, Paragraph 1 of Article 20, Articles 22 and 23, Paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 26, Paragraph 2 of Article 27, or Article 33 of the Patent Law, or with the provisions of Paragraph 2 of Article 20 or Paragraph 1 of Article 43 of these Implementing Rules, falls within the circumstances specified in Articles 5 or 25 of the Patent Law, or relates to a patent right which cannot be granted in accordance with Article 9 of the Patent Law.
　
Article 66 The Patent Reexamination Board shall not accept any request for invalidation of a patent right that does not conform to the first paragraph of Article 19 of the Patent Law or Article 65 hereof.
The Patent Reexamination Board shall not accept any further invalidation request made on the same grounds and with the same evidence after the Patent Reexamination Board has rendered a decision on an invalidation request.
The Patent Reexamination Board shall not accept any request for invalidation of a design patent right made on the grounds that the design patent right does not conform to the third paragraph of Article 23 of the Patent Law but the party making the request fails to submit evidences proving the conflict of rights.
Where a request for invalidation of a patent right is not in the prescribed format, the requesting party shall correct it within the time limit prescribed by the Patent Reexamination Board. If no correction is made within the time limit, no invalidation request shall be deemed to have been submitted.
　
Article 67 After the Patent Reexamination Board accepts an invalidation request, the party making the request may add to the reasons or supplement the evidence for the request during the one–month period commencing from the date of submission. The Patent Reexamination Board may refuse to consider additional reasons or supplementary evidence submitted after this time limit.
　
Article 68 The Patent Reexamination Board shall send duplicates of the request for invalidation of a patent right and the relevant documents to the patentee and require the patentee to make submissions within a prescribed time limit.
The patentee and the party requesting invalidation shall respond within the prescribed time limit to the notice of service of documents or the notice of examination of an invalidation request issued by the Patent Reexamination Board. Failure to respond within the time limit shall not affect the Patent Reexamination Board hearing.

　
Article 69 The patentee of an invention or utility model patent may amend his written claim during the examination procedure for the invalidation request provided he does not broaden the original scope of patent protection.
The patentee of an invention or utility model patent may not amend his patent specification or drawings and the patentee of a design patent may not amend the drawings, photographs or brief description of the design.
　
Article 70 At the request of the parties or if the circumstances of the case require, the Patent Reexamination Board may decide to conduct an oral hearing in respect of the invalidation request.
Where the Patent Reexamination Board decides to conduct an oral hearing in respect of the invalidation request, it shall issue an oral hearing notice to the parties informing them of the date and place of the oral hearing. The parties shall respond within the time limit prescribed in the notice.
Where the party requesting invalidation fails to respond within the prescribed time limit to the oral hearing notice issued by the Patent Reexamination Board and fails to attend the oral hearing, its invalidation request shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. If the patentee fails to attend the oral hearing, such hearing may be conducted ex parte.
　
Article 71 No time limit prescribed by the Patent Reexamination Board in the course of the examination procedure for an invalidation request may be extended.
　
Article 72 Any party that requests an invalidation may withdraw such request before the Patent Reexamination Board renders its decision thereon.
Where, before the Patent Reexamination Board makes a decision, the person requesting invalidation withdraws the application or the invalidation request is deemed to have been withdrawn, the reexamination procedures for invalidation requests shall be terminated. However, where the Patent Reexamination Board considers that it is able to make a decision on announcing the invalidation or partial invalidation of the patent right on the basis of the reexamination work conducted, the reexamination procedures shall not be terminated.

Chapter V Compulsory Licenses for Patent Utilization
　
Article 73 The term "insufficient utilization of the patent" as used in Paragraph 1 of Article 48 of the Patent Law refers to a situation in which the methods the patentee and its licensee employ to utilize the patent and the scale on which it is utilized fail to meet domestic demand for the patented product or method.
The term "patented drugs" as used in Article 50 of the Patent Law refers to any patented product in the medical field that is aimed at resolving a public health issue or any product derived directly in accordance with a patented method, including the active ingredients required for the production of such products and the diagnostic assistance required for the use of such products for which patent rights have been obtained.
　
Article 74 Where a compulsory license is requested, the written request for a compulsory license shall be submitted to the patent administrative department under the State Council with explanatory reasons and relevant evidential documents attached.
The patent administrative department under the State Council shall submit a copy of such written request to the patentee, who shall forward his/her opinion to the patent administrative department under the State Council within the designated time limit; the patentee's failure to reply within said time limit shall not prevent the patent administrative department from making a decision thereon.
Prior to making a decision to refuse or grant a compulsory license, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall notify the person requesting the license and the patentee about the proposed decision and its reasons.
Where the patent administrative department decides to grant a compulsory license in accordance with Article 50 of the Patent Law, it shall ensure the decision to do so is consistent with provisions relating to the granting of compulsory licenses aimed at resolving public health issues under relevant international treaties in which China is a signatory or participant, other than those for which China has made reservations.
　
Article 75 If the patent administrative authority under the State Council is requested to rule on the amount of royalties to be paid in accordance with Article 57 of the Patent Law, the parties shall submit a written request for a ruling together with a document evidencing that the parties are unable to reach an agreement. The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall make a ruling on the matter within three months of the date of receiving the request and notify the parties.

Chapter VI Awards and Remuneration for Investors or Designers of Service Inventions and Creations
　
Article 76 The entity granted a patent right may agree with the inventor and/or designer on the methods for and amount of awards and remuneration as provided in Article 16 of the Patent Law or under Patent Law bylaws and systems formulated according to law.
The awards and remuneration paid to the inventor or designer by the enterprise or institution shall be determined in accordance with the relevant financial and accounting regulations of the State.
　
Article 77 Where the entity granted a patent right fails to agree with the inventor and/or designer on the methods for and amount of awards and remuneration as provided in Article 16 of the Patent Law or under Patent Law bylaws and systems formulated according to law, it shall pay a monetary award to the inventor or designer within three months of the date of the patent right announcement. The monetary award for any invention patent shall be no less than CNY3,000, while the monetary award for any utility model patent or industrial design patent shall be no less than CNY1,000.
Where the recommendations of the inventor or designer are adopted by their entity to complete the invention or innovation, the entity granted the patent right shall pay a monetary award as a priority.


　
Article 78 Where the entity granted a patent right fails to agree with the inventor and/or designer on the methods for and amount of awards and remuneration as provided in Article 16 of the Patent Law or under Patent Law bylaws and systems formulated according to law, such entity shall, within the term of the patent right and in utilizing the invention or innovation patent, draw no less than 2% of the operating profits derived from the utilization of the invention or utility model (or 0.2% of the operating profits derived from the utilization of the industrial design) and pay the same to the patentee or designee by way of remuneration, or shall remunerate the inventor or designer through a one-off payment calculated by reference to said percentage; where the entity granted a patent right licenses other entities or individuals to utilize the patent, no less than 10% of the royalties received shall be paid to the inventor or designer by way of remuneration.


Chapter VII Patent Protection
　
Article 79 For the purpose of the Patent Law and these Implementing Rules, the term "Patent Administration Authorities" means the patent administration authorities established by the people's governments of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government and the people's governments of municipalities divided into districts that have both a large volume of and are capable of handling patent administrative work.
　
Article 80 The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall provide professional guidance to the Patent Administration Authorities in the handling and mediation of patent disputes.
　
Article 81 When a party requests that a patent dispute be handled or mediated, the Patent Administration Authority where the respondent is located or in which the alleged infringement occurred shall have jurisdiction.
In patent disputes in which two or more Patent Administration Authorities have jurisdiction, the party concerned may submit his request to any one of the Patent Administration Authorities; if the party concerned submits his request to two or more Patent Administration Authorities that have jurisdiction, the Patent Administration Authority that first accepts the request shall have jurisdiction.
Where a conflict over jurisdiction arises between Patent Administration Authorities, the Patent Administration Authority of the people's government to which they are all subordinate shall determine jurisdiction. Where there is no Patent Administration Authority of a people's government to which all the Patent Administration Authorities concerned are subordinate, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall determine jurisdiction.
　
Article 82 During the handling of a patent infringement dispute, if the respondent submits an invalidation request and the request is accepted by the Patent Reexamination Board, a request may be made to the Patent Administration Authority that it suspend its handling of the dispute.
Where the Patent Administration Authority is of the opinion that the grounds for suspension submitted by the respondent clearly cannot be sustained, it may refuse to suspend its handling of the dispute.
　
Article 83 Where a patentee affixes its patent mark to its patented products or on the packaging of such products pursuant to Article 17 of the Patent Law, it shall do so in the manner prescribed by the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
Where the patent mark does not comply with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall order the applicant to make the corresponding corrections.
　
Article 84 The following activities are the patent counterfeiting activities referred to in Article 63 of the Patent Law:
1. attaching patent mark labels to products or their packaging for which a patent right has not been granted, continuing to attach patent mark labels to products or their packaging after an announcement that the associated patent right has been invalidated or terminated, or attaching the patent number for a patent belonging to another party to products or their packaging without authorization;
2. selling the products described in Item 1.;
3. in materials such as product specifications, referring to a technology or design for which no patent right has been granted as a patented technology or a patented design, referring to a patent application as patent, or using the patent number of another party without authorization to make the public believe mistakenly that the technology or design involved is a patented technology or patented design;
4. counterfeiting or faking a patent certificate, patent documents or patent application documents;
5. other activities that will lead to a mistaken belief among the public that a technology or design for which no patent right has been granted is a patented technology or patented design.
Where, before a patent right expires, patent mark labels are attached to the patented product, products obtained directly in accordance with the patented method, or their packaging, the activity of offering for sale or selling such products following the expiry of the patent right shall not fall within the scope of patent counterfeiting activities.
Where an entity or individual sells counterfeit products based on the patent of another party without acknowledging the same and is able to prove that the products are from legal sources, the department responsible for the administration of patents shall order it to stop selling such products and no fine shall be imposed.

　
Article 85 In addition to that stipulated in Article 60 of the Patent Law, Patent Administration Authorities may mediate in the following types of patent disputes at the request of the parties:
1. disputes over patent application rights and the ownership of patent rights;
2. disputes over the qualifications of inventors and designers;
3. disputes over awards and remuneration for inventors and designers of service inventions;
4. disputes concerning the inadequacy of royalties for the use of an invention after the invention patent application has been published and before the patent has been granted; and
5. other patent disputes.
Requests made by patentees to the Patent Administration Authorities for mediation of the types of disputes specified in Item 4. of the preceding paragraph shall be submitted after the patent right has been granted.
　
Article 86 Where a dispute over the ownership of a patent application right or patent right arises and a party has requested that a Patent Administration Authority handle the matter or has instituted proceedings in a people's court, a request may be made to the patent administrative authority under the State Council that the relevant procedure be suspended.
Where a request is made to suspend the relevant procedure pursuant to the preceding paragraph, a written request and a duplicate of the acceptance document issued by the Patent Administration Authority or people's court shall be submitted to the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
After the handling decision of the Patent Administration Authority or the judgment of the people's court has come into effect, the party concerned shall go through the formalities for resuming the relevant procedure with the patent administrative authority under the State Council. If the dispute over the ownership of the patent application right or patent right cannot be resolved within one year of the date of the suspension request and it is necessary to continue the suspension of the relevant procedure, the party making the request shall request an extension of the suspension within said time limit. If no request for an extension has been made when the time limit expires, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall automatically resume the relevant procedure.
　
Article 87 Where the people's court rules that preservation measures be adopted for a patent application right or patent right while hearing a civil case, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall, on the date it receives the order in writing and the notice of execution for assistance with the application number or patent number indicated thereon, suspend the relevant procedures with respect to the preserved patent application right or patent right. Upon the expiry of the preservation term, where the people's court does not rule that preservation measures be continued, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall take over administering such procedures itself.
　
Article 88 The termination of relevant procedures by the patent administrative department under the State Council in accordance with Article 86 and Article 87 hereof refers to the suspension of preliminary examination, substantive examination, or reexamination procedures for a patent application, the procedures for the granting of patent rights, or the procedures for patent right invalidation announcements, or to the suspension of procedures for handling the surrender, modification, or transfer of a patent right or patent application right, patent right pledge procedures, or the procedures for terminating a patent right prior to its expiry, etc.

Chapter VIII Patent Registration and the Patent Bulletin
　
Article 89 The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall establish a Patent Register to register the following matters relating to patent registration and patent rights:
1. the granting of patent rights;
2. the transfer of patent application rights and patent rights;
3. the pledging and preservation of patent rights and the revocation thereof;
4. the filing of licensing contracts for patent utilization;
5. the invalidation of patent rights;
6. the termination of patent rights;
7. the restoration of patent rights;
8. compulsory licenses for patent utilization; and
9. changes in the names, nationalities or addresses of patentees.
　
Article 90 The patent administrative department shall regularly publish a Patent Bulletin to make public or announce the following information:
1. bibliographic data and specification abstracts for invention patent applications;
2. requests for substantive examinations of invention patent applications and decisions of the patent administrative department of the State Council to conduct substantive examinations of invention patent applications;
3. refusals, withdrawals, situations deemed to be withdrawals, situations deemed to be surrenders, restorations, and transfers of invention patent applications following their publication;
4. the granting of and bibliographic data on patent rights;
5. specification abstracts for invention or utility model patents and pictures or photographs of industrial design patents;
6. the declassification of national defense patents and confidential patents;
7. the invalidation of patent rights;
8. the termination and restoration of patent rights;
9. the transfer of patent rights;
10. the filing of patent utilization and licensing agreements;
11. the pledging and preservation of patent rights and the revocation thereof;
12. the granting of compulsory licenses for patent utilization;
13. changes in the names and/or addresses of patentees;
14. the service of documents by public notices;
15. changes made by the patent administrative department under the State Council;
16. other relevant matters.
　
Article 91 The patent administrative department under the State Council shall provide the Patent Bulletin, separate editions of invention patent applications and separate editions of invention patents, utility model patents and industrial designs to the public for reference without charge.
　
Article 92 The patent administrative department under the State Council shall be responsible for patent documentation in conjunction with the patent authorities of other countries and regions or regional patent organizations in accordance with the principle of mutual benefits.

Chapter IX Fees
　
Article 93 The following fees and expenses shall be paid when applying for patents and going through other formalities with the patent administrative department under the State Council:
1. application fees, application surcharges, publishing and printing fees, priority request fees;
2. substantive examination and reexamination fees for invention patents;
3. patent registration fees, announcement and printing fees, annual fees;
4. rights restoration request fees, time period extension request fees; and
5. fees for changes in bibliographic data, patent appraisal report request fees, and invalidation request fees.
The charging rates for the fees and expenses listed in the preceding paragraph shall be jointly determined by the price administrative department under the State Council, the finance department under the State Council, and the patent administrative department under the State Council.

　
Article 94 The fees stipulated in the Patent Law and these Rules may be paid directly to the patent administrative authority under the State Council, remitted through a post office or bank, or otherwise paid as specified by the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
Where such payments are remitted through a post office or bank, the correct application or patent number and a description of the fee being paid shall be written on the remittance form sent to the patent administrative authority under the State Council. If the provisions of this paragraph are not complied with, it shall be deemed that the payment procedures have not been carried out.
Where such fee payments are made directly to the patent administrative authority under the State Council, the date on which payment is made shall be the payment date. If such fee payments are made by postal remittance, the postmark date on the postal remittance shall be the payment date. If such fee payments are made by bank remittance, the actual bank remittance date shall be the payment date. However, if the patent administrative authority under the State Council receives such payment more than 15 days after the remittance date, the date of receipt shall be the payment date unless the post office or bank issues a certificate.
Where patent fees are overpaid, paid more than once, or paid in error, the party concerned may request a refund from the patent administrative authority under the State Council within three years of the fee payment date.
　
Article 95 The applicant shall pay the application fee, the publishing and printing fee, and the necessary application surcharge within 15 days of receiving the notice of acceptance or within two months of the application date; where the applicant fails to pay or to pay in full when said time limit expires, the request shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.
Where an applicant claims a priority right, he shall pay the priority right claim fee together with the application fee. If payment is not made or is not made in full when the time limit expires, it shall be deemed that the applicant has not claimed a priority right.
　
Article 96 Where a party requests a substantive examination, restoration of rights or reexamination, the fees shall be paid within the relevant time limits stipulated in the Patent Law and these Rules. If payment is not made or is not made in full when the time limit expires, it shall be deemed that the party concerned has not made such a request.
　
Article 97 When an applicant goes through registration procedures, he shall pay a patent registration fee, a Gazette announcement printing fee and an annual fee in the year in which the patent right is granted. An invention patent applicant shall pay a lump sum application maintenance fee for each year other than the year in which the patent is granted. If the fees are not paid when the time limit expires, it shall be deemed that the applicant has not gone through the registration procedures. Subsequent annual fee payments shall be made in advance in the last month of the preceding year.
　
Article 98 Patent fees for years following the year in which the patent is granted shall be paid by the end of the previous year. Where a patentee fails to pay any such fee in a timely manner or in full, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall notify the patentee that it must pay within six months of the expiry date of the annual fee payment time limit together with a late payment fine. The late payment fine shall be charged at the rate of 5% of the total amount of the annual fee for each month for which payment is late. If payment is not made within the time limit, the patent right shall terminate on the annual fee payment expiry date.
　
Article 99 Rights restoration request fees shall be paid within the relevant time limit specified in these Rules; where the applicant fails to pay or to pay in full, it shall be deemed that no request has been made.
Patent term extension request fees shall be paid before the expiry of the patent term; where the applicant fails to pay or to pay in full, it shall be deemed that no request has been made.
Fees for changes in bibliographic data, patent right appraisal report request fees, and invalidation request fees shall be paid within one month of the request being made; where the applicant fails to pay or to pay in full, it shall be deemed that no request has been made.
　
Article 100 Where the applicant or patentee has difficulty paying any fee specified in these Rules, the applicant or patentee may request that the patent administrative department under the State Council reduce or delay payment of such fee in accordance with relevant regulations. The measures for decreases or delays in payment of such fees shall be jointly determined by the finance department under the State Council, the price administrative department under the State Council, and the patent administrative department under the State Council.

Chapter X Special Provisions for International Applications
　
Article 101 In accordance with Article 20 of the Patent Law, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall accept international patent applications submitted in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty.
The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to the conditions and procedures when an international patent application ("International Application") that is filed under and designates China in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty enters the National Phase in China. If this Chapter is silent on any matter, the relevant regulations of the Patent Law and the other Chapters hereof shall apply.
　
Article 102 International Applications for which the international application date has been determined and which designate China in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty shall be treated as patent applications filed with the patent administrative authority under the State Council and said international application date shall deemed to be the application date specified in Article 28 of the Patent Law.

　
Article 103 Applicants for International Applications shall go through the formalities for entry into the National Phase in China with the patent administrative department under the State Council within 30 months of the priority date (referred to as the "Priority Date" in this Chapter) as specified in Article 2 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty; where the applicant fails to go through such formalities within such period, the applicant may, after paying a late entry surcharge, go through the formalities for entry into the National Phase in China within 32 months of the Priority Date.
　
Article 104 When the applicant goes through the formalities for entry into the National Phase in China as provided in Article 103 of the Rules, the following requirements shall be met:
1. the written declaration of entry into the National Phase in China with an indication of the International Application number and the type of patent required shall be prepared in Chinese when submitting the same;
2. the application fee and the publishing and printing fee as provided in Paragraph 1 of Article 93 of these Rules (and when necessary, the late entry surcharge as provided in Article 103 of these Rules) shall be paid;
3. where the International Application is filed in any language other than Chinese, a Chinese translation of the specification and patent claim submitted for the original International Application shall be submitted;
4. the name of the invention or innovation, the name and address of the applicant and the name of the inventor shall be indicated on the written declaration of entry into the National Phase in China, which shall be consistent with the record at the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "International Bureau"); where no inventor is indicated in the International Application, the name of the inventor shall be indicated in such declaration;
5. where the International Application is filed in any language other than Chinese, a Chinese translation of the abstract shall be submitted; where there are any attached drawings or drawings attached to the abstract, copies thereof shall be submitted; where there is any text on the attached drawings, such text shall be replaced by the corresponding Chinese text; where the International Application is submitted in Chinese, copies of the abstract and drawings attached to the abstract in the internationally published documents shall be submitted;
6. where formalities for a change in the applicant have been completed with the International Bureau in the International Phase, evidential materials on the applicant's right to apply for a patent after such change shall be submitted;
7. the application surcharge specified in Paragraph 1 of Article 93 of these Rules shall be paid when required.
Where the requirements provided in Item 1. to Item 3. of Paragraph 1 of this Article are met, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall give the application number to the applicant, specify the date for entry of the International Application into the National Phase in China (hereinafter referred to as the "Entry Date") and notify the applicant of the entry of his/her International Application into the National Phase in China.
Where the International Application has entered the National Phase in China but fails to meet the requirements provided in Item 4. to Item 7. of Paragraph 1 of this Article, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall notify the applicant that it must make corresponding corrections within a specified time limit; where no corrections have been made when said time limit expires, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.
　
Article 105 Under any of the following circumstances, an International Application made in China shall no longer be valid:
1. during the International Phase, the International Application is withdrawn or deemed to be withdrawn, or the International Application's designation of China is withdrawn;
2. where the applicant fails to go through the formalities for entry into the National Phase in China in accordance with Article 103 of these Rules within 32 months of the Priority Date; or
3. when, in going through the formalities for entry into the National Phase in China, the applicant fails to meet the requirements provided in Item 1. to Item 3. of Article 104 of these Rules within the 32-month period following the Priority Date.
Where the International Application made in China is no longer valid in accordance with the provisions of Item 1. of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of Article 6 of these Rules shall not apply; where the International Application made in China is no longer valid in accordance with the provisions of Item 2. or Item 3. of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of Paragraph 2 of Article 6 of these Rules shall not apply.

　
Article 106 Where an International Application has been amended during the International Phase and the applicant requests an examination on the basis of the amended application documents, a Chinese translation of the amended part shall be submitted within two months of the Entry Date. Where the applicant fails to submit such a Chinese translation within the period specified, the patent administrative department under the State Council shall not consider any amendment put forward by the applicant during the International Phase.
　
Article 107 Where the invention or innovation involved in an International Application falls under any of the circumstances listed in Item 1. or Item 2. of Article 24 and a declaration thereon has been made when the International Application is put forward, the applicant shall describe the same in the written declaration of entry into the National Phase in China and shall submit the relevant evidential materials specified in Paragraph 3 of Article 30 hereof within two months of the Entry Date; where the applicant fails to provide such a description or fails to provide evidential materials within the time limit specified, the provisions of Article 24 of the Patent Law shall not apply to the application.
　
Article 108 Where an applicant has provided a description concerning the deposit of biological material samples in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty, he shall be deemed to have satisfied the requirements of Item 3. of Article 24 hereof. In his statement of entry into the National Phase in China, the applicant shall indicate the documents in which matters concerning the deposit of biological material samples are recorded and the specific location(s) of such passage(s) in said documents.
Where an applicant records matters concerning the deposit of biological material samples in the specification accompanying the original International Application but fails to do so in the statement of entry into the National Phase in China, he shall provide the same within four months of the date on which he completes the procedures associated with entry into the National Phase in China. If he fails to provide the same within the time limit, it shall be deemed that no biological materials have been deposited.
Where an applicant provides to the patent administrative authority under the State Council a certificate of deposit and a certificate of survival for the biological material samples within four months of the date on which he completes the procedures associated with entry into the National Phase in China, he shall be deemed to have submitted the same within the time limit prescribed in Item 1. of Article 24 hereof.
　
Article 109 Where the invention or innovation involved in an International Application relies on genetic sources for its completion, the applicant shall describe the same in the written declaration on entry into the National Phase in China in the International Application and forms drafted by the patent administrative department shall be completed.
　
Article 110 Where an applicant has claimed one or more priority rights in the international phase and such claim continues in effect upon entry into the National Phase in China, he shall be deemed to have submitted a written statement in accordance with Article 30 the Patent Law.
The applicant shall pay the priority request fee within two months of the Entry Date; where the applicant fails to pay or to pay in full upon the expiry thereof, it shall be deemed that no request for priority has been made.
Where an applicant has provided duplicates of prior application documents in the international phase in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty, he shall not be required to submit such duplicates to the patent administrative authority under the State Council when he goes through the procedures associated with entry into the National Phase in China. If the applicant has not submitted such duplicates in the international phase, the patent administrative authority under the State Council may, when it deems it necessary, notify the applicant that he must provide the same within a prescribed time limit. If the applicant fails to submit the same within the prescribed time limit, it shall be deemed that his claim for a priority right has not been submitted.
　
Article 111 Where an applicant requests that the patent administrative authority under the State Council process and examine his International Application before the 30-month period after the Priority Date expires, in addition to going through the procedures associated with entry into the National Phase in China, he shall also submit a request pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 23 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty. If the International Bureau has not yet forwarded the International Application to the patent administrative authority under the State Council, the applicant shall submit a certified duplicate of such application.
　
Article 112 For International Applications required for utility model patent rights, the applicant may lodge amendments to the patent application documents within two months of the Entry Date.
The first paragraph of Article 51 hereof shall apply to International Applications claiming an invention patent right.
　
Article 113 Where an applicant discovers that the Chinese translation of the specification, claim(s) or the text of the drawing(s) submitted contains errors, he may submit corrections that conform with the text of the original International Application within the following prescribed time limits:
1. before the patent administrative authority under the State Council completes preparations for the publication of invention patent applications or utility model patent rights; or
2. within three months of the date of receipt of the notice issued by the patent administrative authority under the State Council stating that the invention patent application has entered the substantive examination stage.
Any applicant who wishes to correct translation errors shall submit a written request, the corrected page(s) of the translation and pay the specified translation correction fee.
Any applicant who corrects a translation pursuant to the request of the patent administrative authority under the State Council contained in a notice shall go through the procedures specified in the second paragraph of this Article within the prescribed time limit. Where the specified procedures are not completed within the prescribed time limit, it shall be deemed that the application has been withdrawn.
　
Article 114 Where, after a preliminary examination, the patent administrative authority under the State Council is of the opinion that an International Application for an invention patent right claim conforms with the relevant regulations of the Patent Law and these Rules, it shall publish such application in the Patent Bulletin. If the International Application was filed in a language other than Chinese, the Chinese translations of the application documents shall be published.
Where the International Bureau effects an international publication of an International Application for an invention patent right claim in Chinese, Article 13 of the Patent Law shall apply thereto from the date of international publication. If the International Bureau effects international publication in a language other than Chinese, Article 13 of the Patent Law shall apply thereto from the date of publication by the patent administrative authority under the State Council.
In respect of International Applications, the term "publication" as used in Articles 21 and 22 of the Patent Law shall have the meaning defined in the first paragraph of this Article.
　
Article 115 Where an International Application covers two or more inventions or utility models, the applicant may, pursuant to the first paragraph of Article 42 hereof, file a divisional application after going through the procedures associated with entry into the National Phase in China.
If, during the international phase, the International Search Authority or the International Preliminary Examination Authority is of the opinion that an International Application does not comply with the unity requirement under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the applicant failed to pay a surcharge in accordance with regulations resulting in a certain part of the International Application not being subject to a preliminary examination by the International Search Authority or the International Preliminary Examination Authority, the applicant then requests that the aforementioned part be treated as the basis for examination after the application enters the National Phase in China, and the patent administrative authority under the State Council is of the opinion that the judgment of the International Search Authority or the International Preliminary Examination Authority on the unity of the invention is correct, it shall notify the applicant that he must pay a unity restoration fee within a prescribed time limit. If the applicant fails to pay such or to pay such fee in full within the prescribed time limit, the part of the International Application that was not subject to a search or preliminary international examination shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.


"Article 116 If, during the international phase, the relevant international authority refuses to give an International Application date for an International Application or declares that such application is deemed to have been withdrawn, the applicant may, within two months of the date of receipt of the notice to such effect, request that the International Bureau forward a duplicate of any document in the International Application file to the patent administrative authority under the State Council and, within said time limit, complete the procedures specified in Article 103 hereof with the patent administrative authority under the State Council. After receiving the document(s) forwarded by the International Bureau, the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall reexamine the decision rendered by the international authority to determine whether the same is correct.

　
Article 117 If a translation error results in the scope of protection for a patent right granted on the basis of an International Application as determined pursuant to Article 59 of the Patent Law is wider than the scope indicated in the original International Application, the scope of protection prescribed by the original shall prevail. If the scope of protection is narrower than that indicated in the original International Application, the scope of protection at the time the patent right was granted shall prevail.

Chapter XI Supplementary Provisions
　
Article 118 Subject to the consent of the patent administrative authority under the State Council, any person may examine or copy files or the Patent Register for published or gazetted patent applications and may request that the patent administrative authority under the State Council issue duplicates of the Patent Register.
Files for patent applications deemed to have been withdrawn, have been rejected, or have been withdrawn of the applicant's own accord shall be preserved for two years after the date on which the patent application ceases to be valid.
Files for patent rights that have been abandoned, invalidated in their entirety, or terminated shall be preserved for three years after the date on which the patent right ceases to be valid.
　
Article 119 When submitting application documents to or going through procedures with the patent administrative authority under the State Council, the standard formats determined by the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall be used and such documents shall be signed and sealed by the applicant, the patentee, and other persons with a material interest, or by their representatives. If a patent agency has been instructed, such forms shall be signed and sealed by the agency.
Where a request is made to change the name of the inventor, the name, nationality or address of the patent applicant or patentee, or the name or address of the patent agency or agent, the procedures for changing bibliographic items shall be gone through with the patent administrative authority under the State Council and evidence of the reasons for the change shall be submitted.
　
Article 120 Documents concerning applications or patent rights that are mailed to the patent administrative authority under the State Council shall be sent as registered letters and not as parcels.
Other than where application documents are filed for the first time, when documents are submitted to and procedures are gone through with the patent administrative authority under the State Council, the application or patent number, the name of the invention or creation, and the name of the applicant or patentee shall be specified.
Letters shall contain only documents relating to the same application.
　
Article 121 All types of application documents shall be typed or printed neatly and clearly in black ink and may not contain alterations. Drawings shall be made using drafting instruments in black ink with clear lines of uniform thickness, and shall not contain alterations.
Requests, specifications, claims, drawings and abstracts, respectively, shall be numbered sequentially with Arabic numerals.
The textual portion of application documents shall be written horizontally. Only one side of the paper shall be used.

　
Article 122 The patent administrative authority under the State Council shall formulate patent examination guidelines in accordance with the Patent Law and these Rules.

Article 123 These Rules shall come into effect on July 1, 2001. The amended Implementing Rules of the Patent Law of the PRC approved by the State Council on December 12, 1992 and issued by the China Patent Bureau on December 21, 1992 shall be repealed simultaneously.