An Outline of PCT National Phase Entry and Substantive Examination

Official Fees and Deadlines of the Japan, China, and Korea Patent Offices

On this page, you can find information about the official fees and deadline of the Japan, China, and Korea Patent Offices. The focus is especially on fees and deadlines for PCT national phase entry, and provisions for when the deadline is missed.

First, we will look at the fees in each individual country for PCT national phase entry. In Japan and China, the national phase entry deadline is 30 months from the priority date, but the deadline can be extended by 2 months in China, conditional upon an additional fee. The deadline in Korea is 31 months, and thus 1 month longer than Japan and China. The main documents required for national phase entry are a national phase entry request (Japan), translation (Japan, China, and Korea), and Power of Attorney (Korea and China). Again in Japan, if the national phase entry request is submitted within 30 months from the priority date, it is possible to submit the translation 2 months later. Thus the translation may be filed a maximum of 32 months from the priority date.

PCT National Phase Entry Deadlines and Fees

Next is the request for substantive examination of patents. A patent right cannot be obtained through only a PCT application and national phase entry. A Request for Substantive Examination must be filed in order to begin examination. The deadlines for requesting examination in each country are shown in the chart below. In Japan and China, this procedure is only required for patent applications. A Request for Substantive Examination is not necessary for utility model, design, or trademark applications, and examination will begin with the Patent Office at the time of filing. In Korea, examination must be requested for utility model applications, and the deadline is 3 years from the filing date.

Again, in both Korea and Japan anyone can file the request for substantive examination. In China, however, only the applicant may file the request.

We will now explain what happens when the deadline to request substantive examination is missed. In Japan, if the request for substantive examination is not filed within 3 years from the filing date, the application will be deemed abandoned and there is no way to recover. In Korea the deadline to request examination is 5 years from the filing date, however, like Japan the application will be deemed abandoned if the deadline is missed, and recovery is impossible.

In China the application will also be deemed abandoned if the deadline is missed. However, there are exceptions for recovery according to Article 6 of Chinese Patent Law Administrative Instruction, so please contact us for more information. One point to be aware of is that while the examination deadlines in Japan and Korea are calculated as 3 and 5 years from the international filing date, in China it is 3 years from the priority date, thus making the deadline sooner. In Japan the request for substantive examination fees are lower for PCT national phase entry applications than Paris Convention Priority applications. This is because the PCT International Search Report (ISR) decreases the quantity of examination procedures.

PCT National Phase Entry Examination Fees and Deadlines

Paris Convention Priority Examination Fees and Deadlines