Date: 07-03-2019 by: Banca IP Law Firm
PPH Program between Japan and Viet Nam to be broadened and lengthened
The Japan Patent Office (JPO) and the Intellectual Property Office of Viet Nam (NOIP) is going to double the number of applications under the ongoing Patent Prosecution Highway program and also extending the time of the program till 2022. It is expected to be renewed in April, 2019.
Specifically, the two offices agreed that from April 1, 2019, they will double the maximum number of requests for the PPH Pilot Program that NOIP accepts from 100 to 200 per year and also extend the period of the program for another three years. In addition to this upper limit on the requests to be accepted, i.e., 200 per year, further limitations may be imposed on acceptance of such requests by NOIP Viet Nam, such as setting temporal and numerical limitations to such requests, e.g., A requests over a 6 month period. Details of the requirements that must be met by applicants will be released on the JPO website soon after they are set. The procedures to file a request to the NOIP can be read here.
For the number of requests for the PPH Pilot Program filed with the JPO, as with before, no limits are imposed.
In the previous 2 years, in April 2016, the two offices launched a PPH Pilot Program to reduce examination working time of the two offices.
Currently, applicants who have filed an application with NOIP with a request for the PPH Pilot Program have been receiving the first examination results from NOIP in about 10 months on average from the filing date. However, the maximum number of requests for the PPH Pilot Program that NOIP accepts has been limited to 100 per year. Due to this limitation, requests for the PPH Pilot Program filed with Viet Nam from Japan for the past 3 years have reached the maximum number soon after the acceptance opened, and within two days in 2018, and many Japanese users have been strongly urging the JPO to raise this upper limit.
Compiled by: Banca IP Law Firm
