China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and European Patent Office (EPO) launched a two–year pilot on December 1, 2020 aiming to give nationals or residents of the P.R. China the option of selecting the EPO as their International Searching Authority (ISA) and as their International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA) when filing international patent applications in English under the PCT. The pilot is of particular relevance to Chinese applicants who intend to enter the European phase in the following three aspects:
Basis for decision making The international search report issued by EPO will provide a sound basis for taking an informed decision on whether or not to enter the European phase and subsequent national phases.
Procedural economy Applications with an international search report issued by EPO will not have to undergo a supplementary European search upon entry into European phase, which will expedite the prosecution of the application by up to 12 months.
Cost efficiency Without the need of a European search, there is also no need to pay corresponding search fee, and moreover, if the EPO as IPEA has established an international preliminary examination report, the European examination fee payable in that phase will be reduced by 75%.
Under the pilot, CNIPA and the International Bureau (IB) of WIPO as the receiving offices will accept a total of 5500 international applications during the two 12-month phases: 2500 during the first phase and 3000 during the second phase.
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