On October 17, 2020, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China approved the new Chinese Patent Law, which will become effective on June 1, 2021. The new Chinese Patent Law aims to promote innovation in China with the following enhanced protection and enforcement measurements.

 Design Patents

 Under the new Chinese Patent Law, the term of a valid design patent is 15 years from the effective filing date, which is five years longer than the term of 10 years under the current law. (Art. 42.) Further, the new Chinese Patent Law allows the protection of a portion of a product design, in addition to the protection of the entire product design under the current law. (Art. 2, Section 4.) The new Chinese Patent Law also adds the option for a design patent application filed in China to claim priority within six months from the date on which an applicant first files in China. (Art. 29, Section 2.)

Patent Term Adjustment for Invention Patents

In addition, the new Chinese Patent Law provides potential patent term adjustment for the patentees of invention patents. Specifically, Article 42, Section 2, of the new Chinese Patent Law states: If an invention patent is issued after four years from the filing date of the invention patent application and three years after the date when the substantive examination request is filed, the Chinese National IP Administration (“CNIPA”) shall, at the request of the patentee, compensate the patent term for unreasonable delay in the patent issuance process, except the unreasonable delay caused by the applicant.

Patent Term Extension for New Drug Patents

The new Chinese Patent Law also provides patent term extension for new drug patents. Specifically, Article 42, Section 3, of the new Chinese Patent Law states: In order to compensate for the time that is spent during the review and approval of new drugs before entering into the market, the CNIPA shall, at the request of the patentee, grant patent term extension for an invention patent of a new drug that is approved to be entering into the market in China. The period of the patent term extension shall not exceed five years, and the total valid patent term after the approval of the new drug shall not exceed fourteen years.

(Source: Lexology)