CNIPA currently only issues one hard copy patent certificate, in which some owners may request agencies to make a notarized copy to avoid the risk of the hard copy being lost in the delivery process. In addition to the above, this new practice will bring more benefits to practitioners and patent owners in the industry. Official documents issued in an electronic format, in comparison to the traditional format, will ultimately facilitate the speed of information exchanged and will no doubt expedite communication between the CNIPA, patent agencies and patent owners during the process of patent prosecution from filing to grant. To note, the process may also be prolonged for those located outside of China. The process usually takes several weeks, from the issuance of the patent certificate to the patent owners receiving the hard copy. Under the current practice, CNIPA issues patent certificates and delivers hard copies to patent agencies who then pass them on to patent owners. It is evident that this new practice will reduce three times the amount of carbon emission for each patent filed, which positively reinforces the State’s policy of “green development” in the IP industry. Due to the increasing number of patent filings, CNIPA’s new approach will not only save a high volume of paper and printing materials, but also save human resources related to delivery activities.Īccording to CLIPMATE™, a software developed by Rouse which calculates carbon emissions incurred in registering IPRs, it takes approximately 60 kilograms of CO 2 to register a patent electronically versus 250 kilograms of CO 2 to register a patent using paper and physical transportation. CNIPA began to promote electronic patent filing in 2004, while the current e-filing system launched in 2010. This translates to 46.4% of the total number of patent applications received worldwide ( WIPO Intellectual Property Indicators 2019), along with a 28% patent granting rate. The CNIPA received the highest number of patent applications in 2018 with 1.54 million applications received. Digital information exchange will become the dominant way of communication in China’s IP industry as it enters into an electronic era. Following the announcement of WIPO’s theme, "Innovate for a Green Future” for World Intellectual Property Day 2020, China’s IP Office (CNIPA, formerly named SIPO) recently announced that paper patent filing receipts (from February 17 th) and paper patent certificates (from March 3 rd) will no longer be provided to patent applicants and patent owners.
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