Patent Application Encyclopedia

• Grant fee: The applicant shall pay the patent announcement fee and the annual fee for the first five-year period within 3 months after receiving the patent granted decision.
• Annuity: pay year by year from the first year of the application date. If the annual fee is overdue, the payment can be postponed within a grace period of 6 months after the expiration of the deadline, and a 50% penalty must be paid at the same time.

12 months

• Licensing Fee: None.
• Annuity: The renewal fee is paid every 5 years. If the annual fee is overdue, the payment can be postponed within 6 months after the due date at the latest, but an additional penalty of 12.00 euros is required.

20 years

• Grant fee: The applicant needs to pay the granted fee when receiving the granted notice.
• Annuity: The applicant needs to pay the annual fee for the second year within 2 months from the date of issuance of the granted notice. The payment can be postponed within 6 months after the overdue period, but a penalty of 30% of the annual fee of the current year must be paid at the same time. You can pay the annual fee for more than two years at one time.

• Grant fee: The applicant shall pay the granted official fee within 2 months after receiving the granted notice.
• Annuity: It needs to be paid year by year starting from the fifth year from the application date.

• via Paris Convention : 6 months from earliest priority date.
• Hague Agreement route: 6 months from earliest priority date.

2 years

Reinstatement of priority is accepted on grounds of "due care."

Design: 5 years, renewable 4 times, 5 years each time, up to 25 years of protection.

• via Paris Convention : 12 months from earliest priority date.
• via Nationalization of PCT : 30 months from the earliest priority date.

IPObel conducts only formality examination of invention patent applications. The applicant needs to submit a search request within 13 months from the date of the latest application. The search report will be issued by the EPO with a written opinion on patentability, but it is not binding. The patent application is completed within 18 months from the earliest priority date Authorization can be obtained after publication.

20 years

KIPO adopts two examination systems, the Substantive Examination System (SES) and the Partial Substantive Examination System (NSES), for designs, and the applicant has no right to choose the examination route. The Partial Substantive Examination System (NSES) is for items that are popular, easy to imitate and have a short life cycle, such as food, clothing and men's clothing (category 2), travel goods (category 3), textiles, man-made and Natural panel materials (Class 5), packaging (Class 9), decorative articles (Class 11), stationery and office equipment, artists and teaching materials (Class 19). For some designs that have been substantiated, the applicant can obtain granted within 1-2 months from the date of submission of the application, and can enjoy new procedures such as combination design and post-granted opposition. The applicant can decide whether to disclose the design at the time of granted. After paying a certain confidentiality fee, the design can be requested not to be disclosed for 3 years. There are 32 levels in the Locarno classification system, but only 31 levels are used in Korea.

Reinstatement of Priority Accepted on Unintentional Grounds.

• via Paris Convention : 6 months from earliest priority date.
• Hague Agreement route: 6 months from earliest priority date.
• EU appearance route: 6 months from the earliest priority date.

• via Paris Convention : 12 months from earliest priority date.
• via Nationalization of PCT : 31 months from earliest priority date.