Eastern Economic Corridor Ancient Siam
As a typical Buddhist country, Thailand’s society is generally relatively stable, its policies are highly transparent, its economic development ranks at the forefront of ASEAN countries, it has a strong ability to radiate to neighboring countries, and its investment and business environment is open and inclusive. In 2019, Thailand was China's largest M&A destination and third largest trading partner in ASEAN. From 2016 to 2018, the compound growth rate of Thailand's GDP was as high as 7.9%. At the same time, Thailand was also rated as "the most suitable country in the world for entrepreneurship in 2020". In 2019, China's total investment in Thailand surpassed Japan for the first time in history, becoming Thailand's largest source of overseas investment.
Thailand's growing economy is attracting more and more international investors, with better infrastructure, more skilled labor, and more market opportunities. During the epidemic, the tourism industry, one of the pillars of Thailand's economy, was hit hard. However, thanks to a series of strong measures in Thailand's investment policy and business environment, Thailand's overall economy began to recover from the second half of 2020. Foreign companies in Thailand The willingness to do business remains relatively strong. Great Wall Motors and General Motors signed an agreement on the acquisition of a factory in Rayong Province, Thailand last year; Huawei Thailand and Siriraj Hospital signed a memorandum of understanding in December 2020 to accelerate the deployment of smart services such as Huawei Cloud, AI, and 5G to patients in the hospital. Monitoring, diagnosis, data collection and other medical applications.
In terms of intellectual property rights, Thailand's intellectual property environment has also followed the pace of economic development and has become more and more friendly. In 2009, Thailand joined the Patent Cooperation Treaty, introduced a new patent examination procedure and revised the corresponding intellectual property laws. In 2013, Thailand established the National Center for Intellectual Property Enforcement and Enforcement (NICE) to further encourage coordination among parties involved in intellectual property protection and rights protection. In 2016, the Thai government established the National Intellectual Property Policy Committee, chaired by the Prime Minister and vice-chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister, and composed of senior representatives from 20 institutions. The Commission's stated mission is to develop policies and strategies for intellectual property advocacy, coordinate effective interagency cooperation in the field of intellectual property enforcement, combat intellectual property infringement, and improve intellectual property law and its enforcement. Our third ASEAN stop came to Thailand, and we briefly introduced Thailand's patent system.
Introduction to Thailand's patent system
1. Types of patent protection in Thailand
The types of protection under Thailand's patent law include inventions, utility models (also called "petty patents") and designs.
2. Paths for Chinese applicants to apply for patents in Thailand
Paris Convention, PCT International Application Entry into Thailand, Direct Application
3. Review unit
The Department of Intellectual Property of Thailand, DIP, affiliated to the Ministry of Commerce, is the core agency in charge of intellectual property affairs in Thailand. Subordinate agencies include: Patent Office, Trademark Office, Copyright Office, Intellectual Property Dispute Prevention and Mediation Bureau, Combating Intellectual Property Infringement Bureau, Secretariat, Intellectual Property Promotion and Development Office, Legal Affairs Office, Intellectual Property Information Technology Center, etc. .
4. Submit your application
1) Deadline requirements:
- via Paris Convention : within 12 months from the earliest priority date
- PCT international application entered into Thailand: within 30 months from the earliest priority date
2) Language requirements: The official language of the patent application in Thailand is Thai, and it is allowed to submit the application in other languages and submit the Thai translation within the specified period after the filing date.
3) Submission method: Paper submission or electronic submission is acceptable.
5. Formal examination
If the filing date is determined and the applicant has not withdrawn the application, the DIP shall examine whether the application complies with the formal requirements stipulated by law. A notarized copy of the Power of Attorney is required for a patent application in Thailand (no certification required). If the applicant is not the inventor, the DIP will also require the applicant to provide a notarized copy of the assignment agreement during the formalities examination. In addition, it should be noted that when a Chinese applicant submits a Thai patent application through the via Paris Convention or the direct application route, he needs to go through the confidentiality review procedures with the Chinese Patent Office in advance.
6. Disclosure procedure
After 18 months from the date of the patent application or the priority date, the DIP will publish the patent application in the patent journal for public inspection.
7. Substantive examination procedure
Different from our country, the applicant needs to submit the substantive examination request after the patent application is published, and the time limit for submitting the substantive examination is within 5 years from the date of publication. There are many types of substantive patent examination methods in Thailand, including the following 5 types:
- Method 1: Modified examination method, that is, the pre-authorized examination method based on other authorized patents of the same family;
- Method 2: The Australian Intellectual Property Office search method, that is, the Australian Intellectual Property Office is the official search agency, and all search results are used as the review basis of the Thai Patent Office;
- Method 3: Thai institution search method, the Thai local institution authorized by the Thailand Patent Office is the official search institution, and all search results are used as the examination basis of the Thailand Patent Office;
- Mode 4: ASEAN Patent Examination Cooperation Approach (ASPEC), i.e. examination using search or examination results from other ASEAN member states;
- Method 5: The PPH method of cooperation between the Thai Patent Office and the Japan Patent Office, a method of accelerated examination based on a Japanese application of the same family.
The average time from filing a new application to granted is 5 years. In order to facilitate the smooth progress of the substantive examination procedure, it is recommended to submit an authorized overseas related patent application together with its search report and examination opinion to the DIP.
8. Authorization procedure
After the patent has passed the formality examination and substantive examination procedures, if the examiner believes that the conditions for granted are met, the patent right will be granted and a certificate will be issued. The applicant can obtain the patent certificate after paying the authorized registrar's fee within the specified period.
Features of Thai patents
Foreign patents that have not been authorized in Thailand are not protected by the patent law, but holders of foreign patents, or holders of invention and design rights, can cooperate with local institutions in Thailand to carry out commercial activities, and at the same time obtain equal rights through licensing agreements and other means. protection of.
Friendliness to Chinese applicants:
★★★★★
Gold content of patent rights:
★★★★★
The degree of perfection of the rights protection mechanism:
★★★★★
