Amendments to the PCT regulations in Iran

The Iran Intellectual Property Office (IIPO) has recently updated its regulations regarding Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, which have already entered or are ready to enter into national phase. The amendments became effective as of May 30, 2018.

From this date onwards, the patent validity term in Iran is counted from the date of filing an international application, instead of the date of its entering into the national phase.

This provision has also affected the terms for payment of annuities. Consequently, the annuity due dates are now counted from the filing date of the corresponding PCT application. This rule is applied to all applications, which have entered into the national phase on or after the date that the regulations took effect. Therefore, such applications are subject to additional annuity payments, whilst for the applications, which are currently at registration stage; any missed annuities should be paid before the grant of the patent.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has been a member state of the PCT since 2013. By amending the PCT regulations, Iran strives to harmonise its patent legislation with the internationally established norms and practices.