December 27, 2017

ARIPO applies amendments to its IP legislation and promotes PPH Agreement with SIPO

At the end of November, the Administrative Council of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization discussed some amendments to the Harare Protocol, which regulates prosecution of patents, utility models, and designs. One of the most notable changes is implementing a possibility to request an expedited or delayed examination at a rate of USD 700. The amendments are expected to become effective in January, 2018.

Also, the ARIPO and the State Intellectual Property Office of China (SIPO) signed a PPH agreement. Although an exact date for entering the agreement into force is unknown yet, the expedited patent prosecution procedures are going to take place soon. It is believed, that the acceleration of the examination with ARIPO would be possible upon allowance of the corresponding Chinese application by the SIPO.

If you have any questions with regard to IP prosecution worldwide, please review our applicant’s guide. In order to get an up-to-date quote for any country of interest kindly visit our quotation system.

Author: Lynda Miller
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