ChinaChina Patent OfficeCNIPAPatent LawUpdates and Changes
10 November 2023

Announcement: Implementation Regulations (Rules) of the Chinese Patent Law have been Approved

by
Ms. Yolanda Wang
Ms. Jennifer Che

On November 3rd, 2023, the Premier of the State Council, Li Qiang, chaired a regular meeting where the "Implementation Regulations of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China (Revised Draft)" was reviewed and approved. This is great news, as we have been waiting quite some time for these Regulations (Rules) to be approved (see our previous article summarizing the draft Implementation Rules). Considering the 4th Amendment of the new Chinese Patent Law was passed in October 2020, we have certainly been waiting a long time for more details about how this law will be implemented.

This document is not publicly available yet. However, the announcement provides a summary of key highlights:

Key Highlights:

  • China will continue to enhance protection of IP rights, with a goal of further refining the patent application and examination systems to improve China’s standards in patent innovation, application, protection, management, and related services.
  • China will continue efforts to strengthen alignment with relevant international treaties.
  • The Regulations affirm that the patent law plays a pivotal role in promoting technological innovation and the development of new industries and markets.
  • China will initiate multiple forms of public awareness campaigns on IP Rights to foster a legal environment that supports and safeguards innovation.

These high level statements reflect China’s overarching goals for strengthening both IP protection as well as public awareness of IP protection in China. We look forward to seeing the details of the Regulations.

As always, we keep an eye out for updates such as these and will inform you as soon as more details come out. 

Other Articles

Tapentadol.svg

Polymorph Patents in China: What is the Standard for Inventiveness for New Crystal Forms?

14 July 2020
This case is focused on polymorphs, namely what are the standards for novelty and inventiveness when it comes to new crystal forms of a known drug? A recent Supreme People’s Court decision in China is illustrative of the way Chinese courts are thinking about polymorph patents in China. Grünenthal is a German pharmaceutical company and […]

Chinese Courts Cares More About Patent Quality Now (A Doctrine of Equivalents Story)

13 December 2022
There is no doubt that the drafting quality of a patent can be crucial in determining the success (or failure!) of the patent during litigation. However, due to various reasons, patents often fail to use the right drafting strategies that best protect the invention. Too often, inexperienced or unsophisticated patent drafters merely listen to an […]

Thin Disclosure but "Bulletproof" Protection: How a Salt Form Patent was Upheld in China Despite Minimal Data

8 January 2026
In China, innovative drug companies typically rely on their initial composition of matter patents to block out competitors. Other “follow-on” IP, such as those directed towards formulations, polymorphs, and salt forms, are often regarded as less likely to survive invalidation challenges, especially in China where the standard of “person skilled in the art” is so […]
CN1982128B Figure

2019 CHINA TOP 10 IP CASE: VALEO V. LUCAS, FUKE, & CHEN

8 June 2020
Every year in the spring The Supreme People’s Court of PRC announces its “Top 10 Intellectual Property (IP) cases” and “50 typical IP cases in Chinese courts” of the year. Although not having precedential weight, these cases serve as a reference and guide people's courts at all levels regarding their intellectual property trials. It’s always […]

Our Past Events

Top crossarrow-right