Implementation of Expedited Examination System to Support Low Carbon Green Growth

Starting October 1, 2009, for patent applications with direct relationship to green technology, expedited examination system and speedy judgment system will be implemented for the first time in the world to those applications satisfying the requirements of the prescribed format. According to the recently amended Patent Law Enforcement Decree, candidates eligible to receive priority examination have been modified from "green technology useful in prevention of environmental pollution" applications to those directly related to "green technology." [technology that, through the entire process of social and economic activities, saves energy resources and uses them efficiently to minimize green house gas and pollutant emissions; such as greenhouse gas reduction ability, utilization technique of energy usage, clean production technology, clean energy technique, resource circulation and environment friendly technology(including related fusion skills) etc.] Accordingly, the Korean Intellectual Property Office will prepare a specific announcement by the end of coming September and anticipates green technologies that received financial Research & Development aid or certification from the government can take advantage of these expedited examination and speedy judgment. Candidate application for expedited examination and speedy judgment will receive the result within 1 month and 4 months of the application, respectively. They are much quicker than generally applicable 3 months for priority examination and 6 months for regular judgment process.

Enforcement of Automatic Fee Payment System

Starting July 1, 2009, a client wanting to make a payment to the KIPO can automatically pay various fees by simply entering the payer’s account number without visiting a bank or connecting to www.giro.or.kr. Provisions regarding the Patent and Trademark Registration Enforcement Regulation have been amended to provide this service. With the enforcement of automatic fee payment system, time and cost needed to pay fees are expected to reduce dramatically for over 1 million cases annually. Moreover, early prevention of late fees caused by lapse in annual registration fee or loss of rights can contribute to protect applicant’s rights and significantly widen available choices on the range of payment methods. Fees payable through automatic payment system are all fees to be paid to the KIPO including application fees.