In order to file a patent application in Korea, the following information and documents are required:

(a) Name, address, and nationality of the applicant(s);
(b) Name, address, and nationality of the inventor(s);
(c) Title of the invention, a specification with detailed description and claims, drawings (if necessary), and abstract;
(d) If the applicant claims the priority of one or more earlier national, regional, or international applications, the application number(s) and the filing date(s);
(e) Power of Attorney (“POA”) or General Power of Attorney (“GPOA”); and
(f) Any relevant information and supporting documents, if the applicant intends to enjoy a novelty grace period.

For Korean patent applications electronically filed, the applicant is assigned with the application number on the same date of filing.

In order for a successful entry into the Korean national phase of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (“PCT”) applications, a Korean national application with a Korean translation of the PCT application must be filed to the Korean Intellectual Property Office (“KIPO”) within 31 months from the earliest priority date.  A request for 1-month extension of time to submit the Korean translation can be filed as long as the Korean national application is filed within 31 months from the earliest priority date.

On the other hand, if the PCT application was amended or went through a change on information of the applicant(s) during the international stage, any copies and a Korean translation thereof must be filed such that the amendment or change can also come into effect in Korea.

A. In submission of documents to the KIPO, the Applicant’s Code must be specified in each of such documents. Every applicant is assigned with an Applicant’s Code upon submission of required personal information, and all the relevant information about the applicant is automatically entered if the Applicant’s Code is identified. In order to receive the Applicant’s Code, the applicant needs to submit the following information: his/her name in English, address in English, and nationality.

Every applicant who wishes to file a patent application in Korea must receive the Applicant’s Code and only one (1) code is assigned per applicant. The address written in the Power of Attorney and that of the Applicant’s Code must be exactly identical, and thus, every applicant needs to be careful in filling out the form of Power of Attorney for the accurate address thereon.

If the name or address of the applicant recorded with the Applicant’s Code is changed, such a change is automatically reflected on all related patent applications and patent registrations of the same applicant, and this is deemed one of the great advantages of the Applicant’s Code system.

A Power of Attorney (“POA”) form for each patent application should be filed every time a new patent application is filed. However, once a General Power of Attorney (”GPOA”) form is submitted for the attorney in representation of the applicant, all proceedings handled by the same attorney, including but not limited to filing any present/future patent applications, filing any requests, registration of the granted patents, and requesting trials, can be undertaken with the KIPO without submission of additional POAs. One (1) applicant can submit the GPOAs for multiple representatives in Korea, and such general attorney rights can be withdrawn at any time.

Substantive examination on the patent application commences only if the Request for Examination of the subject application is filed, and it is conducted in the order of filing date of the Request for Examination. Request for Examination must be filed within 3 years from the filing date of the Korean national application (if it is a PCT application, from the international filing date). The patent application is deemed withdrawn if the Request for Examination thereof is not filed within the statutory period.

Request for Examination cannot be withdrawn once it is filed, and the examination fees with the KIPO are directly proportional to the number of claims.

Substantive examination on the patent application is generally conducted by the KIPO between 12 to 18 months from the filing date of Request for Examination. However, for an accelerated examination of the patent application, the applicant can file a Request for Accelerated Examination for patent applications falling under the specific categories defined by the Korean Patent Act. In order to file a Request for Accelerated Examination of the patent application, the applicant must submit the supporting documents evidencing the subject application’s eligibility for the accelerated examination and pay the additional examination fees. If the patent application is determined to meet the requirements for an accelerated examination, substantive examination on such an application is conducted usually within 3 to 6 months from the filing date of the Request for Accelerated Examination.

The patent application, whose applicant is a foreign national, eligible for the accelerated examination are in the following circumstances:

(a) The invention described in the patent application is in actual use by a third party without authorization by the applicant;
(b) The invention described in the patent application is currently in use in Korea or is in preparation of use in Korea by the applicant; or
(c) Through the Patent Prosecution Highway (“PPH”): Examination on the Korean patent application can be accelerated based upon the PCT-PPH or the examination results obtained from other countries.

Costs in prosecution of Korean patent applications primarily comprise government official fees and attorneys’ fees.

The costs in prosecution of Korean patent application are characterized in that (i) the biggest portion of the fees is Korean translation fees; and (ii) the prosecution fees may be proportional to the number of claims. Official fees of the Request for Examination, Patent Registration, and Request for Trial all depend upon the number of claims.

Utility Model Applications are handled under the Korean Utility Model Act, separately from the Korean Patent Act. The procedures in filing of an application, examination, and registration for a utility model are identical to those for a patent.

However, the term for a utility model is 10 years from the filing date, and it is shorter than the term for a patent. A Request for Examination of the utility model application must be filed within 3 years from the filing date. In addition, any composition and a method invention cannot be a subject matter of the utility model application.

The Utility Model system in Korea is designed to protect minor inventions (or less complex inventions) based on the principle that “major inventions (or highly inventive inventions) receive strong protection, while minor inventions (or less complex inventions) receive limited protection.” Accordingly, inventions exhibiting a lower level of inventive step than that required for a standard patent may be registered as utility models.

Within 30 days from receipt of the first Decision of Rejection, it is possible for the applicant to convert the patent application into the utility model application, or vice versa. If the inventive step of the invention in the patent application is not likely to be acknowledged, such a patent application can be converted into the utility model application to procure the rights for the invention sought for protection. In addition, in order to extend the term of the invention rights of a utility model application, conversion of such an application into the patent application can also be considered.

Once patent applications get filed, they are usually published after 18 months from the filing date (if priority rights are claimed, from the priority date). Upon a special request for an earlier publication, the patent application can be published earlier than 18 months from the filing date. Bibliographic data, prosecution histories, and abstracts of the published patent applications can be obtained in English at the webpage of the Korean Intellectual Property Rights Information Service (http://www.kipris.or.kr/).

If the invention described in the patent application is in actual use by a third party before registration, the applicant for the subject application can send out a cease and desist letter to the third party after publication of the patent application. In that case, for the third party’s use even before the patent registration, the applicant can seek the compensatory damages in the amount generally sought for the unauthorized use of the invention against the third party, after registration of the patent application.