Revisions to the Enforcement Rules of the Patent Act were announced on November 6, 2014, and came into immediate effect. Among the revisions, Paragraph 3 of Article 13 and Paragraph 3 of Article 46 were both revised and expanded in order to explicitly define the calculation method for the six-month “grace period” defined in Paragraph 3 of Article 22 and Paragraph 3 of Article 122 of the Patent Act. The “grace period” applies to situations wherein, if the invention for which an applicant intends to file a patent application is made public as the result of an experiment, is disclosed in a publication, is displayed in an exhibition organized or authorized by the government, or is otherwise inadvertently disclosed, the applicant may still apply for a patent within six months of the disclosure.

 

According to the revised provisions, the six-month “grace period” for an invention or design patent would be calculated beginning from the day after the disclosure occurs (e.g. the invention is disclosed in a publication, displayed in an exhibition organized or authorized by the government, etc.), and ending on the date of application. Even if such an application is entitled to a claim of priority, the duration of the grace period shall be calculated based on its application date, and not on its priority date.