Phase V of the PPH Pilot Project will come into effect on 01/01/2025

The INPI published in the Industrial Property Gazette this Tuesday (December 10, 2024) Ordinance/INPI/nº 48, of November 29, 2024, which establishes Phase V of the PPH Pilot Project, starting on January 1, 2025.

The new phase is a consequence of the Institute’s adherence to the Global Patent Prosection Highway (GPPH) on July 6, 2024. With this, Ordinance/INPI/PR nº 78/2022 will be revoked.

The GPPH has its own dynamic of events. The search and examination are initially carried out by the Prior Examination Office (OEE). The result of the OEE examination that indicates the existence of patentable/permitted subject matter, including the results obtained within the scope of the PCT, can be used as a basis for the request for priority processing.

This request can be filed at any of the other participating offices, that is, at the Second Examining Offices (OLE), regardless of whether the earliest patent application filing was made at one of the participating offices. To request the GPPH, the applicant or his/her attorney must restrict the scope of claims to the subject matter considered patentable at the Previous Examining Office (OEE).

The main differences in relation to the current model are:

• The INPI will now accept PPH requests for patent applications whose priority is not from a Partner IP Office.
• Those participating in the GPPH have been included as partner offices.
• The INPI will accept any technical examination result that indicates there is patentable subject matter (novelty, inventive step and industrial application) issued by a Partner Office, whether as a national, regional or international authority.
• The concept of “Subject Matter Considered Patentable” has been changed to include the subject matter examined by the PCT.
• The concepts of “Corresponding Patent Application”, “Sufficiently Corresponding Claims” and “More Restricted Claim” have been introduced.
• The quantitative restriction on the number of participation applications that used PCT results has been removed.
• Up to 3,200 PPH participation applications will be received per annual cycle and up to 1,000 participation applications may be submitted in the same Section of the International Patent Classification, including applications filed under the PCT.

For more information: https://www.gov.br/inpi/pt-br/central-de-conteudo/noticias/fase-v-do-projeto-piloto-pph-entrara-em-vigor-em-01-01-2025