Priority Patent Processing in Brazil (PPH, GPPH, and other modalities)
The BPTO offers priority processing for applications involving the protection of industrial property rights through the use of patents. The legislation covers various modalities and situations that allow for priority processing. Priority processing represents a valuable instrument for companies and inventors who work with innovation and wish to transform their solutions into competitive advantages quickly and safely.
Priority processing is a procedure aimed at accelerating the analysis of patent applications at the BPTO (Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office), significantly shortening the average grant time. Depending on the modality requested, the timeframe can drop from five years, the estimated regular time, to less than one year, allowing the holder to obtain legal security and exclusive exploitation rights for the invention more quickly.
It is important to emphasize that priority processing does not reduce the legal requirements for granting a patent. The application remains subject to analysis of novelty, inventive step, industrial application, and descriptive sufficiency, as determined by the Brazilian Industrial Property Law.
Priority processing involves all activities of the patent process – from the submission of documentation for filing to the end of processing at the BPTO, this also means that interested parties are entitled to priority processing regardless of the procedural stage.
The admission or not of priority processing does not interfere in any way with the respective patent right. That is, regardless of the outcome, the patent will remain in force until its expiration and the holder must continue to fulfill the other responsibilities related to their right defined by law.
To request priority processing, it is necessary to already have a patent application filed normally at the BPTO.
The first step of the request corresponds to the choice of service and the object of the priority processing petition, which must be chosen according to the intended modality.
The second step corresponds to the request for priority processing on the BPTO website, where the mandatory documents described in the resolution must be attached. It is necessary to declare the veracity of the information. Upon completion of the process, the request for priority processing will be filed.
The BPTO will evaluate participation requests based on the specific Resolution for the priority processing modality.
It is important to note that if the request for participation in the priority processing is not accepted, the application will continue in its normal process, without any prejudice.
Priority Processing Modalities
PPH and GPPH
The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is a bilateral cooperation program between the BPTO and several patent offices around the world.
The main objective of the PPH is to accelerate the examination of patent applications, using the results of examinations carried out by partner offices.
With the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH), after a partner patent office considers the subject matter of a patent application patentable, it is possible to prioritize the patent application for the same invention and holder at the BPTO, making the process faster and more efficient.
This is especially useful for applicants seeking protection for their inventions in multiple countries, as it allows for faster examination and greater legal certainty.
In 2024, BPTO joined the Global Patent Prosecution Highway (GPPH) program.
The Global Patent Prosecution Highway (GPPH) is an international collaborative initiative between various intellectual property offices, aimed at reducing the processing time of patent applications.
This system allows offices from different countries to share information and examination results, as well as prioritize their processing over other applications, speeding up the patent acquisition process. Its main objective is to reduce the time and costs of patent examination in various jurisdictions, fostering international cooperation and procedural efficiency.
The GPPH has its own event dynamics. The search and examination are initially carried out by the Prior Examination Office, and the examination result indicating the existence of patentable/permitted subject matter, including results obtained under the PCT, can be used as a basis for requesting priority processing.
The GPPH started with a limited number of member countries, but has expanded over the years. The constant expansion aims to incorporate more jurisdictions, making the system increasingly broader and more efficient.
Currently, the BPTO has bilateral Patent Prosection Highway (PPH) agreements with 23 partner offices.
Due to its accession to the GPPH, the BPTO now also has multilateral agreements, and therefore the number of partner offices will increase to 35 as of January 1, 2025.
Currently, up to 1,000 (one thousand) applications for participation in the PPH/GPPH may be submitted for patent applications classified in the same Section of the International Patent Classification (IPC) per annual cycle; up to 3,200 (three thousand two hundred) applications for participation may be received per annual cycle, divided quarterly (800 applications)
Other modalities
Among the other priority processing options, the following are worth highlighting:
- Green patent program for applications related to environmentally friendly inventions that claim subject matter directly applicable to “alternative energies,” “transportation,” “energy conservation,” “waste management,” or “sustainable agriculture”.;
- Program for technologies available in the Brazilian market, i.e., for inventions/utility models where the claimed subject matter is commercialized, used, or produced in Brazil.;
- Health products program for applications related to products, pharmaceutical processes, equipment, and materials related to public health.
- Program focused on technologies for the treatment of specific diseases.
- Potential infringement program for situations where third parties are using the invention cited in the application.
- Program for elderly applicants aged 60 or older.
To give an idea of its importance, one can cite a study published by BPTO in January 2025, which presents an overview of sustainable technologies whose patent applications were examined through the priority processing program for Green Patents, where between 2012 and August 2024, 1,097 patent applications participated in the priority processing of “Green Patents”.
The priority processing program for Green Patents currently has an average decision time of 9 months – much shorter than the 4.5 years of the common BPTO patent examination queue, functioning as an important tool to encourage the bioeconomy and sustainable development, providing a faster response for those interested in producing and marketing their inventions in the Brazilian market.
Conclusion
Priority processing represents a valuable instrument for companies and inventors who work with innovation and wish to transform their solutions into competitive advantages quickly and safely.
In a globalized and competitive world where time is an increasingly critical factor, especially in sectors such as technology, health, and sustainability, reducing patent grant time can make the difference between being a market leader or falling behind.
With a granted patent, the holder gains greater competitive capacity, being able to generate new sources of revenue, such as technology licensing, know-how transfer, and partnerships with other institutions, in addition to being able to react quickly in cases of copying or improper exploitation of their invention by competitors.
In investment raising, mergers, and acquisitions processes, the existence of a granted patent is seen as a relevant differentiator, representing not only the capacity for innovation but also the company’s commitment to valuing and protecting its technological base, with the patented asset directly contributing to the company’s valuation.
Sources:
Rogerio Rovetta
Engineer. Telecommunications Engineer.