Japanese Design Applications Now More Convenient!
– Enforcement of On-line Exchange for Japanese Priority Documents from January 2020 –
From the beginning of the new year, applicants do not need to directly submit certified copies of priority documents to the Japanese Patent Office when filing design applications in Japan.
The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) announced this expansion of on-line exchange of certified copies of priority documents* (DAS: Digital Access Service), which was previously available only for the US and Chinese patent offices, to the Japanese Patent Office from January 1, 2020.
* Certified copy of priority document: in the case of filing an application in other countries with the same content as an application filed in a first country, a document to be submitted to the patent office in order for the application date to be recognized as a prior application date
As DAS is the system through which the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) acts as an intermediary between the patent offices of each member country and provides for on-line exchange of certified copies of priority documents, in the case that an applicant claims priority right, it solves the inconvenience of submitting the related certified documents by paper and the associated cost burden.
In order to use the DAS service upon filing a design application in Japan, an applicant receives an WIPO access code for the corresponding Korean design application through the KIPO website and describes the Korean patent application number, date and the WIPO access code at the time of filing the application with the Japanese Patent Office (JPO). Then, KIPO and JPO exchange the corresponding certified copies of priority documents via on-line means in lieu of the applicant.
<On-line Exchange of Certified Copies of Priority Documents>
Meanwhile, reviewing the status of using the DAS system for design applications up until present, it can be seen that use by Korean applicants is extraordinarily active compared to such use by Chinese and US applicants.
Comparing the use status with China starting from August 2018, practical use by Korean applicants is 8 times that of Chinese applicants, and comparing with the US starting from December 2018, it is 2 times over such use by US applicants.
<DAS System Practical Use Status for Design Applications (’18. 7 ~ ’19. 11)>
The Trademark and Design Examination Chief of KIPO announced, “Through expansion of DAS user nations to Japan at this time, it is expected that foreign design applications of Korean applicants will be further activated” and “Going forward, KIPO will try to continue expanding the nations available for online exchange of certified copies of priority documents.”
[Source: KIPO]