On August 6, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) jointly issued the Circular on Relevant Matters Including the Annual Fee Standards for Patent Right Compensation Period (the "Circular").

The Circular stipulates that the annual fee standard for patent right compensation period should be CNY8,000 per item, with no charge for a period less than one year; the fee standard for a compensation request for patent right duration should be CNY200 per item. The Circular further clarifies that, according to international practices and the principle of reciprocity, the notes in Appendix 2 of the Circular of the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance on Relevant Issues concerning the Reissue of Administrative and Institutional Fee Standards for the China National Intellectual Property Administration will be revised as follows: the international patent applications (PCT applications) received and searched internationally by the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) will be exempt from application fees and application surcharges when entering the national phase in China. PCT applications for which the CNIPA has issued an international search report or an international preliminary report on patentability will be exempt from the substantive examination fee when entering the national phase in China and requesting substantive examination. Other fee standards for PCT applications entering the national phase in China will be subject to the domestic standards.

(Source: National Development and Reform Commission)