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As Covid-19 continues to evolve globally, we wanted to provide you with an update of the operations of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO).
Although KIPO continues to work in full capacity, as of March 31, 2020, it has announced that it will be extending designated deadlines falling in the period between March 31 - April 29 to April 30 to accommodate applicants who may have difficulty in meeting KIPO’s deadlines.
Please be advised, however, that these ex officio extensions are not applicable to the statutory periods prescribed by patent/trademark laws or treaties, such as the 31-month time limit for a PCT national phase entry in Korea, the deadline for requesting a substantive examination for patent applications, the deadline for responding to a final rejection, etc.
For further information about these extensions, please refer to the below English translation of the press release from KIPO.
[Press Release]
Ex Officio Extension of Period
for Submitting Patent Related Documents
- The period for submitting documents designated by the Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office has been extended until April 30 –
- In response to the rising concern of domestic and foreign applicants of missing the patent document submission period due to the current Covid-19 pandemic, KIPO has announced that it is exercising its ex officio authority to extend the period for patent document submissions.
- In the process for obtaining a patent (utility model, design, trademark), submission deadlines falling in the period of March 31 ~ April 29 have been extended to April 30. This extension pertains to periods for filing responses to requests to amend patent applications, etc., or correct deficiencies, submitting responses to non-final office actions, submitting responses to trademark registration oppositions, etc.
- This is a precautionary measure to prevent the applications being nullified or finally rejected because of the inability to submit the necessary documents in time by domestic and foreign applicants or agents, etc. due to the direct or indirect impact of Covid-19.
- Under this measure, the applicants or the agents do not need to file separate requests for extension of time or pay the fees related thereto which eases the burden during the process of obtaining IP rights. The same benefits apply to patents filed from overseas, such as Europe and the United States, where Covid-19 is spreading.
- The specific types of documents subject to the extension of the submission period under this measure will be announced on the KIPO website (www.kipo.go.kr). Please be advised that as this ex officio extension authority cannot be exercised for the statutory periods prescribed by patent law or treaty or if there is a possibility of harming the interests of involved parties or third parties, it is necessary to check the detailed document items that fall under this ex officio extension.
- Further, even when applying for further extension of time, KIPO has decided, upon confirmation, to approve a simple statement to the effect that such further extension requests are due to the Covid-19 situation.
- Moreover, fees will be waived in relation to revival through justified claims of ex post relief of the application that is nullified or the expired rights because of missing the deadline due to the Covid-19.
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