| Accelerated Patent Grant |
Referenced Items (276, 277) |
(277) The Mexican Institute of Intellectual Property is Accelerating Patent
Grants Based on the Issuance of a Corresponding United States Patent
As the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) works to
bolster robust and reliable intellectual property (IP) within the United
States, it also coordinates internationally with other IP offices to make
it easier for U.S. companies to protect and enforce their IP rights across
the globe. As part of that work, the USPTO is excited to announce a new
work-sharing arrangement - the Accelerated Patent Grant (APG) - with the
Mexican Institute of Intellectual Property (IMPI) that will allow for
expedited grants of Mexican patents to U.S. patent holders.
The APG is an applicant-driven patent worksharing arrangement between
the USPTO and a partner intellectual property office. An applicant who has
received a United States (U.S.) patent may request the partner office to
grant its national patent on a corresponding application pending in that
office, based on the U.S. patent and without a substantive examination
taking place, subject to the relevant laws of that country. This allows the
applicant to obtain an accelerated patent in the partner office. The APG
also promotes application processing efficiency by allowing an examiner in
the partner office to reuse the search and examination results from the
USPTO, thereby reducing workload and duplication of effort.
On August 7, 2023, the USPTO and the IMPI, signed an APG arrangement
that provides U.S. patent holders with the option of utilizing a simplified
and expedited process for obtaining a patent grant in Mexico. The process
allows an applicant who has received a U.S. patent to choose that the IMPI
grant the Mexican patent on a corresponding Mexican application at any time
during its processing, following the publication of the application in the
Mexican Industrial Property Gazette, subject to the relevant patent laws of
Mexico.
The program is scheduled to remain in effect until August 7, 2028.
The IMPI has published the guidelines for participating in the APG
Program implemented under this arrangement on its website:
www.gob.mx/cms/uploads/attachment/file/870254/091023_Guidelines_
Accelerated_Patent_Gra nt_18_.pdf
You may direct any inquiries concerning this notice to Keith Mullervy,
Office of Policy and International Affairs, at 571-270-7079 or
keith.mullervy@uspto.gov.
You may direct any specific questions about the APG to the Office of
Policy and International Affairs at 571-272-9300 or IP.Policy@uspto.gov.
November 16, 2023 KATHERINE K. VIDAL
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
[1517 OG 466]
Top of Notices (277) December 31, 2024