EXAMINATION SYSTEM

Formal and substantive examination

Under the Russian Patent Law deferred examination system is used. First stage - formal examination - takes place upon expiration of two months of filing the application. The formal examination could be implemented earlier following a request of the applicant.

The Patent Office within 18 months from the date of filing of the application, that has undergone the formal examination, publishes information on it in the official bulletin and the application is laid open and might be accessed by the general public.

It is possible to request an information search on an application that has passed the formal examination. The fee for conducting an information search depends on the number of independent claims and subject fields identified by classes of IPC.

Substantive examination of an application is carried out within 3 years after the national filing date following a request submitted by the applicant or a third person. The involved fee might be reduced by 20% if there is an international-type search report and by 50% if there is an international search report provided by an International Searching Authority. In case the request is not submitted the patent application is deemed abandoned.

Provisional Protection

An invention enjoys provisional protection from the date of publication of information on the application till the date of publication of information on the patent grant.

Appeals

There is one appeal body in Russia - Patent Appeals Chamber. Objections on refusal of grant of a patent or issuance of a patent might be appealed with the Patent Appeals Chamber. The decisions of the Appeals Patent Chamber are final and can further be appealed only in court.

Invalidity of a patent

A patent might be acknowledged invalid throughout its term on the following grounds:

1. the patented invention does not meet the statutory criteria of patentability;
2. the patent claims contain features missing from the original application materials;
3. the patent incorrectly identifies the inventor or the assignee.