Thailand
Answer ... The Patent Office (Department of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Commerce
563 Sanambin Nam, Bang Krasaw, Mueang Nonthaburi District, Nonthaburi 11000, Thailand).
Thailand
Answer ... The total cost of registration varies depending on the service fees charged by local patent agents (usually around $700 to $1,000 from filing to registration) and the translation fees, which can be rather expensive, especially for technical inventions.
Official fees are fixed fees and are rather inexpensive (if we do not consider annuities). The current official fees applicable under the Patent Act, from filing to grant, are as follows:
- Official fees for invention patents: THB 1,500 per application from filing to registration (about $50).
- Official fees for design patents: THB 1,000 per application per design from filing to registration (about $30).
- Official fees for petty patents: THB 750 per application from filing to registration (about $23).
Thailand
Answer ... In accordance with Sections 5 to 14 of the Patent Act, a patent can be invalidated on any of the following grounds:
- The patented invention is not new.
- The patented invention does not meet the criterion of inventive step (ie, the invention is obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the relevant field).
- The patented invention is incapable of industrial application.
- The patented invention consists of non-patentable subject matter (see question 3.5).
- The patent owner is not the true inventor or has no right to file an application.
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The patent applicant does not comply with Section 14 of the Patent Act, which requires the patent applicant to meet at least one of the following conditions:
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- be a Thai national or legal person with its principal office in Thailand;
- be a national of a country that is a party to an international convention or treaty for patent protection to which Thailand is also a party;
- be a national of a country that allows Thai national or legal persons with their principal offices in Thailand to apply for patents; or
- have a domicile or an actual and genuine ongoing functioning industrial or commercial enterprise in Thailand or a country that is party to an international convention or treaty for patent protection to which Thailand is also a party.
Thailand
Answer ... The best way to accelerate the patent application process in Thailand is to ensure that the formality examination is conducted quickly and submit a request for substantive examination along with a copy of matching foreign granted claims. Where advisable, a voluntary amendment made to Thai claims so as to match foreign granted claims can also result in expedited examination.
Aside from this general recommendation, applicants can also avail of two fast-track examination procedures, as follows.
Thailand-Japan Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Programme: The PPH Pilot Programme was initiated following an agreement between the Department of Intellectual Property and the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) concluded on 1 January 2014. It provides a fast-track channel that allows applicants that have filed a patent application in Japan first, followed by a counterpart application in Thailand, to accelerate the substantive examination of their Thai application by utilising the examination results of their Japanese application.
Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Patent Examination Cooperation (ASPEC): ASPEC is the first regional patent work-sharing programme among all participating ASEAN member states (excluding Myanmar). Applicants can file an ASPEC form at any time before grant, to avoid duplication of search and examination, thereby saving time. ASPEC is often overlooked, although it works very well – in particular, for patent holders that have already obtained grant in Singapore.
Thailand
Answer ... The following types of claims are not patentable under the Section 9(4) of the Patent Act:
- naturally occurring micro-organisms and their components, animals, plants or extracts thereof;
- scientific and mathematical rules;
- computer programs;
- methods of diagnosis, treatment or cure of human or animal diseases; and
- inventions that contravene public order, morality or the health or welfare of the people.
Some difficulties arise in Thailand with regard to pharmaceutical patents for methods of treatment or diagnosis, which must be amended into a Swiss claim format.
In general terms, the following inventions may be patented provided that they meet the criteria of novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability:
- polymorphic forms (eg, solvates or different crystalline forms of a known chemical compound);
- pharmaceutical substances or compositions;
- new therapeutic uses of known chemical compounds (Swiss type claims);
- combination and dosage forms; and
- methods for preparing medicinal products or related substances.
In the case of a considerable number of pharmaceutical patent applications in Thailand, objections are raised as early as during the formality examination (ie, before publication of the patent application) because of Section 9(4).
Any patent claim referring to a “method of diagnosis, treatment or cure of human or animal disease” is strictly not permitted in Thailand. Examples of claims that are absolutely not admissible in Thailand include the following:
- “(Compound substance X) for use in the treatment of (disease Y/ disorder Y)”;
- “(Compound substance X) for use as a (Y treating agent)”; and
- “(Compound/substance X) for use in therapy (or for use as a medicament)”.
As is well known in the pharmaceutical industry, patent applications containing claims relating to a method of treatment – especially those relating to a secondary use of a known compound to treat a new disease – are usually modified into the Swiss-type claim format. A Swiss-type claim format that would be acceptable for publication of what would otherwise be a ‘method of treatment’ patent application in Thailand would be: “(Use of) (compound/substance X) in the manufacturing of a medicament for the treatment of (disease Y/ disorder Y).”
Thailand
Answer ... No procedural or legal mechanisms are available to extend the patent term in Thailand, beyond the exception discussed in question 2.3.
Thailand
Answer ... Invention patents: The basic requirements for patentability of invention patents are stipulated in Section 5 of the Patent Act as novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability.
As in other countries, the Patent Act provides that an invention seeking legal protection in Thailand must be ‘new’. An invention is considered new if it does not form part of the state of the art.
According to Section 6, the state of the art includes any of the following inventions:
- an invention which was widely known or used by others in the country before the date of filing of the patent application;
- an invention whose subject matter was described in a document or printed publication, displayed or otherwise disclosed to the public in Thailand or a foreign country before the date of filing of the patent application;
- an invention for which a patent was sought in a foreign country more than 12 months before the date of filing of the patent application, where a patent has not yet been granted for such invention; and
- an invention for which a patent sought in Thailand, where the applicant has not abandoned such application. This provision shall not affect the rights of joint inventors and other persons that did not jointly apply for a patent.
The proposed amendments to the Patent Act aim to clarify some ambiguity regarding this section. A new paragraph of Section 6 in the proposed amendments aims to include in the prior art not only inventions which existed or were widely used in Thailand before the date of filing of a patent application, but also those which existed or were widely used outside the kingdom (ie, worldwide absolute novelty).
As regards the requirement of inventive step, Section 7 of the Patent Act stipulates that: “An invention shall be taken to involve an inventive step if it is not obvious to a person ordinarily skilled in the art.” This approach is the same as that taken in other countries, and particularly in Europe.
An invention patent application can include an unlimited number of claims.
Petty patents: To be eligible for petty patent protection, an invention must meet the criteria of novelty and industrial applicability. There is no inventive step requirement for petty patent applications in Thailand. It is not possible to obtain both a patent and a petty patent for the same invention. However, in either case the applicant can change the type of protection sought from a petty patent to a patent and vice versa. This must be done before registration of the invention and the issue of a petty patent, or before publication of the patent application.
A petty patent application can include up to 10 claims.
Design patents: Design patents must meet the criterion of novelty in Thailand.
As per Section 57 of the Patent Act , the following designs shall not meet the criterion of novelty:
- a design which has existed or has been widely used in Thailand before the date of filing a patent application;
- a design whose image, substantial part or detailed description has previously been disclosed in a document or printed publication, whether inside or outside Thailand, before the date of filing of a patent application;
- a design which has previously been published under Section 65 in conjunction with Section 28 before the date of filing of a patent application; or
- a design similar to any design mentioned in the first, second or third points above which can be seen as an imitation.
Thailand
Answer ... Appeals are available under the Patent Act. If the Patent Office rejects an invention patent or petty patent application, the applicant may appeal the decision to the Board of Patents within 60 days. If the board affirms the rejection decision, the applicant may appeal to the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court with 60 days of receiving notice of the board’s decision.