The JPO (Japan Patent Office) and the INPI (Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial) announced that the PPH (Patent Prosecution Highway) between Japan and Brazil will be available in all the technical fields.
As reported previously, the JPO and the INPI started the PPH pilot program form April 1, 2017, and the eligible technical fields were expanded to polymer chemistry, metallurgy, materials, agricultural chemistry, micro-organisms, enzymes, etc., from April 1, 2019.
From December 1, 2019, there will be no limitation on the technical fields eligible for the PPH between Japan and Brazil.
The INPI will accept 400 PPH requests per year and allow each applicant to file one request per month.
As you may know, no Official Fee will be required when filing a request for the PPH before the JPO. Meanwhile, the Official Fee for filing a request for the PPH in Brazil will be around $420.
[Update on January 1, 2021]
As of January 1, 2021, restrictions on the numbers of PPH requests are eased.
- an applicant may file one PPH request per week (previously one request per month); and
- the INPI will accept 600 PPH requests (previously 400) per year.