Government Amended Statute on Patent Fees

On June 17 2021, the Decree of the Russian Government No. 922 introduced changes in the Statute on Fees for Patenting Inventions, Utility Models, Industrial Designs and Registering Trade Marks, Geographical Indications, and Appellations of Origin of Goods.

Among three noteworthy changes, the first is reducing to just one a previously existed choice of substantive patent examination fees, which amount depended on whether the examination request is submitted at the same day the patent application is filed or later. With the new amendment, effective from August 1, 2021 examination fee is charged in uniform amount of 12500 RUR for the first and 9200 RUR for each subsequent independent claim regardless of when during statutory provided time frame examination is requested. The amount of examination fee remains similar to previously charged for request at the day of filing the application, however, it becomes almost three times higher for those applicants who used to request examination later than at the filing date.

Secondly, following the law amendments of year 2020, under which granted patents and trademark certificates move to the electronic form as the main one with their paper publication becoming on-demand only, amended Statute establish a fee of 2,000 RUR for demanding paper publication in addition to electronic.

Finally, the Statute now allow examination fees reduction by 50% when applicant submits preliminary information search and patentability opinion reports prepared by expert organizations accredited by Rospatent. A possibility for the applicants for inventions and utility model patents to request at their own choice such preliminary information search and patentability opinions was also introduces by the law amendments of year 2020. Yet, however, no one expert organization has been accredited