CHANG TSI
Insights
On November 13, 2025, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has published the Revision of the Patent Examination Guidelines on its official website. The new Guidelines will formally come into effect on January 1, 2026. The revision not only optimizes examination procedures, but also sets out more practical and forward‑looking provisions for emerging technologies and new business models. The main changes include:
1. Plant Varieties: Introducing a definition of “plant varieties,” expanding the range of patentable subject matter, aligning with the plant new variety protection regime, and strengthening IP protection in the seed industry.
2. Artificial Intelligence (AI): Adding examination examples for AI‑related inventions, emphasizing technical means and ethical compliance. Any solutions contravening laws, social morality, or harming public interest will be refused grant.
3. Bit‑stream Patents: Establishing examination rules for bit‑stream patents to address the rapid growth of the streaming media industry.
II. Optimization of Examination Procedures and Rules
1. Same‑day Applications (Dule Filing): For simultaneous filing of invention and utility model applications on the same day, invention patents may only be granted if the applicant abandons the utility model patent rights.
2. Refund Requests: Introducing circumstances under which parties may request refunds during examination proceedings.
3. Invalidation Procedures: Declaring that requests for invalidation not expressing the genuine intent of the requester will not be accepted, and specifying requirements for submission of amended texts during invalidation proceedings.
1. Inventive Step Assessment: Emphasizing evaluation of the technical solution as a whole to improve objectivity; highlighting the correlation between the technical problem and the technical solution.
2. Public Interest Examples: Providing examples to help determine situations that damage the public interest.
3. Support Requirement: Strengthening examination standards regarding support of claims by the specification.
1. On‑demand and Accelerated Examination: Tailoring examination pace to applicants’ needs.
2. Divisional Application Priority: Clarifying rules to safeguard applicants’ rights.
3. Priority Assignment Documents: Detailing evidentiary requirements to enhance transparency.
1. Updated Chapter Titles: Adding “Artificial Intelligence” to section titles, affirming AI’s position in the examination framework.
2. Inventive Step Examples: Merely replacing training objects may be found lacking in inventiveness; changing model structure, feature extraction, network hierarchy, etc., may be deemed inventive.
3. Specification Disclosure Requirements: Mandating complete disclosure of model structure, parameters, training data, and other key information, ensuring enablement for skilled persons in the art.
4. Ethical Review: Solutions violating AI ethical principles (fairness, justice, privacy & data security, controllability, trustworthiness) will be excluded pursuant to Article 5 of the Patent Law.
Through this revision, legal boundaries for emerging technologies—particularly AI, seed industry, and digital media—are being more clearly defined, reducing uncertainty for enterprise filings. Examination efficiency and procedural transparency have been improved, enabling better strategic planning for patent portfolios. Ethical and public interest considerations are now integrated into core examination procedures, meaning compliance will be as critical as inventiveness in the future. For enterprises engaged in IP or technological innovation, early understanding and adjustment of R&D and filing strategies will ensure a proactive position ahead of the effective date in 2026.
We will also be publishing a series of articles interpreting the revisions to the Patent Examination Guidelines—stay tuned!
