It mainly includes the payment of patent annual fees, the transfer of patent rights, and the acceleration of examination of patents, etc.
Patent duration
The duration of a patent for invention is twenty years, the duration of a patent for utility model or design is ten years, counted from the filing date in China. Where, at the expiration of surcharge period of annual fee, the patentee still fails to pay or pay in full the annual fee or the surcharge, a Notification of Termination of Patent Right shall be made by examiner two months after the expiration of surcharge period of annual fee. Where the patentee does not request for restoration of right or where the request for restoration of right is not approved, the patent right shall be handled to be invalid, and the termination of patent right shall be announced in the Patent Gazette by the Patent Office after four months from the issuance of the Notification of Termination of Patent Right. The patent right shall terminate from the date on which the time limit for payment of the annual fee expires.