On March 25, 2022, China's National Development and Reform
Commission (NDRC) announced new annuities for design patents.
As the 4th amendment of China patent law prescribes
that the patent term for design patents is 15 years, in contrast to
the previous 10-year patent term, it is necessary to develop the
fee schedules for the annuities for each of the 11th
through the 15th year. According to NDRC's announcement, for
design patents, from the 11th year to the
15th year, the annuity is RMB3,000 (about US$472) per
year. Patent annuities should be paid on an annual basis according
to Chinese practice.
In addition, as China will formally become a member of the Hague
Agreement on May 5, 2022, it is also necessary to develop the
renewal fee schedules for the designs filed through the Hague
system. According to NDRC's announcement, for the designs filed
through the Hague system, the individual designation fees at the
renewal stage are as follows.
