Patent registration in Macau. Macau also spelled Macao and officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. Macau has a capitalist service economy largely based on casino gaming and tourism. Macau’s gaming industry is the largest in the world, generating over MOP195 billion (US$24 billion) in revenue and about seven times larger than that of Las Vegas. Accordingly, many businesses want to enter this market and one of the most important preparations a business needs to take before expanding to this country is to learn the procedure of patent registration in Macau.
Patent in Macau
To be patentable in this country, an invention must meet the requirements of novelty, inventiveness, and industrial applicability.
However, the patent might be rejected by the IP Office if the patent application crosses one of the following features:
- the object is not eligible for protection;
- it infringes rules of public order or morality;
- it is recognized that the applicant intends to practice unfair competition, or that it might do so irrespective of its intention;
- it infringes the rules that define who owns the right;
- the applicant failed to submit documents legally required or to comply with procedures or formalities for granting IP rights; or
- the fees are not paid.
Necessary documents for patent registration in Macau
The necessary documents for patent registration in Macau include:
- The request to grant a patent (patent application);
- Detailed information on the applicant(s) including the applicant’s and inventor’s names, addresses, citizenships, etc.;
- A description of the invention;
- A signed and stamped power of attorney by the applicant(s);
- A copy of the amendments (if any);
- Priority documents (if any).
- Other required documents.
The official language of a patent application in Macau is Chinese and Portuguese.
The procedure for patent registration in Macau
To obtain a patent in Macau, the applicant needs to file their patent application to the IP Office of Macau.
In Macau, according to the Macau Law, there are 2 types of examinations: formal examination and material examination.
First, the patent application will undergo a formal examination to check if it complies with the regulations of the law and if it is patentable.
The formal examination will check if the application meets all the required elements on formality to be patentable in Macau.
On the other hand, the material examination is made by the National Intellectual Property Department of the People’s Republic of China, under Chief Executive Order 59/2004.
If there are no errors in both examinations, the patent application will be published publicly in the Official Gazette.
From the publication date until the date when the grant decision is issued, any third parties who feel like their rights are violated may file a written complaint regarding the patentability of the invention included in the application.
The IP Office will notify the applicant about the complaint and give them 4 four months to reply and create an argument.
Patent validity
In Macau, a patent has a 20 years validity period from the filing date.
Being the patent owner has many privileges. For example, the patentee might have the exclusive right to prevent any act of infringement on the protected invention, whether it is manufacturing, supplying, storing, trading, or using a patented product or importing or owning that product for any of the purposes mentioned without the patentee’s consent.
During the patent’s validity period, the patentee can use the words ‘patented’, ‘patent no’, or ‘Pat No’ for its products.
You can see a list of Macau IP firms here.