* Introduction
The Thailand Patent Act 1979 provides protection for patents, petty patents and design patents in Thailand. The patent holder under the Act has a right to prevent any unauthorized person from making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing the patent.
Patents shall be granted only for an invention which
- is novel
- involves an inventive step
- is capable of industrial application
* Registration
The proprietor of a patent, petty patent or product design patent shall file the patent application for registration with the Patent Examiner at the Thai Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) in Thailand. The following documents must be submitted together with the application.
For patents and petty patents the following information and documentation must be submitted:
- specifications of the invention or process
- claims
- 3-dimensional drawing of patent or petty patent and view in three dimensions
- abstract
For design patents the following information and documentation must be submitted:
- Description of product design
- claims
- 3-dimensional drawing of the product design patent
If the applicant is a foreign entity, the following additional documents must be submitted:
- legalized Certificate of Incorporation issued by the applicant’s country within ninety days as from the filing date in Thailand
- statement of Applicant’s Right, if applicable (see below)
- Deed of Assignment, if applicable (see below)
If the applicant is the inventor or creator, the applicant must also submit a Statement of applicant’s Right to the Examiner.
If the applicant is not the inventor or creator but rather an assignee, the applicant must also submit the relevant assignment document granting rights to the applicant.
* Priority Claims
In some cases, the applicant may claim the priority date of an earlier application filed in a foreign country who is a member of the Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (Paris Convention), as same as Thailand. The applicant must submit to the Examiner the following document in order to complete priority claim.
(1) A certified true copy of the first application issued by the foreign patent office
For patent and petty patent applications, the priority claim shall be filed with the DIP within twelve months as from the filing date of the first application in foreign country.
For application of design patent, the priority claim shall be filed with the DIP within six months as from the filing date of the first application in foreign country.
* Time frame
(1) Filing Application
After the applicant has filed the application with the DIP, the Examiner will conduct the formalities examination of a patent application. If the formalities of a patent application conforms to the required formalities, the application will proceed to publication. Otherwise, the examiner will issue the office action requesting the applicant to revise the application with correct formalities.
(2) Publication
Whereas a patent application conforms to the required formalities, the Examiner will order the applicant to pay a publication fee. After the publication fee is paid, a patent the application will be published in the DIP’s Gazette for a period of ninety days.
For a petty patent application which conforms to the required formalities, the Examiner will order the applicant to pay a publication fee and a registration fee within sixty days as from the receipt of the office action. After the registration and publication fees are paid, the patent application will be published in the DIP’s Gazette for a period of ninety days.
(3) Examination
After publication, the applicant is required to file a request for substantive examination which will determine the patent ability of an invention. For a petty patent applicant, there is no requirement for substantive examination. However, the applicant, in person by authorized representative, may request such examination within one year after the publication.
Examination of both patent and petty patent applications generally takes 3-4 years to complete.
(4) Issuance of Certificate
After a patent application has proceeded to publication, without an opposition by third party, and has been approved for substantive examination, the Registrar will grant the Certificate of Registration accordingly.
Please note that it normally takes approximately 4-5 years to grant a Certificate of Patent.