Chapter VII Protection of Patent Right

Article 79 The administrative authority for patent affairs referred to in the Patent Law and these Rules means the department responsible for the administrative work concerning patent affairs set up by the people's govermment of any province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government, or by the people's government of any city divided into districts which has a large amount of patent administration work to attend to and has the ability to deal with the matter.

Article 80 The patent administration department of the State Council shall provide professional guidance to the administrative authorities for patent affairs in handling patent infringement disputes, investigating and punishing acts of passing off patents and mediating patent disputes.

Article 81 Where any party concerned requests handling of a patent infringement dispute or mediation of a patent dispute, such dispute shall fall under the jurisdiction of the administrative authority for patent affairs of the place where the requested party has his or its location or where the act of infringement takes place.

Where two or more administrative authorities for patent affairs all have jurisdiction over a patent dispute, the party concerned may file his or its request with one of them; where requests are filed with two or more competent administrative authorities for patent affairs, the administrative authority for patent affairs which first accepts the request shall have jurisdiction.

Where administrative authorities for patent affairs have a dispute over their jurisdiction, the administrative authority for patent affairs of their common higher people's government shall designate one administrative authority for patent affairs to exercise the jurisdiction; if there is no such administrative authority for patent affairs of their common higher people's government, the patent administration department of the State Council shall designate one administrative authority for patent affairs to exercise the jurisdiction.

Article 82 Where, in the course of handling a patent infringement dispute, the alleged infringer requests invalidation of the patent right and his or its request is accepted by the Patent Reexamination Board, he or it may request the administrative authority for patent affairs concerned to suspend the handling of the matter.

If the administrative authority for patent affairs considers that the reasons set

forth by the alleged infringer for the suspension are obviously untenable, it may not suspend the handling of the matter.

Article 83 Where any patentee affixes a patent indication on the patented product or on the package of that product in accordance with the provisions of Article 17 of the Patent Law, he or it shall make the affixation in the manner as prescribed by the patent administration department of the State Council.

Where any patent indication is not in conformity with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the administrative authority for patent affairs shall order corrections to be made accordingly.

Article 84 Any of the following acts constitutes an act of passing off a patent as prescribed in Article 63 of the Patent Law:

(1) affixing a patent indication on an unpatented product or on the package of such product, continuing to affix a patent indication on a product or on the package of such product after the related patent right is declared invalid or ceases, or affixing the patent number of another person on a product or on the package of a product without authorization;

(2) selling a product as prescribed in subparagraph (1);

(3) indicating an unpatented technology or design as a patented technology or design, indicating a patent application as a patent or using the patent number of another person without authorization, in such materials as specifications of a product ete., which could mislead the public to regard the related technology or design as a patented technology or design;

(4) counterfeiting or transforming any patent certificate, patent document or patent application document; or

(5) any other act which might mislead the public into regarding an unpatented technology or design as a patented technology or design.

Where any person affixes a patent indication legally on a patented product, or on a product directly obtained by a patented process, or on the package of such product before cessation of the patent right, and offers for sale or sells such product after cessation of the patent right, such act does not constitute an act of passing offa patent.

Where any person unknowingly sells a product passing off a patent, and can prove that he or it obtains the product from a legitimate channel, the administrative authority for patent affairs shall order him or it to stop selling the product, but exempt him or it from paying a fine.

Article 85 Subject to the provisions of Article 60 of the Patent Law, the administrative authority for patent affairs may, at the request of the parties concerned, mediate the following patent disputes:

(1) any dispute over the ownership of the right to apply for patent or the patent right;

(2) any dispute over the qualification of an inventor or creator;

(3) any dispute over the rewards and remuneration of the inventor or creator of a service invention-creation;

(4) any dispute over the unpaid appropriate fee for the exploitation of an invention after the publication of an application for patent but before the grant of the patent right; and

(5) any other patent dispute.

Where the party concerned requests the administrative authority for patent affairs to mediate a dispute referred to in subparagraph (4) of the preceding paragraph, the request shall be made after the grant of the patent right.

Article 86 Where any party, in respect of a dispute over the ownership of the right to apply for patent or the patent right, has already applied for mediation with the administrative authority for patent affairs or instituted legal proceedings before the people's court, he or it may request the patent administration department of the State Council to suspend the relevant procedures.

Any party requesting the suspension of the relevant procedures in accordance with the preceding paragraph shall submit a request to the patent administration department of the State Council, which is accompanied by a copy of the document of the administrative authority for patent affairs or the people's court acknowledging acceptance of the case, with the filing number or the patent number concerned indicated.

After a mediation statement made by the administrative authority for patent affairs or a judgment rendered by the people's court has entered into force, the parties concerned shall go through the formalities for resuming the relevant procedures with the patent administration department of the State Council. If, within one year from the date when the request for suspension is filed, no decision is made on the dispute relating to the ownership of the right to apply for a patent or the patent right, and it is necessary to continue the suspension, the party who makes the request shall, within the said time limit, request extension of the suspension. If no such request for extension is filed at the expiration of the said time limit, the patent administration department of the State Council shall resume the procedures on its own initiative.

Article 87 Where, in hearing civil cases, the people's court has ordered the adoption of preservation measures for the right to apply for patent or the patent right, the patent administration department of the State Council shall suspend the relevant procedures concerning the patent application or patent right under preservation on the date of receipt of the order and the notice for execution assistance with the filing number or the patent number indicated. If, at the expiration of the time limit for preservation, there is no order of the people's court to continue the preservation, the patent administration department of the State Council shall resume the relevant procedures on its own initiative.

Article 88 The suspension of the relevant procedures by the patent administration department of the State Council in accordance with the provisions of Articles 86 and 87 of these Rules refers to the suspension of such procedures as preliminary examination, examination as to substance, and reexamination of a patent application, the granting of a patent right and the invalidation of a patent, and to the suspension of such procedures as the abandonment of a patent right, the change in or transfer of a patent right or a right to apply for patent, the pledge of a patent right, and the cessation of a patent right before the expiration of its duration.

Chapter VIII Patent Registration and Patent Gazette

Article 89 The patent administration department of the State Council shall keep a Patent Register in which the registration of the following matters relating to patent applications or patent rights shall be made:

(1) any grant of the patent right;

(2) any transfer of the right to apply for patent or the patent right;

(3) any pledge and preservation of the patent right and their discharge;

(4) any license contract for exploitation of a patent submitted for the record;

(5) any invalidation of the patent right;

(6) any cessation of the patent right;

(7) any restoration of the patent right;

(8) any compulsory license for exploitation of a patent; and

(9) any change in the name or title, nationality and address of a patentee.

Article 90 The patent administration department of the State Council shall publish the Patent Gazette at regular intervals, publishing or announcing the following:

(1) the bibliographic data and the abstract of the description of an application for a patent for invention;

(2) any request for examination as to substance of an application for a patent for invention and any decision made by the patent administration department of the State Council to proceed on its own initiative to examine as to substance an application for a patent for invention;

(3) any rejection, withdrawal, deemed withdrawal, deemed abandonment, restoration and transfer of an application for a patent for invention after its publication;

(4) any grant of the patent right and the bibliographic data of the patent right;

(5) the abstract of the description of a patent for invention or a patent for utility model, one drawing or photograph of a patent for design;

(6) any declassification of a national defense patent or a secret patent;

(7) any invalidation of the patent right;

(8)any cessation or restoration of the patent right;

(9) any transfer of the patent right;

(10) any license contract for exploitation of a patent submitted for the record;

(11) any pledge or preservation of the patent right and their discharge;

(12)any grant of a compulsory license for exploitation of a patent;

(13)any change in the name or title and address of a patentee;

(14) any service of documents by way of making an announcement;

(15) any correction made by the patent administration department of the State Council; and

(16) any other related matters.

Article 91 The patent administration department of the State Council shall make the patent gazettes, the pamphlets of applications for patents for invention and the pamphlets of patents for invention, patents for utility model and patents for design available to the public for consultation free of charge.

Article 92 The patent administration department of the State Council is responsible for exchanging, in accordance with the principle of reciprocity, patent documentation with the patent authorities of other countries or regions or with regional patent organizations.

Chapter IX Fees

Article 93 When any person files an application for a patent with, or has other formalities to go through at, the patent administration department of the State Council, he or it shall pay the following fees:

(1) a filing fee, additional fee for filing an application, printing fee for publishing an application, and fee for claiming priority;

(2)a fee for examination as to substance for an application for patent for invention, and reexamination fee;

(3) a registration fee for the grant of a patent right, printing fee for the announcement of the grant of a patent right, and annual fee;

(4) a fee for requesting restoration of rights, and fee for requesting extension of a time limit; and

 (5) a fee for making a change in the bibliographic data, fee for requesting a patent right assessment report, and fee for requesting invalidation of a patent.

The amount of the fees referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be prescribed by the price administration department and the finance department of the State Council in conjunction with the patent administration department of the State Council.

Article 94 The fees provided for in the Patent Law and these Rules may be paid directly to the patent administration department of the State Council, or paid by way of postal remittance or bank transfer, or by way of any other means as prescribed by the patent administration department of the State Council.

Where any fee is paid by way of postal remittance or bank transfer, the applicant or the patentee shall indicate on the money order sent to the patent administration department of the State Council at least the correct filing number or patent number and the title of the fee paid. If the requirements as prescribed in this paragraph are not complied with, the payment of the fee shall be deemed not to have been made.

Where any fee is paid directly to the patent administration department of the State Council, the date on which the fee is paid shall be the date of payment; where any fee is paid by way of postal remittance, the date of remittance indicated by the postmark shall be the date of payment; where any fee is paid by way of bank transfer, the date on which the transfer of the fee is done shall be the date of payment.

Where any patent fee is paid in excess of the amount as prescribed, or paid in duplication or mistakenly, the party making the payment may, within three years from the date of payment, request a refund thereof from the patent administration department of the State Council, and the patent administration department of the State Council shall make such refund.

Article 95 The applicant shall pay the filing fee, the printing fee for publishing the application and the necessary additional fee for filing the application within two months from the date of filing or within 15 days from the date of receipt of the notification of acceptance of the application; if the fees are not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

Where the applicant claims priority, he or it shall pay the fee for claiming priority at the same time when paying the filing fee; if the fee for claiming priority is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the elaim for priority shall be deemed not to have been made.

Article 96 Where the party concerned makes a request for an examination as to substance or a reexamination, the relevant fee shall be paid within the time limit as prescribed respectively for such requests by the Patent Law and these Rules; if the fee is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the request is deemed not to have been  made.

Article 97 When the applicant goes through the formalities of registration, he or it shall pay the registration fee for the grant of the patent right, the printing fee for the announcement of the grant of the patent right, and the annual fee of the year in which the patent right is granted; if such fees are not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the registration of the grant of the patent right shall be deemed not to have been  made.

Article 98 The annual fee of a patent right after the year in which the patent is granted shall be paid before the expiration of the preceding year. If the patentee fails to pay or pay in full the fee, the patent administration department of the State Council shall notify the patentee that he or it is required to pay the fee or to make up the insufficiency within six months from the date of expiration of the time limit within which the annual fee is due to be paid, and at the same time pay a surcharge; the amount of the surcharge shall be, for each month of late payment, 5% of the whole amount of the annual fee of the year within which the annual fee is due to be paid; if the fee and the surcharge are not paid within the time limit, the patent right shall lapse from the date of expiration of the time limit within which the annual fee should be paid.

Article 99 A fee for requesting restoration of rights shall be paid within the relevant time limit prescribed in these Rules; if the fee is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the request shall be deemed not to have been made.

A fee for requesting extension of a time limit shall be paid before the date of expiration of the relevant time limit; if the fee is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the request shall be deemed not to have been made.

A fee for making a change in the bibliographic data, a fee for requesting a patent right assessment report and a fee for requesting invalidation of a patent shall be paid within one month from the date on which such request is filed; if the fee is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the request shall be deemed not to have been made.

Article 100 Where any applicant or patentee has difficulties in paying the various fees prescribed in these Rules, he or it may, in accordance with the provisions, submit a request to the patent administration department of the State Council for a reduction or postponement of the payment. Measures for the reduction and postponement of the payment shall be prescribed by the finance department of the State Council in conjunction with the price administration department of the State Council and the patent administration department of the State Council.

Chapter X Special Provisions Concerning International Application

Article 101 The patent administration department of the State Council receives international patent applications filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty in accordance with the provisions of Article 20 of the Patent Law.

With regard to an international patent application filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty designating China (hereinafter referred to as the international application), the requirements and procedures for entering the phase of process conducted by the patent administration department of the State Council (hereinafter referred to as entering the Chinese national phase) shall be subject to the provisions prescribed in this Chapter; where there are no such provisions in this Chapter, the relevant provisions in the Patent Law and in any other chapters of these Rules shall apply.

Article 102 Any international application which has been accorded an international date of filing in accordance with the Patent Cooperation Treaty and which has designated China shall be deemed as an application for patent filed with the patent administration department of the State Council, and the said international date of filing shall be deemed as the date of filing referred to in Article 28 of the Patent Law.

Article 103 Any applicant for an international application shall, within 30 months from the priority date as referred to in Article 2 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (in this Chapter referred to as the priority date), go through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase with the patent administration department of the State Council; if the applicant fails to go through the said formalities within the said time limit, he or it may, after paying a surcharge for the late entry, go through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase within 32 months from the priority date.

Article 104 Where the applicant goes through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase in accordance with the provisions of Article 103 of these Rules, he or it shall meet the following requirements:

(1) submitting in Chinese a written statement for entering the Chinese national phase, whereby indicating the number of the international application and the type of the patent right sought;

(2) paying the filing fee and the printing fee for publishing the application prescribed in the first paragraph of Article 93 of these Rules and, where necessary, the surcharge for the late entry prescribed in Article 103 of these Rules;

(3) submitting the Chinese translation of the description and the claims of the initial international application where an international application is filed in a foreign language;

(4) indicating in the written statement for entering the Chinese national phase the title of the invention-creation, the name or title of the applicant, the address of the applicant and the name of the inventor, all of which shall be in conformity with those recorded in the International Bureau under the World Intellectual Property Organization (hereinafter referred to as the International Bureau); indicating the name of the inventor in the said statement where the inventor is not indicated in the international application;

(5) where an international application is filed in a foreign language, submitting the Chinese translation of the abstract and submitting a copy of the drawings and a copy of the drawing of the abstract if there are drawings and the drawing of the abstract, in which the text matter of the drawings, if any, shall be replaced by the corresponding text matter in Chinese; where the intermational application is filed in Chinese, submitting a copy of the abstract and a copy of the drawing of the abstract which are contained in the documents of the international publication;

(6) where the formalities have been gone through with the International Bureau in the international phase in respect of a change of the applicant, submitting the documents certifying that the applicant as changed is entitled to the application; and

(7) paying the additional fee for filing the application when necessary, as prescribed in the first paragraph of Article 93 of these Rules.

Where the requirements set forth in subparagraphs (1) to (3) of the first paragraph of this Article are met, the patent administration department of the State Council shall issue the filing number, indicate clearly the date of entry of the international application into the Chinese national phase (hereinafter referred to as the date of entry), and notify the applicant that his or its international application has entered the Chinese national phase.

Where, after entering the Chinese national phase, it is found that an intenational application does not meet the requirements as set forth in subparagraphs (4) to (7) of the first paragraph of this Article, the patent administration department of the State Council shall notify the applicant that he or it is required to make corrections within a specified time limit; if the applicant fails to do so, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

Article 105 Where an international application falls under any of the following circumstances, the effect of the application in China shall cease:

(1) in the international phase, the international application is withdrawn or deemed withdrawn, or the designation of China of the international application is withdrawn;

(2) the applicant fails to go through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase within 32 months from the priority date in accordance with the provisions of Article 103 of these Rules; or

(3) while going through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase, the applicant fails to fulfill the requirements of subparagraphs (1) to (3) of Article 104 of these Rules at the expiration of the time limit of 32 months from the date of priority.

Where the effect of an international application ceases in China in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph (1) of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of Article 6 of these Rules shall not apply; where the effect of an international application ceases in China in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph (2) or (3) of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 6 of these Rules shall not apply.

Article 106 Where an international application is amended in the intermational phase and the applicant requests that the examination be based on the amended application, the Chinese translation of the amendments shall be furmished within two months from the date of entry. Where the Chinese translation is not furnished within the said time limit, the amendments made by the applicant in the international phase shall not be taken into consideration by the patent administration department of the State Council.

Article 107 Where an invention-creation for which an international application is filed falls under any of the circumstances prescribed in subparagraph (1) or (2) of Article 24 of the Patent Law and a statement has been made in this respect when the international application is filed, the applicant shall indicate it in the written statement for entering the Chinese national phase and, within two months from the date of entry, furnish the relevant certifying documents prescribed in the third paragraph of Article 30 of these Rules; if the applicant fails to indicate it or furnish the relevant certifying documents within the said time limit, the provisions of Article 24 of the Patent Law shall not apply to his or its application.

Article 108 Where the applicant has made indications concerning deposited biological materials in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the requirements provided for in subparagraph (3) of Article 24 of these Rules shall be deemed to have been fulfilled. In the statement for entering the Chinese national phase, the applicant shall indicate the documents recording the particulars of the deposit of biological materials, and the exact location of the record in the documents.

Where particulars concerning the deposit of biological materials are contained in the description of the international application as initially filed, but there is no such indication in the statement for entering the Chinese national phase, the applicant shall make corrections within four months from the date of entry. If the applicant fails to do so at the expiration of the said time limit, the biological materials shall be deemed not to have been deposited.

Where, within four months from the date of entry, the applicant submits the certificate of deposit and that of viability of biological materials to the patent administration department of the State Council, the biological materials shall be deemed to have been deposited within the time limit as provided for in subparagraph (1) of Article 24 of these Rules.

Article 109 Where an invention-creation for which an international application is filed is accomplished relying on the use of genetic resources, the applicant shall indicate the fact in the written statement for entering the Chinese national phase, and fill in the forms provided by the patent administration department of the State Council.

Article 110 Where the applicant claims one or multiple priorities in the international phase and such claims remain valid at the time when the application enters the Chinese national phase, the applicant shall be deemed to have submitted a written declaration in accordance with the provisions of Article 30 of the Patent Law.

The applicant shall pay the fee for claiming priority within two months from the date of entry; if the fee is not paid or not paid in full within the time limit, the priority shall be deemed not to have been claimed.

Where the applicant has submitted a copy of the earlier application in the international phase in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Cooperation Treaty, he or it shall be exempted from submitting a copy of the earlier application to the patent administration department of the State Council at the time when going through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase. Where the applicant has not submitted a copy of the earlier application in the international phase, the patent administration department of the State Council may, if it deems it necessary, notify the applicant that he or it is required to submit a copy of the earlier application within a specified time limit; if no copy is submitted at the expiration of the specified time limit, his or its claim for priority shall be deemed not to have been made.

Article 111 Where, before the expiration of 30 months from the priority date, the applicant files a request with the patent administration department of the State Council for early processing and examination of his or its international application, he or it shall, in addition to going through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase, submit a request in accordance with the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 23 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Where the international application has not been transmitted by the International Bureau to the patent administration department of the State Council, the applicant shall submit a certified copy of the international application.

Article 112 With regard to an international application for a patent for utility model, the applicant may amend the application documents on his or its own initiative within two months from the date of entry.

With regard to an international application for a patent for invention, the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 51 of these Rules shall apply.

Article 113 Where the applicant finds that there are mistakes in the Chinese translation of the description, the claims or the text matter in the drawings as submitted, he or it may correct the translation within the following time limits in accordance with the international application as filed:

(1) before the completion of preparations for publication of an application for a patent for invention or announcement of a patent right for utility model by the patent administration department of the State Council; and

(2) within three months from the date of receipt of the notification sent by the patent administration department of the State Council, stating that an application for a patent for invention has entered into examination as to substance.

Where the applicant intends to correct the mistakes in the translation, he or it shall file a written request and pay the prescribed fee for the correction of the translation.

Where the applicant corrects the translation as required by the notification from the patent administration department of the State Council, he or it shall, within a specified time limit, go through the formalities prescribed in the second paragraph of this Article; if the prescribed formalities are not gone through at the expiration of the time limit, the international application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

Article 114 Where the patent administration department of the State Council considers, after preliminary examination, that an intermational application for a patent for invention complies with the relevant provisions of the Patent Law and these Rules, it shall publish the application in the Patent Gazette; where the international application is filed in a language other than Chinese, the Chinese translation of the international application shall be published.

Where the international publication of an international application for a patent for invention by the International Bureau is in Chinese, the provisions of Article 13 of the Patent Law shall apply from the date of the international publication; if the international publication by the International Bureau is in a language other than Chinese, the provisions of Article 13 of the Patent Law shall apply from the date of the publication of the Chinese translation by the patent administration department of the State Council.

With regard to an international application, the publication referred to in Articles 21 and 22 of the Patent Law means the publication referred to in the first paragraph of this Article.

Article 115 Where two or more inventions or utility models are contained in an international application, the applicant may, from the date of entry, submit a divisional application in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 42 of these Rules.

Where, in the international phase, some parts of an international application are not the subject of international search or international preliminary examination because the International Searching Authority or the International Preliminary Examination Authority considers that the international application does not comply with the requirement of unity of invention prescribed in the Patent Cooperation Treaty, and because the applicant fails to pay the additional fee as prescribed, whereas at the time of going through the formalities for entering the Chinese national phase, the applicant requests that the said parts be the basis of examination, the patent administration department of the State Council, finding that the decision concerning unity of invention made by the Intermational Searching Authority or the International Preliminary Examination Authority is justified, shall notify the applicant that he or it is required to pay the restoration fee for unity of invention within a specified time limit. If the fee is not paid or not paid in full at the expiration of the specified time limit, those parts of the international application which have not been searched or have not been the subject of international preliminary examination shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

Article 116 Where an international application in the international phase has been refused to be accorded an international date of filing or has been declared to be deemed withdrawn by an international authority concerned, the applicant may, within two months from the date of receipt of the notification, request the International Bureau to send the copy of any document in the file of the international application to the patent administration department of the State Council, and shall go through the formalities prescribed in Article 103 of these Rules with the patent administration department of the State Council within the said time limit. After receiving the documents sent by the International Bureau, the patent administration department of the State Council shall review the decision made by the international authority concerned to find whether it is correct.

Article 117 Where, with regard to a patent right granted on the basis of an international application, the scope of protection determined in accordance with the provisions of Article 59 of the Patent Law exceeds the scope of the international application in its original language because of incorrect translation, the scope of protection granted to the international application shall be determined according to what is limited in the original language of the application; where the scope of protection granted to the international application is narrower than the scope of the application in its original language, the scope of protection shall be determined according to the patent when it is granted.

Chapter XI Supplementary Provisions

Article 118 Any person may, after approval by the patent administration department of the State Council, consult or copy the files of the published or announced patent applications or the Patent Register, and any person may request the patent administration department of the State Council to issue a copy of extracts from the Patent Register.

Where a patent application is withdrawn or deemed withdrawn or is rejected, the files of the application shall not be preserved after the expiration of two years from the date on which the application ceases to be valid.

Where the patent right is abandoned, wholly invalidated or ceased, the files of the patent shall not be preserved after the expiration of three years from the date on which the patent right ceases to be valid.

Article 119 Any application which is filed with, or any formality which is gone through with, the patent administration department of the State Council, shall be signed or sealed by the applicant, the patentee, any other interested person or his or its representative, and shall be sealed by a patent agency if such agency is appointed.

Where a change in the name of the inventor, or in the name or title, nationality and address of the applicant or the patentee, or in the title and address of the patent agency or the name of the patent agent is requested, a request for a change in the bibliographic data shall be submitted to the patent administration department of the State Council, together with the relevant certifying documents.

Article 120 Any document relating to a patent application or patent right which is to be sent by mail to the patent administration department of the State Council, shall be sent by registered letter, not by parcel.

With regard to any document which is submitted to, or any formality which is gone through with, the patent administration department of the State Council, except for a patent application filed for the first time, the filing number or the patent number, the title of the invention-creation and the name or title of the applicant or the patentee shall be indicated.

Only documents relating to the same application shall be included in one letter.

Article 121 Various kinds of application documents shall be typed or printed, and all the characters shall be in black ink, neat and clear, and free from any alterations. The drawings shall be made in black ink with the aid of drafting instruments, and the lines shall be uniformly thick and well defined, and free from any alterations.

The request, description, claims, drawings and abstract shall be numbered separately in Arabic numerals and arranged in numerical order.

The written language of an application shall run from left to right. Only one side of each sheet shall be used.

Article 122 The patent administration department of the State Council shall formulate Guidelines for Examination in accordance with the Patent Law and these Rules.

Article 123 These Rules shall be effective as of July 1, 2001. The Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China approved by the State Council on December 12, 1992 and promulgated by the Patent Office of the People's Republic of China on December 21, 1992, shall be repealed simultaneously.