At a glance
Policy ID: 97
Status: Closed
Priority: High
Issue summary
Under the Patent Regulations, a translation of a PCT specification into English must take place no later than the national phase entry (NPE) date. Some jurisdictions permit the translation to be filed in a period after NPE. Comparably, it may be more burdensome to meet Australia's translation requirement within time.
The current timeframe is intended to balance the rights of overseas applicants and the rights of Australian businesses who have to operate around patents. Delaying the time an applicant who has applied for patent protection in Australia must disclose their invention in English may disadvantage Australian businesses that need to understand the invention and avoid infringing.
Comments
IP Australia has reformed some of the PCT Translation requirements (see item 22). Given that there have already been reforms in this area, and the proposed change could have a negative effect on Australian businesses, IP Australia has chosen not to pursue this issue.