Patents Examined in Finland Fast-tracked in Hungary

The National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland (NBPR) launches a Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) cooperation programme with the Hungarian Patent Office. The programme, starting on 4 January 2010, is one in a series of PPH initiatives between patent offices which aims to improve patent quality and allow applicants to obtain patents faster and more efficiently.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the heads of offices, President Martti Enäjärvi and President Miklós Bendzsel, in Budapest, at the Embassy of Finland, on 22 October 2009.

“This PPH agreement between the national patent offices of Finland and Hungary is the first of its kind in Europe. NBPR has concluded similar agreements earlier this year with the national patent offices of Japan, the United States of America, and South Korea,” says Martti Enäjärvi, President of NBPR.

An applicant can request for accelerated processing at another PPH office if the claims in their application at the first office have been found to be allowable. Detailed instructions on how to request accelerated processing will be available at the website of NBPR, before the launch of the programme.

The PPH co-operation between NBPR and the Hungarian Patent Office starts as a one-year trial, after which it can be extended. The purpose of the trial programme is to gauge the interest of applicants and determine if the programme improves quality and efficiency. Both offices will provide notice of any adjustment in the trial period.

Further details:

Pekka Launis
Vice President
Email: firstname.lastname@prh.fi
Tel. (09) 6939 5443

Juha Rekola
Development Director
Email: firstname.lastname@prh.fi
Tel. (09) 6939 5504

Matti Pasanen
Examiner
Email: firstname.lastname@prh.fi
Tel. (09) 6939 5843