In 2016, 13,107 requests for re-examination were received and 17,623 cases were concluded. There were also 3,969 requests for invalidation, and 4,100 invalidation cases were concluded, a year-on-year increase of 12%.
The average examination period in 2016 was 11.9 months for re-examination, down 1.8 months, and 5.1 months for invalidation, down 0.7 months.
From January to November 2016, the Patent Reexamination Board handled 1,733 invalidation cases under its expedited procedure, accounting for 57% of invalidation cases. The average examination period for these expedited cases was 3.9 months, substantially shorter than in the previous year. In particular, the time between the oral hearing and issuance of the decision was shortened, helping reduce the overall invalidation examination period from 5.8 months in 2015 to 5.1 months by the end of 2016.
Source: http://www.iprchn.com/Index_NewsContent.aspx?NewsId=97434