Question:

I understand that substantive examination of invention patent applications is mainly carried out by Patent Examination Cooperation Centers. How many of these centers are there in China, and how many invention applications do they examine?

Answer:

SIPO has seven Patent Examination Cooperation Centers, in Beijing, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Henan, Hubei, Tianjin and Sichuan, with approximately 9,300 employees. The Beijing Center has approximately 2,650 employees, and the other six centers have approximately 6,650 in total.

In 2016, substantive examination was completed for 675,000 invention patent applications. Of these, the cooperation centers examined 640,000, or 95%. The Beijing Center examined 150,000, and the other six centers examined 490,000.