Are foreigners allowed to take the Chinese patent bar exam?
On August 12, 2020, China’s Ministry of Commerce released the “Overall Plan for Pilot Program of Comprehensively Deepening the Service Trade”. For the first time, foreigners are allowed to take the Chinese patent bar exam and, if they pass, receive a patent agent qualification certificate. With the certificate, foreigners can work at Chinese patent agencies as well as become partners/shareholders in Chinese patent agencies. However, there are conditions for taking the exam. The most important condition is that test takers must be Chinese permanent residents, and the other conditions include that the test-taker must already be admitted as a patent agent in another jurisdiction and the scheme operates in designated pilot areas (currently 28 provinces and cities (regions) such as Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, etc.).
