Scheduled to take effect in October, China’s latest revisions to its intellectual property laws will affect foreign and domestic drug makers. The new “standard for novelty” principle requires that a patent be issued if the invention is truly new, not just new to China. The revisions also eliminate the requirement that patents on Chinese inventions be filed in China first. Patents filed first internationally must be submitted through the State Intellectual Property Office in order to protect national secrets. The revisions will also apply harsher penalties for patent infringement. Among the more controversial revisions is the rule that compulsory licenses can be issued if patent holders have not practiced their inventions within three years of the patents being issued. Also, a new law allows manufacturers to start developing and producing products that are seeking regulatory approval before the original patents have expired.

Source: Nature Biotechnology