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1. Average period until First Action
In Japan, examination begins in response to a Request for Substantive Examination, which must be made within three years from the filing date.
According to JPO statistics, the period from the filing of a Request for Substantive Examination until the first action (typically a First Notice of Reasons for Rejection or a Decision of Allowance) was 9.1 months in 2024 on average for all applications.
In accelerated examinations, the average period is reduced to 2.3 months, and in super-accelerated examinations, the average period is further reduced to 0.8 months.
If you would like to expedite the examination, you can apply for accelerated examination or super-accelerated examination. In general, foreign applicants satisfy the requirements of applying for accelerated examination since a corresponding application filed abroad is sufficient to qualify.
If you would like to pursue accelerated examination, the PPH, or super-accelerated examination, please contact us for the specific requirements.
2. Trends regarding the average period until First Action or registration
The following graph shows the historical trends. (Adapted from a JPO graph)
The total period from a Request for Substantive Examination to registration was 13.0 months.
According to the above graph, the numbers in 2024 were the shortest in the 10-year period shown.
3. Deferral of Examination
On the other hand, you generally cannot defer examination once you have filed a Request for Substantive Examination.
The only exception is that examination of a divisional application can be suspended if the original, parent application is pending at the appeal stage.
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