Singapore has become a major hub for IP-driven companies due to the suitable environment that it provides for the companies. Companies always look for a destination that has multiple benefits and has strong business environment. Singapore always fits in this domain and major industries and business seeks to establish their foot in Singapore capturing the market in the Asia-Pacific. Each business knows the importance of IP and the value that IP holds as an asset to the company. In this pursuit, patents form an important part of the IP asset for the company and are considered as the top priority for the company. Patents represent the value for the company which holds a lot of importance. The need for its registration remains at the top priority. We will discuss the Singaporre patents registration process in this piece.

Getting into the process

An invention is done and now the inventor is willing to file for a patent in Singapore. The invention must be new, involves an inventive step, and be capable of industrial application. An invention of a method of treatment of the human or animal body by surgery or therapy or of diagnosis practiced on the human or animal body shall not be taken to be capable of industrial application and hence, is not patentable.

^{[Image Source: https://www.ipos.gov.sg/protect-ip/apply-for-a-trade-mark]}

For filing the patent application, the inventor will file PF1/PF8 together with the filing fee of S$160.00. The application procedure remains the same where the inventor will be including all relevant information that remains common in all jurisdictions. This includes a set of the specification of your invention, i.e. the description, a claim(s) and a drawing(s) (if any), and an abstract for your invention. A general requirement will be address proof which will be for service in Singapore.

For more information regarding the fees, one can visit: https://www.ipos.gov.sg/protect-ip/apply-for-a-patent/forms-fees

Search and Examination

After the submission of the patent application, the application then moves for preliminary examination where the examination will check whether the application is complete and then will proceed for the publication of the application. Moving further, the patent application will now move to search and examination. The inventor must take note that the examination process will not start until the request for search and examination will be filed by the applicant along with the prescribed fees.

Singapore also allows for priority claim If an applicant has an application filed earlier in a Paris Convention Treaty or a World Trade Organization (WTO) member country (other than Singapore), he may claim priority from this first-filed application, provided the Singapore registration is filed within 12 months from the date of the first filing. Similarly, an application that is first filed in Singapore can be used to claim priority in a corresponding application filed in a Paris Convention country or a World Trade Organization member country, provided that the corresponding application is filed within 12 months from the date of the first-filed Singapore application.

The estimated time for a patent to be granted is two to four years on average. For amendment of patent, a request can be made by filing Patent Form 13 (PF13) or Patent Form 13A (PF13A) along with the copy of the specification with the proposed amendments. Also if an inventor wants to fix the date of filing without patent claims, the Singapore Patent Acts and Rules specify its filing as provisional. But the inventor needs to file the complete application with claims. Finally, after clearing all the stages, the patent is granted for 20 years.

The experienced professional at the GPF has helped clients from around the world for filing their inventions for patents in Singapore. The team has successfully led the whole process leading to the grant of the Patents.  

Author: Saransh Chaturvedi an associate at Global Patent Filing,  in case of any queries please contact/write back us at support@globalpatentfiling.com.