1. Saudi Arabia (SA) acceded to the PCT on May 3, 2013 and applications with international filing date of August 3, 2013 and later automatically designate SA for national phase entry with a 30 month deadline. The Saudi Patent Office (SPO) has not issued the implementing regulations relating to PCT filings, accordingly, the SPO has not begun accepting PCT national phase entries or acting as a receiving office.

2. Iran (IR) acceded to the PCT on July 4, 2013 and applications with international filing date of October 4, 2013 and later automatically designate IR for national phase entry with a 30 month deadline. As of the date of this e-mail, the Iranian Intellectual Property Office (IIPO) has not issued the implementing regulations relating to PCT filings, accordingly, the IIPO has not begun accepting PCT national phase entries or acting as a receiving office.

3. Earlier this year, the Jordanian Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed new amendments to the Patent Law. These amendments have not yet been approved or published in the Official Gazette.

4. Both Oman and Bahrain are now signatories to the Hague Convention. Accordingly, documents previously requiring legalization may now be Apostilled instead.

5. Algeria and Iran patent offices have begun substantive examination for all pending and new applications. 

6. The Bahraini Patent Office has begun requesting additional documentation for the filing of a patent application. The requirements now include: Apostilled POA, simply signed inventor assignment form and Arabic translation of the priority document (if claimed).

Should you have any specific inquiries regarding the subject matter, please contact us atinfo@sabaip.com.