As we reported previously, changes were introduced into Canadian patent practice in October 2022 to further streamline Canadian patent examination, to pave the way for a patent term adjustment (PTA) system in Canada as per the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). The PTA system is set forth in the recent amendments to the Patent Rules published on December 18, 2024, which came into force on January 1, 2025. The purpose of the PTA system is to compensate patentees for unreasonable delays in the processing and grant of applications by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO). PTA requirements To qualify for a PTA, a patent must meet the following criteria: Have a filing date (which is the PCT filing date for a Canadian national phase case) on or after December 1, 2020; Have an issue date on or after December 2, 2025; Issue after the later of 5 years from filing or 3 years from requesting examination (passing the “5/3 threshold” - see below). Furthermore, to obtain a PTA for a patent meeting the above-noted criteria, a request must be filed together with a fee (currently C$2,500) within three months of patent issuance Any PTA will be added on to the base “20-year from filing” calculation of patent term, and will also require the payment of annual maintenance fees during any additional patent term as a result of the PTA. PTA calculation - the “5/3 threshold” The starting point for the calculation of PTA is any additional days to patent issuance beyond the later of: 5 years from the Canadian national phase entry date for a PCT-based case, the Canadian filing date for a non-PCT case, or the presentation date (i.e., the date that the actual divisional filing documents are submitted) for a divisional application; or 3 years from date of requesting examination. The next step of the calculation will be to subtract from the above additional days any days in which the processing of the application was in the Applicant’s hands (any overlapping days in this regard are only counted once), such as delays in paying fees or attending to filing formalities, time to respond to CIPO notices, extensions, periods of abandonment, the period after the filing of a first request for continued examination (RCE), etc. As such, the PTA is only focused on any delays attributable to CIPO. Practical considerations One strategy to maximize the potential of obtaining a PTA is to request examination closer to the deadline, which is 4 years from the PCT filing date for a Canadian national phase case, or 4 years from the Canadian filing date for a non-PCT case. The basis of this strategy is to try to shift the balance towards period (2) noted above being applied to the PTA calculation. In doing so, any delays attributable to the Applicant before requesting examination are no longer relevant to the calculation. This strategy is less relevant for divisional applications, as the deadline for requesting examination is often only 3 months after the presentation date (when the divisional filing documents are submitted). A further strategic consideration relates to cases in which a third Examiner's report is issued or an RCE is filed. The filing of an RCE applies in the following scenarios: Following the issuance of a third Examiner’s report in cases in which examination was requested on or after October 3, 2022; Re-opening examination after allowance, for all cases. Since the issuance of a third Examiner's report (even in cases where examination was requested prior to October 3, 2022) or the filing of an RCE will have a significant negative impact on the PTA calculation, Applicants should try to streamline prosecution, to file amendments and address any issues early on during examination, to avoid the issuance of a third Examiner's report and/or the filing of an RCE. Similarly, Applicants should avoid re-opening examination after allowance, which requires the filing of an RCE (even in cases where examination was requested prior to October 3, 2022). While it is predicted1 that few patents will qualify for a PTA in view of the issues noted above and CIPO’s efforts to reduce pendency, the calculation will in most cases be relatively straightforward, allowing Applicants to assess whether requesting PTA is worthwhile before proceeding. The Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement published with the final version of the new Patent Rules predicts about 113 PTA applications per year over the next 10 years.

This year’s World IP Day is upon us, with the theme “IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future”. In honor of this theme (and at the risk of making our adult readers feel a bit less accomplished), we thought it would be appropriate to highlight some of these wonderful inventions of young, innovative minds. US 8,371,246: Device for drying pets  In 2011, 9-year-old Marissa Streng invented a device to more effectively dry her pet dog Mojo after his baths. The product is now apparently sold under the brand Puff-N-Fluff. US 7,726,080: Under-floor storage   At the age of 14, Rebecca Hyndman patented an under-floor storage system intended for use in locations where tile floors are normally used, such as in kitchens and in bathrooms. As a result of this achievement, she was given the honor of introducing President Obama at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, immediately prior to his signing the America Invents Act into law. US 6,029,874: Article carrying device for attachment to a bicycle for carrying baseball bats, gloves and other sports equipment or objects   Biking to baseball practice can be quite the challenge when one has to carry both a bat and a glove simultaneously. From this problem sprang the “Glove and Battie Caddie”, invented by Austin Meggitt at the age of eleven. The Glove and Battie Caddie holds a baseball, bat, and glove on the front of a bike. US 7,374,228: Toy vehicle adapted for medical use   At the age of 8, young Spencer Whale invented a toy vehicle adapted for transporting a child and their required medical equipment. According to the patent, the toy allows children who are hooked up to medical equipment to move more freely around a hospital, with the intention of making their stay more enjoyable. US 5,231,733: Aid for grasping round knobs   One of the youngest people to obtain a patent was Sydney Dittman of Houston, Texas. In 1992, when Sydney was only 2 years old, she invented a tool out of parts of her toys in order to open kitchen drawers that her parents had told her to stay out of. Upon noticing that the device would be great for handicapped people to use, her father started the patenting process, and the resulting patent issued when Sydney was only 4 years old. Please join us to celebrate youth innovation on this World IP Day!

Excess claim fees on the horizon As reported earlier, the Canadian government published proposed amendments to the Patent Rules on July 3, 2021. A significant component of the proposal is the introduction of excess claim fees on the order of $100 CAD for each claim beyond 20 claims, which will be payable when requesting examination, and will be re-assessed upon allowance to determine if further claim fees are due when paying the final fee based on changes in the number of claims during examination. Consider acting now In anticipation of the likely introduction of such a regime in early 2022 (which may be announced with only 30 days’ notice), Applicants may wish to begin assessment of their Canadian patent matters and consider requesting examination by the end of 2021 to avoid the payment of such excess claim fees and retain the right to present a larger number of claims for examination. Based on the transitional provisions in the proposed Rules, taking such action now shall avoid payment of such excess claim fees when requesting examination and when paying the final fee upon allowance. We thus recommend that Applicants consider taking such action this year to retain the benefits of the current regime, particularly for cases with a large number of claims as well as those which were already being considered for requesting examination in the short term. Stay Tuned! While the exact details and timing of the upcoming changes remain unknown, the earlier proposal suggests that they will likely be soon and with little advance notice. Please stay tuned for upcoming news in due course, and do not hesitate to contact a member of our patent team for guidance through the ultimate transition.

Canadian Patent Practice has undergone several changes in recent years, in many cases to fulfill the requirements of various international treaties/agreements, including those of the Patent Law Treaty (PLT) and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). On July 3, 2021, the Canadian government published proposed amendments to the Patent Rules, primarily to further streamline Canadian patent examination to pave the way for a future patent term adjustment (PTA) system in Canada as per the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), as well as to bring Canadian practice in line with upcoming Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) sequence listing requirements. The proposed amendments have been published for a 30-day consultation period and may be subsequently modified. Therefore, it is unknown which of the proposed changes will be retained and in what form, and when the final version of the amended Rules will come into force. However, the proposals provide a preview of the types of changes being considered by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, which notably include the following: Excess claim fees Like many jurisdictions, Canada is considering the introduction of government fees for excess claims. The proposal is a fee on the order of $100 CAD for each claim beyond 20 claims, which will be payable when requesting examination, and will be re-assessed upon allowance to determine if further claim fees are due when paying the final fee based on changes in the number of claims during examination. It will thus be prudent to voluntarily amend the claims prior to or when requesting examination to control such fees. Request for Continued Examination (RCE) The objective of the new system is to reduce the pendency of patent applications, with a goal of putting an application in condition for allowance with no more than three Examiner’s reports. Continuing examination beyond three reports would require the filing of an RCE, which would entitle the Applicant to up to two further Examiner’s reports. The filing of an RCE is also proposed for returning an allowed case to examination, which would replace the current (and relatively recent) mechanism to withdraw an application from allowance. The proposed RCE fee is on the order of $816 CAD. Conditional Notice of Allowance (CNOA) Rather than issuing further Examiner’s reports relating to any outstanding formalities, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office will have a new tool to issue a CNOA, indicating that the application is in condition for allowance as long as certain outstanding minor defects are corrected. This provides a more efficient path for Applicants in such situations to both correct the defects and pay the final fee, following which the case would proceed to grant. New PCT Sequence Listing Standard In view of the upcoming introduction (on January 1, 2022) of the new PCT “ST.26” sequence listing standard, Canada plans to bring its sequence listing requirements in line with those of the PCT, which will similarly be adopted by patent offices around the world. Housekeeping matters Otherwise, the proposed amendments aim to provide greater flexibility for Applicants in certain areas such as the correction of various types of errors and fee payments, notably in view of the practical application of recent changes to Canadian patent practice gleaned since they came into force in late 2019. Stay Tuned! As noted above, the final form and timing of the upcoming changes are unknown. Please stay tuned for upcoming news in due course, and do not hesitate to contact a member of our patent team for guidance through the ultimate transition.