Notice of the China National Intellectual Property Administration on the Full Implementation of Submission of Patent Electronic Documents in Extensible Markup Language (XML) Format

In order to improve the efficiency of patent examination and promote the informatization of patent-related work, and in accordance with Article 6 of the Provisions on Patent Electronic Filing (Order No. 57 of the China National Intellectual Property Administration), the following matters regarding the full implementation of submission of patent electronic documents in Extensible Markup Language (XML) format are hereby notified:

I.From January 1, 2026 (inclusive), patent applications, requests for reexamination, requests for invalidation, and related procedures handled in electronic form shall be submitted in XML format. The China National Intellectual Property Administration will no longer accept patent electronic documents submitted in non-XML formats.

II.The scope of patent electronic documents required to be submitted in XML format includes:

• Chinese national      application documents for invention patents, utility model patents, and      design patents;

• International      application documents entering the Chinese national phase under the Patent      Cooperation Treaty (PCT);

• Documents for requests      for reexamination;

• Documents for requests      for invalidation; and

• Other documents      submitted in the course of various procedures, including requests,      declarations, statements of opinions, and amendments.

A detailed list of XML-format documents submitted by uploading files through the Patent Business Handling System is provided in the appendix to this Notice. Other XML-format documents in form-based format shall be completed and submitted directly through the Patent Business Handling System in accordance with the relevant requirements.

III.Except for nucleotide or amino acid sequence listings, which shall comply with WIPO Standard ST.26, all XML-format documents shall conform to the data standards issued by CNIPA.The technical specifications for patent electronic document data standards, XML format conversion tools, and user operation manuals are available in the “Tools Download” section of the Patent Business Handling System(http://cponline.cnipa.gov.cn).

IV.Applicants and patent agencies shall optimize their business processes in accordance with the XML-format submission requirements, strengthen quality management, and diligently fulfill their document verification obligations to ensure that submitted XML-format documents are accurate and complete.

Where document errors arise due to XML format conversion, remedial measures may be granted provided that sufficient evidence can be submitted.

China National Intellectual Property Administration

November 12, 2025

List of Patent Electronic Documents Required to Be Submitted in XML Format